Histamine/Tyramine Food Triggers
Histamine/Tyramine Food Triggers
A number of months ago I started on a journey to figure out my food triggers. After much trial and error, I believe that my food triggers fall largely into the category of foods which are high in histamines/tyramines (or which stimulate the production of histamine, or block the systems that regulate histamine).
It started with a friend who is a toxicologist, who noted that my then identified food triggers were similar to those which can trigger migraine headaches. Foods that can cause migraine headaches are foods that are high in tyramine, histamine, sulphites and nitrates. I don't react to sulphites or nitrates; I do react to foods that are high in histamines or tyramines. This makes sense, as both histamines and tyramines can affect the dopamine system, while sulphites and nitrates don't.
One of the best lists that I have found for histamine/tyramine foods is the Histamine Food Compatability List published by the Swiss Interest Group for Histamine Intolerance. https://www.mastzellaktivierung.info/do ... hCateg.pdf
This list was the most convincing evidence for me -- I had looked at the other diets (oxylate, FODMAP, Wahl), and each of these diets had foods which I should have been able to tolerate, but don't. I can't eat any of the dairy permitted by the oxylate diet, I can't eat any of the fish permitted by the FODMAP or Wahl diet. The Swiss Interest Group List was the only list to capture all of the foods which I had already identified as triggers. (Note, however, that among histamine sufferers, there is considered to be substantial overlap between histamine and oxylates in particular). In using this list, it's important to read the notes -- some foods are given a "0" listing but the notes will state that some people will in fact have a reaction (which is often the case with me).
One of the best websites that I use for suggestions on how to manage life with histamine intolerance is Healing Histamine (https://healinghistamine.com). The author is this site is a health journalist who is histamine intolerant, and so is packed with advice that appears to be backed by good science. I have certainly found her advice to be useful. Note though that most histamine sufferers have a lot of gut symptoms which an RLS sufferer may not, so some of the advice may not be applicable. Anti-histamines often help histamine sufferers with gut symptoms; I find they don't help my RLS symptoms. (I suspect it has to do with the particular receptors involved). I also find that some of the foods which are universally regarded as high histamine, such as tomatoes and spinach, are find for me to eat, perhaps because they are high in other chemicals such as nitrates, which have other health benefits.
I am most sensitive to chemical additives -- for example, I can't tolerate most dairy substitutes such as soy milk, almond milk, and coconut milk, mostly because of the additives and not necessarily because of the base product itself. I also find that even changing vitamin brands or formulations can trigger a reaction in me, as a result of the additives to vitamin products.
I now have a new relationship with my food -- not always comfortable, but certainly a lot of respect!
It started with a friend who is a toxicologist, who noted that my then identified food triggers were similar to those which can trigger migraine headaches. Foods that can cause migraine headaches are foods that are high in tyramine, histamine, sulphites and nitrates. I don't react to sulphites or nitrates; I do react to foods that are high in histamines or tyramines. This makes sense, as both histamines and tyramines can affect the dopamine system, while sulphites and nitrates don't.
One of the best lists that I have found for histamine/tyramine foods is the Histamine Food Compatability List published by the Swiss Interest Group for Histamine Intolerance. https://www.mastzellaktivierung.info/do ... hCateg.pdf
This list was the most convincing evidence for me -- I had looked at the other diets (oxylate, FODMAP, Wahl), and each of these diets had foods which I should have been able to tolerate, but don't. I can't eat any of the dairy permitted by the oxylate diet, I can't eat any of the fish permitted by the FODMAP or Wahl diet. The Swiss Interest Group List was the only list to capture all of the foods which I had already identified as triggers. (Note, however, that among histamine sufferers, there is considered to be substantial overlap between histamine and oxylates in particular). In using this list, it's important to read the notes -- some foods are given a "0" listing but the notes will state that some people will in fact have a reaction (which is often the case with me).
One of the best websites that I use for suggestions on how to manage life with histamine intolerance is Healing Histamine (https://healinghistamine.com). The author is this site is a health journalist who is histamine intolerant, and so is packed with advice that appears to be backed by good science. I have certainly found her advice to be useful. Note though that most histamine sufferers have a lot of gut symptoms which an RLS sufferer may not, so some of the advice may not be applicable. Anti-histamines often help histamine sufferers with gut symptoms; I find they don't help my RLS symptoms. (I suspect it has to do with the particular receptors involved). I also find that some of the foods which are universally regarded as high histamine, such as tomatoes and spinach, are find for me to eat, perhaps because they are high in other chemicals such as nitrates, which have other health benefits.
I am most sensitive to chemical additives -- for example, I can't tolerate most dairy substitutes such as soy milk, almond milk, and coconut milk, mostly because of the additives and not necessarily because of the base product itself. I also find that even changing vitamin brands or formulations can trigger a reaction in me, as a result of the additives to vitamin products.
I now have a new relationship with my food -- not always comfortable, but certainly a lot of respect!
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Re: Histamine/Tyramine Food Triggers
Hope it continues to work for you.
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest
Managing Your RLS
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.
Managing Your RLS
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.
