DISCLAIMER: I am NOT a medical professional and any and all info related to the ingestion of supplements and/or drugs in this post are all on you my friend. Please refer to a medical doctor if you so choose, personally I think they are all drug pushers and just want to pad the pharmaceutical companies pockets and theirs, but that's your decision to make.
Now....onward we go and we're walking, walking, walking......
Firstly you'll need to incorporate a citrus free vitamin C (citrus is NOT good for histamine intolerance). Then you'll need to take vitamin B6 with that. The vitamin C should be 1000mg and the B6 100 mg. Vitamin C and vitamin B6 are co-factors needed to make the DAO enzyme which is the enzyme that helps break down histamine in the body. Copper is another part of that co-factor, however copper can be tricky to take and can actually be toxic to the body, so I prefer to skip that supplement altogether. I generally take 1000mg of the vitamin C twice daily and the B6 just once a day.
Next are Enzymes, which are a MUST especially for leaky gut. Histamine intolerant people need help breaking down protein in the body so it does not stay in the intestines fermenting and rotting giving off bacteria and histamine to seep out those holes in your intestinal wall back into your bloodstream. The GOLD standard in enzymes is Enzymedica brand. Start out with their Digest Gold which is a broad spectrum enzyme including several enzymes to break down protein and carbs. Then add in Vira Stop, an enzyme formula that concentrates wholly on the break down of protein. You will need to continue to take both. Start out first, with the Digest Gold taking one capsule prior to each meal. If you experience "die off" symptoms and you probably will, start slowly and take one before only one meal per day, then slowly work up to two meals, then three and then before snacks and meals. Die off can be a real bitch because nasty things are dying inside your body (old food) and letting off toxins which can cause flu like symptoms: nausea, vomiting, dizziness, headache and over all malaise. Once you have adapted to the Digest Gold add in Vira Stop. Now, if you didn't experience die off with Digest Gold don't count yourself as home free when starting to take the Vira Stop. Start off slow as well, ingesting just half a capsule if you must. Vira Stop is a pain in the ass for me to take personally because you either take it one hour before you eat or 2 hours after a meal. I'm not one to sit and plan and watch the clock so sometimes I screw myself out of taking them like I should. I mainly end up getting in just 2 per day, which I should definitely up. I take 2 about an hour before I go to bed so I can take my probiotic right before bed. The reason is you shouldn't take the probiotic and Vira Stop at the same time. Vira Stop can be taken as you see fit daily meaning on the back of the bottle maintenance dosages are about 2 per day and the Digest Gold is one prior to each meal but listed on the bottle it will say more may be taken. It's going to be a try and see as to how many you will feel comfortable taking and how you feel. Once your gut is healed just follow the maintenance dosage.
The next supplement. Probiotics. When you're trying to fix your gut, or just bring your body into a healthy state in general ALWAYS take a probiotic. Now, the catch 22 here is that people suffering from histamine intolerance should NOT ingest anything fermented. Ummm yea, that's what I said. However, I've not had any problems with probiotics and neither should you if you make sure you are ingesting the right species. There are two species that actually cause histamine to be released in the body and those are Lactobacillus casei and Lactobacillus bulgaricus. So if you are currently taking probiotics containing one or both of these discontinue their use and change probiotics. You will notice in the pic that the particular brand I am currently using is for 50 plus years of age. Am I 50 plus? Hell no! LOL. BUT....this is the only brand I could find that contained two very important species to my condition. One being Bifido infantis and Bifido longum. The infantis is found in infants intestines and help to lower histamine in the body. Longum species helps to repair leaky gut. So basically any probiotic you can find containing both of these would be what you want to take.
Zinc is also good because it inhibits the release of histamine from the mast cells. I take 50mg per day (or try to). The reason I say this is because currently I have removed all grains from my diet and zinc can make you very nauseous if you don't take it with a heavy meal. I've been affected by this several times and it's NOT fun. So I always take it with a starch. Now I'm screwed because I've cut out grains altogether and I've tried taking it with my fresh veggies and chicken and I still get nauseated. I highly recommend this supplement though if it does not bother your stomach without taking it with a starch. However you MUST always have a good meal prior to taking this or you will get nauseated. Unless you have stomach "like bull".
Lastly in my row of drugs I take you will find Zyrtec and probably unusual to you Zantac. Wait, isn't Zantac for stomach acid? Well yup but it's also an H2 antagonist and Zyrtec is an H1 antagonist. Most antihistamines are H1 antagonists. But there are other parts of your system that release histamine. There are H1 receptors (most antihistamines cover this), H2 receptors, H3 and H4. While you'd be hard pressed to find any antihistamines for the H3 and H4 receptors, you can find one to cover H1 and H2. Most people that suffer from seasonal allergies can get away with using just an H1antihistamine.
A quick copy and paste goin' on here: The H1 receptor is a histamine receptor belonging to the family of Rhodopsin like G-protein-coupled receptors. This receptor, which is activated by the biogenic amine histamine, is expressed throughout the body, to be specific, in smooth muscles, on vascular endothelial cells, in the heart, and in the central nervous system
The H1 receptor is also responsible for the skin. (itching, rashes etc.) An example of the smooth muscles would be the bladder for instance. Hence why I piss like a race horse 20 times a day. Yes histamine controls your bladder! Good times, dope rhymes!
Another quick copy and paste goin' on: The H2 receptor antagonists are a class of drugs used to block the action of histamine on parietal cells in the stomach, decreasing the production of acid by these cells.
So H2 receptors are responsible for the stomach and releasing histamine there. The antagonist, Zantac, for instance blocks this action thus decreasing the production of acid by these histamine releasing cells.
So now you have a better understanding of why people suffering from histamine intolerance do better taking both an H1 and H2 inhibitor. Every time we eat histamine is being released regardless even in healthy people because during the process of digestion our stomachs release acid. (see above).
It's totally up to you as an individual if you want to flood your body with "drugs" or not. It can be hard on your liver over time to filter out such drugs. If you stay on antihistamines too long they can also cause weight gain. Not just automatically but by making you feel hungry often. I have only been taking these for a few months with no hunger issues. Of course people in my boat are mostly frightened to even eat in general LOL so I really don't see it happening to me.
I actually only started taking the antihistamines recently because I had a set back and my symptoms returned for 6 weeks straight. Although that was my own damn fault because I got co*cky and quit taking my enzymes and supplements religiously and started indulging in wine and hard cheeses like an asshole. Yup I screwed up my 5 months of success and was right back in the same boat. I haven't swelled in almost 2 weeks now. So I believe my histamine bucket is now down to a level that my body can handle. I honestly believe that it takes weeks to get the damn thing empty or down to a doable level. I say this because my swellings last for weeks. I am thinking that I will soon get off the Zyrtec after my bottle is gone. Please know, however, that taking the natural supplements DO help and is what put me into remission to begin with. Like I said I just got stupid and I didn't want to deal with anymore swellings so that's why I got on the Zyrtec and Zantac.
If you are interested in incorporating the Zyrtec and Zantac into your daily regimen because your symptoms are too heavy a burden to deal with initially it is recommend that you take 10mg Zyrtec twice daily and 150mg Zantac twice daily. Yes, it's more than the recommended dosage on the package but studies suggest that if you are suffering with this condition those are the proper dosages. Please be aware that with any drug it takes time to get into your system. I have read in several places that Zyrtec can take a good 2-4 weeks to fully flood your system. I would personally say it took me about 2 weeks. Everyone is different however.
Added goody: When I was referring to histamine "bucket" here's a visual:
Next up...Could it be Candida that's causing your histamine intolerance?
