How to Reduce Histamine in the Body

There are things you can do right now to reduce histamine in the body.

The root of extra histamine release may just be chronic inflammation. 

When I hear people talking about histamine intolerance, may think histamine is the bad guy and that’s not the case.

Histamine is an important neurotransmitter that is vital to the immune system. 

When you are injured, histamine is released to help prevent infection and repair any damage.

The problem arises when you are chronically inflamed or infected and therefore releasing a lot of histamines. 

Another common problem is not being able to break down the histamine you have in your system so it starts to get backed up and overflow so to speak.

This causes a load of symptoms such as migraines, rapid heartbeat, anxiety, hives/rashes, food allergies, brain fog, bladder issues and runny nose.

Histamine intolerance symptoms

My personal journey in living with Histamine Intolerance

I’ve been living with histamine intolerance for most of my life but have only recognized what was going on in the last few years.

It’s been a crazy journey of doctors shaking their heads, not being able to tell me why my weight was dropping so fast or why I constantly struggle with migraines. I have links below which are affiliate links to products that have changed my life and I fully recommend.

Looking back over my teenage years, all of my odd symptoms that had the doctor’s stumped now make sense.

• Anemic
• Smells/perfumes causing migraines
• Low blood pressure
• Acne
• Muscle wasting
• Rapid heartbeat
• Fungal infections
• Anxiety
• Protein in urine
• Memory loss
• Brain fog
• Confusion
• Allergic to many medications
• Dizziness
• Hard to regulate body temperature
• Cold sweats
• Sinus Infections

I struggled with random odd symptoms that other people didn’t and they never seem to fit together into anything the doctors could treat.

Why did my mosquito bites swell so huge and other people didn’t’?

Why couldn’t I tolerate scented candles or air fresheners?

How come bone broth made others feel better but I felt worse?

I needed to find a way to lower histamine levels fast.

So how do you eliminate histamine in the body?

Resolving your symptoms greatly depends on the reason your histamine levels are high, to begin with. I began dealing with my gut first. I spent 2 months on a low fodmap meal plan while taking antibacterial and anti-fungal supplements.

I took Oil of Oregano, Olive Leaf, Cat’s Claw and Interfase Plus. I believe the interface plus was so vital to my feeling better.

It contains a number of enzymes that break down the coating or shell around bacteria and fungus which really boosts how well the oil of oregano and other antifungals work.

Killing off the bad gut bacteria really gave my body the break it needed and assisted in lowering inflammation and lowering histamine levels. Candida in the gut create mycotoxins which raise histamine levels.

Mycotoxins also cause inflammation in the brain because they pass the blood-brain barrier.

After 2 months of low fodmap eating and taking bacteria killing supplements, I started to notice a huge difference in how I felt. Bloating was decreasing, I was thinking clearer, more energy, going to the bathroom more regularly and hope.

I began to have hope that I could get to the bottom of my symptoms. Lowering histamine levels made a world of difference in how I felt.

I want to speak for a moment on antihistamines. I hear a lot “why not just take antihistamines”?

First of all, just taking antihistamines would be a band-aid effect. I want to resolve the problem at the root, not take a pill for the rest of my life.

Second, most of my histamine symptoms are neurological in nature. Migraines, rapid heartbeat, confusion, low blood pressure. There isn’t an antihistamine for H3 and H4 receptors which control the neurological aspect.

Taking Benadryl may help someone temporarily dealing with hives, but that was never my case.

Many people with histamine intolerance are “under methylators”. They have a very hard time completing methylation which can cause b12 levels to get dangerously low because it’s hard for their bodies to absorb.

I started adding Methylated B vitamins to my regimen and immediately noticed a difference in how I felt. I’m talking within a few hours I noticed a difference and within days I had mysterious symptoms disappear such as tingling in my hands and feet, different twitches and nerve issues throughout my body.

Other tips and tricks I learned to keep my symptoms at bay:

1. Drink lots of clean water

Since histamine is water soluble, you can actually dilute histamine in your bloodstream if you feel a flush coming on. 

I have avoided several migraines that I felt coming on by drinking a lot of clean water when I felt the histamine release. 

Clean water also aids in proper methylation and helps remove toxins in your gut.

We use the Berkey Water Filter to make sure our drinking water is free of pesticides, fluoride, lead, and other toxic chemicals.

2. Temporarily cut out high histamine foods

Often, eating higher histamine foods can push your histamine over the edge. While you are working on reducing inflammation, it may be helpful to cut out those foods.