Re: Histamine/Tyramine Food Triggers
Often when I am looking for information about various chemical compounds and their effect on the dopamine system, I look to research that is taking place in the field of Parkinson's Disease (PD). Here is an excerpt from the PubMed article, "Histamine: a new immunomodulatory player in the neuron-glia crosstalk" (2014) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4012198/
"Herein we showed, for the first time, that histamine promotes the release of toxic inflammatory factors, including NO, by microglial cells, which can be capable of damaging dopaminergic neurons. With this work we open a new perspective for the therapeutic use of histamine and histamine receptor antagonists to treat or ameliorate inflammation-associated processes of neurodegenerative diseases, like those seen in PD."
It is, of course, a complicated subject, as the older generation of anti-histamines can make RLS symptoms worse rather than better. It is, however, an intriguing area of research....
"Herein we showed, for the first time, that histamine promotes the release of toxic inflammatory factors, including NO, by microglial cells, which can be capable of damaging dopaminergic neurons. With this work we open a new perspective for the therapeutic use of histamine and histamine receptor antagonists to treat or ameliorate inflammation-associated processes of neurodegenerative diseases, like those seen in PD."
It is, of course, a complicated subject, as the older generation of anti-histamines can make RLS symptoms worse rather than better. It is, however, an intriguing area of research....
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Re: Histamine/Tyramine Food Triggers
Definitely interesting.
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest
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Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.
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Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.
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Re: Histamine/Tyramine Food Triggers
pamhb when you have a reaction to a certain food, does it occur within a few hours, or same day? Is it that obvious? Or is it more of a statistical thing, with bad WED/RLS symptoms happening more often when you eat it than when you do not?
I ask because I haven't identified ANY dietary triggers, even coffee, that consistently cause worsened symptoms the same day. I am fairly certain that coffee and certain forms of alcohol do it sometimes, and that over time, gluten +/- dairy will do it but that took months to figure out.
I ask because I haven't identified ANY dietary triggers, even coffee, that consistently cause worsened symptoms the same day. I am fairly certain that coffee and certain forms of alcohol do it sometimes, and that over time, gluten +/- dairy will do it but that took months to figure out.
Beth - Wishing you a restful sleep tonight
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Re: Histamine/Tyramine Food Triggers
Beth -- For me, it's a same night kind of thing. I have severe refractory RLS. My base line, when all is going well, is that: (a) I have no day time symptoms,and (b) I will wake 3 times a night, with relatively minor RLS symptoms that settle fairly quickly. (My base line includes taking oxycodone at night before bed). When I eat a trigger food, then (a) I may or may not experience evening symptoms starting at around 5:00 pm , and (2) I will experience either more intense symptoms at night, or milder symptoms which wake me 5 or 6 times a night and are more difficult to settle. If the symptoms have been very bad, then they might persist at night for a couple of nights (particularly those that are drug related), otherwise they are gone within a single night.
To test successfully, you need to know your "safe" foods. When I started all this, I believed that far more foods were safe for me than actually were.
It led to confusing results. I now have certain very safe foods that will return me to base line, and act as a comparison between normal and break through symptoms. Oatmeal with a bit of sugar and an unripe banana for breakfast. Chicken and rice with a small leafy green salad dressed with olive oil for lunch. Chicken and rice and a salad dressed with olive oil for supper. Apples and green grapes as a snack. Tulsi tea and decaffeinated coffee as beverages. Water. Vitamins in the hard tablet form, and never in the granulated capsule form. One particular brand of probiotics. Nothing that was a prepackaged product with any kind of additives. No lemon juice or vinegar in my olive oil salad dressing. No nuts. No wheat products. No changes in medication.
For me, the tip off that food was involved was that I was having random good nights mixed in with a number of bad nights. There was nothing that had changed about my days other than the food I was eating. Life can still be frustrating -- it's not meant to be lived eating chicken and rice! But I certainly feel like I have a bit more control now...
To test successfully, you need to know your "safe" foods. When I started all this, I believed that far more foods were safe for me than actually were.
It led to confusing results. I now have certain very safe foods that will return me to base line, and act as a comparison between normal and break through symptoms. Oatmeal with a bit of sugar and an unripe banana for breakfast. Chicken and rice with a small leafy green salad dressed with olive oil for lunch. Chicken and rice and a salad dressed with olive oil for supper. Apples and green grapes as a snack. Tulsi tea and decaffeinated coffee as beverages. Water. Vitamins in the hard tablet form, and never in the granulated capsule form. One particular brand of probiotics. Nothing that was a prepackaged product with any kind of additives. No lemon juice or vinegar in my olive oil salad dressing. No nuts. No wheat products. No changes in medication.
For me, the tip off that food was involved was that I was having random good nights mixed in with a number of bad nights. There was nothing that had changed about my days other than the food I was eating. Life can still be frustrating -- it's not meant to be lived eating chicken and rice! But I certainly feel like I have a bit more control now...
