I have been having issues with my eyes for a couple years now. At first I thought it was allergies. But it seemed to affect me at odd times of the year and some days I would go weeks with no issues and some weeks were every day. In just the last year, I was correlating it with different foods I was eating or things I was drinking. I thought it was from gluten intolerance, and the sulfites, and so on. I still wasn’t sure what it was that was causing my eyes to HURT! They didn’t itch as much as they burned! It seemed to affect my left eye so much more than my right also, which again, I thought was odd. It was after I ate tomatoes for about 3 days and wanted to rip my eyeballs out of my head that I wanted to find out the reason WHY!
The more research I did, I found that it could be a histamine intolerance. Great!! Just one more thing to be intolerant too!! (I am also gluten intolerant and dairy intolerant.) What is a histamine intolerance you might be wondering….
Histamine intolerance is generally caused by a defect in the body’s histamine breakdown process, in one of two enzyme systems: histamine N-methyl transferase (HMT) and diamine oxidase (DAO). (1) Deficiency in the DAO enzyme system, found in the intestinal mucosa, has been suggested as the most probable cause of histamine intolerance. (2) There are likely genetic variations in individual enzyme function, but when activity of either of these enzymes is insufficient, the resulting excess of histamine may cause numerous symptoms resembling an allergic reaction. Common symptoms of histamine intolerance include: (3)
- Pruritus (itching especially of the skin, eyes, ears, and nose)
- Urticaria (hives) (sometimes diagnosed as “idiopathic urticaria”)
- Tissue swelling (angioedema) especially of facial and oral tissues and sometimes the throat, the latter causing the feeling of “throat tightening”
- Hypotension (drop in blood pressure)
- Tachycardia (increased pulse rate, “heart racing”)
- Symptoms resembling an anxiety or panic attack
- Chest pain
- Nasal congestion, runny nose, seasonal allergies
- Conjunctivitis (irritated, watery, reddened eyes)
- Some types of headaches that differ from those of migraine
- Fatigue, confusion, irritability
- Very occasionally loss of consciousness usually lasting for only one or two seconds
- Digestive upset, especially heartburn, “indigestion”, and reflux
Histamine intolerance is unlike other food allergies or sensitivities in that the response is cumulative, not immediate. Imagine it like a cup of water. When the cup is very full (high amounts of histamine in the diet), even a drop of additional water will cause the cup to overflow (symptoms activated). But when the cup is less full, it would take more water (histamine) to cause a response. This makes histamine intolerance tricky to recognize. (references courtesy of http://chriskresser.com/headaches-hives-and-heartburn-could-histamine-be-the-cause)
Looking back over the last year or so, I realize I had a lot of the symptoms, but since recently working with a Naturopath to help me heal some of my gut issues, the only thing symptom that is left is in my sinuses.
So for the next 30 days I am going to avoid foods that are high in histamines and also start supplementing with a natural histamine supplement to help my body break down the histamines and therefore help me to tolerate them.
Listed below is what I will be cutting out of my system and if by chance I do have some of them, I will use the histamine supplement to help my body break it down and hopefully have no reaction.
The hardest things will be alcohol (beer, wine and ciders) and lemon as I use it in my water every day! Oh and chocolate… I LOVE chocolate. 😉 I will check back in after 30 days to see what I discover!! Wish me luck!!
Fermented foods are some of the biggest culprits, since even beneficial bacteria produce histamine during fermentation. In fact, reacting to fermented foods is a classic sign of histamine intolerance, especially if probiotic supplements are well-tolerated. Other foods that are high in histamine include:
- Seafood: shellfish or fin fish, fresh, frozen, smoked or canned
- Eggs
- Processed, cured, smoked and fermented meats such as lunch meat, bacon, sausage, salami, pepperoni
- Leftover meat (After meat is cooked, the histamine levels increase due to microbial action as the meat sits)
- All fermented milk products, including most cheeses
- Yogurt, buttermilk, kefir
- Citrus fruits – eg. oranges, grapefruit, lemons, lime
- Most berries
- Dried fruit
- Fermented foods: sauerkraut, kombucha, pickles, relishes, fermented soy products, etc.
- Spinach
- Tomatoes- including ketchup, tomato sauces
- Artificial food colors and preservatives
- Spices: cinnamon, chili powder, cloves, anise, nutmeg, curry powder, cayenne
- Beverages: Tea (herbal or regular), alcohol
- Chocolate, cocoa
- Vinegar and foods containing vinegar such as pickles, relishes, ketchup, and prepared mustard
Are you experiencing any of the above symptoms also?? Could be worth a try to pay attention and see if after you are eating any of the above named foods, your body reacts!!