High histamine foods can include:

• leftovers (meat in particular)
• Vinegar
• Fermented foods
• Aged meats

Related: High Histamine Foods List

3. Consider a DAO Supplement

DAO is a natural enzyme that your gut creates to breakdown extra histamine and if your gut is in bad shape, chances are you’re not making enough.

By temporarily supplementing with DAO you can essentially eat away the extra histamine in your system thereby reducing your histamine intolerance reactions.

This shouldn’t be used as a lifelong supplement but until you have improved your gut health and got a handle on your inflammation.

This Histamine Block by Seeking Health happens to be our favorite.

It’s great for bloating, cramping, and food intolerances due to histamine.

4. Manage your stress

Believe it or not, your thoughts play a huge role in your health. Other than not consuming high histamine foods, keeping stress low is a major key to lowering histamine levels. Having an event that I thought was stressful, even an intense conversation would start to trigger symptoms.

Being stressed about a situation can cause mast cells to release histamine into the bloodstream. 

When you are stressed, your body produces stress chemicals and turns on the fight or flight response which is often unnecessary. 

Unfortunately, your body can’t tell the difference between some realistic imaginations and what is really happening. 

Taking your thoughts captive, spending time outdoors and asking for a third party opinion of a situation may help give you clarity on your stress. 

It’s common to take yourself too serious and often all you need is some time outdoors and laughter.

Don’t underestimate the role that stress plays in your histamine intolerance. Your perspective on life is so important.

Need some serious help with stress? I address it in this article.

5. Try an Anti-Inflammatory Diet

I can proudly say…of all the diets I have tried for histamine intolerance, the Autoimmune Paleo Diet has been the best for me.

In the past I have tried:

• Keto
• Low Fodmap
• Low-Carb
• Candida Diet

I did find benefits to all these diets but didn’t get dramatic relief until finding the AIP Diet. I’m sure the reason is that the autoimmune paleo diet goes after inflammation.

If you reduce inflammation you reduce histamine release. Histamine is released because of inflammation.

Related: What I Eat on the AIP Diet

On this AIP diet, I am focused on filling my body with nutrition by eating 6-9 cups of vegetables a day. 

I include healthy fats like coconut cream, olive oil, coconut oil, and beef tallow. 

You can try my morning Coconut AIP smoothie!

Just several days into the AIP Diet my inflammation started to drain away, migraines disappeared, brain fog lifted, my skin cleared up and my bladder didn’t bother me anymore.

Honestly, I was shocked at the results because I feel like I have tried so many other things.

Need a detailed program to follow?

You can find the Autoimmune Elimination Program by Dr. Jockers that’s filled with recipe videos, worksheets, meal plans, and supplements.

Finding out what is causing inflammation in your body is a must if you want to reduce histamine levels. 

The histamine release will not stop if you continue to eat things you are allergic to. 

6. Cut out chemicals

This is huge, I can’t tell you the number of times I have smelled fumes off of a new item, cleaners or perfume and got a migraine 10 min later.

I buy clean unscented lotions, deodorants, cleaners, and makeup. These harsh chemicals are not meant to be on your skin or in your food. 

I also got rid of our microwave and haven’t looked back.

It can seem overwhelming to cut out chemicals because they are everywhere but it’s important to get the big ones like pesticides on produce, fragrances in lotions, and household cleaners.

Take time to read ingredients and if you can’t understand them, you probably shouldn’t put it on your skin or breath it in.

Related: How to Reduce Toxins in your Home

7. Don’t touch any leftover foods.

This one really sounds ridiculous until you realize that leftover food begins to grow bacteria and histamines while it sits in the fridge. I have had some of my worst reactions eating leftover chicken.

Anyone dealing with histamine problems should never eat leftover food. This will lower histamine levels.

8. Stay away from fermented foods.

Fermented foods such as yogurt, vinegar, and saur kraut are supposed to be miracle foods right? Well not if you have histamine issues.

Fermented foods have high histamine levels already so adding them to a body which has high levels will kick off some serious symptoms. Stay away from fermented foods to lower histamine levels.

I do have a probiotic that is low histamine that I can take called Prescript Assist which was designed with low histamine strains of bacteria. In general, you want to consume lower histamine levels in foods. I have a short list in this article on histamine.

Conclusion

Remember that histamine isn’t the bad guy. It’s simply being released because there is some type of inflammation going on in your body whether it be from the food you are eating or something in your environment or stress you are experiencing.

Let me know your favorite ways on how to reduce histamine in the body, in the comments below.