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Re: Histamine/Tyramine Food Triggers
I don't know if I'm relieved or not! It's nice to know that you figured it out without doing long-term analyses of hundreds of different foods. But it's disappointing, in a way, to know that I don't have such immediate reactions to any food, and will likely therefore never figure out if any other foods are triggers. It took a months-long experiment to tell me to avoid gluten and dairy and eat lots of vegetables. And even then, I don't know if maybe I can add dairy back in? Reduce the veg a bit? I don't want to try, because it would take 3 months to find out it was a bad idea and another 3 to get back where I was!
Thanks for explaining how it worked with you, it's useful information for all of us.
Thanks for explaining how it worked with you, it's useful information for all of us.
Beth - Wishing you a restful sleep tonight
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Re: Histamine/Tyramine Food Triggers
I was reading this blog about gut health recently and also read a study about weight loss. Both were about gut bacteria. In the weight loss study, they found that people with certain types of bacteria lost less weight - the hypothesis is that the different bacteria are much more efficient. The blog suggested that probiotics could eliminate sugar cravings.
If you needed to actually change the gut biome to see changes - for example, you, Beth - it would take months. If you needed to change a histamine reaction, you would likely tell immediately. Both related to food, but very different processes and reasons.
If you needed to actually change the gut biome to see changes - for example, you, Beth - it would take months. If you needed to change a histamine reaction, you would likely tell immediately. Both related to food, but very different processes and reasons.
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest
Managing Your RLS
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.
Managing Your RLS
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.
Re: Histamine response to capsules
I recently discovered that the capsules holding my medications, and some supplements, were adding to my Histamine Intolerance and subsequent nighttime symptoms. Before the discovery, I decided to lower my Gabapentin dosage from 400mg down to whatever I could tolerate. I have been having success taking the supplement American Skullcap. For me it acts like a milder version of a sleeping pill, or benzo. So I re-made my Gabapentin into 25mg increments and started tapering. Surprisingly, my sleep symptoms showed a big improvement. I had bigger chunks of sleep time with less wake-ups, and was able to sleep longer than usual. This outcome was confusing and made me think that Gabapentin was somehow causing me problems all this time. But then I realized it was the capsule holding the Gabapentin....it was made of gelatin, a known histamine inducer. All of my medications were in gelatin capsules including my compounded progesterone, and low dose naltrexone. How did I not think of this before? So I re-made everything with Vegetarian capsules (plant/vegetable cellulose), and switched out any supplements. It’s really helped.
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Re: Histamine/Tyramine Food Triggers
True. I think I was saying that yawny & pamhb were lucky (in a way) to be able to identify their triggers, whereas although I've improved with dietary changes, I can't identify what did it. Maybe you're suggesting that no specific food was a trigger, just the unhealthy gut bugs? I think I could still have a reaction to a food, but not an immediate one - one that builds over time, whether it involves gut bugs or not. I'm also afraid to send this, because I'm not thinking very clearly right nowIf you needed to actually change the gut biome to see changes - for example, you, Beth - it would take months. If you needed to change a histamine reaction, you would likely tell immediately. Both related to food, but very different processes and reasons.
Beth - Wishing you a restful sleep tonight
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Re: Histamine/Tyramine Food Triggers
yawny I was sure you had mentioned the capsules being a trigger before. I searched but couldn't find it. Maybe it was someone else.
Beth - Wishing you a restful sleep tonight
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I am a volunteer moderator. My posts are not medical advice. My posts do not reflect RLS Foundation opinion.
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Re: Histamine/Tyramine Food Triggers
Beth, I don’t know about gut bugs yet because I haven’t gotten to tackling that just yet in this Histamine Intolerance journey. But I had a thought and am wondering if you’ve tried a trial low histamine diet yourself? You mentioned that when you removed gluten and dairy (btw, known high histamine foods) that you got better.
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Re: Histamine/Tyramine Food Triggers
Maybe I will try that, yawny, thanks.
I just finally decided to try the low-oxalate route, but once again, I looked at the list of foods to avoid, and I decided No. I couldn;t imagine avoiding all those foods and staying healthy (no dark leafy greens? No greens at all?) Where would my micronutrients come from? It seems to me that I'm likely to mess myself up if I eliminate all the things that I added when I made the dietary changes that helped me.
The low histamine diet seems the same thing -- - no fermented foods! But maybe it's time to do one or the other for a while, to see if I experience any improvements. Then at least I'd know.
I just don't want to make myself worse.
I just finally decided to try the low-oxalate route, but once again, I looked at the list of foods to avoid, and I decided No. I couldn;t imagine avoiding all those foods and staying healthy (no dark leafy greens? No greens at all?) Where would my micronutrients come from? It seems to me that I'm likely to mess myself up if I eliminate all the things that I added when I made the dietary changes that helped me.
The low histamine diet seems the same thing -- - no fermented foods! But maybe it's time to do one or the other for a while, to see if I experience any improvements. Then at least I'd know.
I just don't want to make myself worse.
Beth - Wishing you a restful sleep tonight
Click for info on WED/RLS AUGMENTATION & IRON
I am a volunteer moderator. My posts are not medical advice. My posts do not reflect RLS Foundation opinion.
Click for info on WED/RLS AUGMENTATION & IRON
I am a volunteer moderator. My posts are not medical advice. My posts do not reflect RLS Foundation opinion.