Patty

[Guest guest]

Patty ~

My pleasure. I hope the info I sent helps

you.

The first part is a theory based on personal

experience over the last 20 years.

Also, you know that when you are having a reaction

to something or if something attacks your system, or

if you have a food allergy or airborn one, your histamines

are goin nutz........that is why they suggest you take an

anti-histamine. Well, I was researching things, and there

are foods high in histamines, and if you eat them while

you are having an attack, I bet that your body really

reacts due to the added histamine. Its just a theory I have

but I think if you are having a reaction to something, stay

away from foods that are high in histamines so it doesnt

make you worse...............

Check this out :

What is Histamine?

In an allergic response, an allergen stimulates the release of antibodies, which attach themselves to mast cells. When histamine is released from the mast cells it may cause one or more of the following symptoms:

Eyes to itch, burn, or become watery

Nose to itch, sneeze, and produce more mucus

Skin to itch, develop rashes or hives

Sinuses to become congested and cause headaches

Lungs to wheeze or have spasms

Stomach to experience cramps and diarrhea

Histamine is a vasoactive amine which causes dilatation of the blood vessels (flushing, rash, itching) and increased mucus production (runny nose, productive cough), and bronchoconstriction (wheezing, cough). Because histamine is contained in almost all body tissues, especially the lungs, nose, sinuses, skin, intestinal mucosa and certain blood cells (mast cells, basophils), it is able to cause a wide variety of symptoms.The release of histamine can be caused by almost any allergen. Examples include inhalant allergens (ragweed pollen, dust mite, eat dander), drugs (penicillin, sulfa, aspirin), stinging insect venoms, and foods (egg, wheat, milk, fish, etc).Histamine in FoodsThere are many foods that contain histamine or cause the body to release histamine when ingested. These types of reactions are food intolerances, and are different from food allergy in that the immune system is not involved in the reaction. The symptoms, however, can be the same as a food allergy.

Foods that contain the chemical tyramine can trigger headaches. Foods that may have large amounts of tyramine include: fish, chocolate, alcoholic beverages, cheese, soy sauce, sauerkraut and processed meat.

Fermented foods may cause allergy symptoms because they are either rich in histamine or because yeast or mold is involved in the fermentation process.

Histamine-Rich Foods (including fermented foods):

Alcoholic beverages, especially beer and wine.

Anchovies

Avocados

Cheeses, especially aged or fermented cheese, such as parmesan,

blue and Roquefort.

Cider and home-made root beer.

Dried fruits such as apricots, dates, prunes, figs and raisins (you may be able to eat these fruits - without reaction - if the fruit is thoroughly washed).

Eggplant

Fermented foods, such as pickled or smoked meats, sauerkraut, etc.

Mackerel

Mushrooms

Processed meats - sausage, hot dogs, salami, etc.

Sardines

Smoked fish - herring, sardines, etc.

Sour cream, sour milk, buttermilk, yogurt - especially if not fresh.

Soured breads, such as pumpernickel, coffee cakes and other foods made

with large amounts of yeast.

Spinach, tomatoes

Vinegar or vinegar-containing foods, such as mayonnaise, salad dressing,

ketchup, chili sauce, pickles, pickled beets, relishes, olives.

Yogurt

Histamine-Releasing Foods:

Alcohol

Bananas

Chocolate

Eggs

Fish

Milk

Papayas

Pineapple

Shellfish

Strawberries

Tomatoes

Histamine or Scombroid Poisoning;

At times the ingestion of high concentrations of histamine may lead to histamine or scombroid poisoning.

Scombroid poisoning most often occurs with the spoilage of certain fish such as: tuna, mackerel, bluefish, mahi-mahi and herring.

Foods That Contain Histamine - Michigan Food Allergy, Sinus & Asthma Specialists - W. Bloomfield MI, Livonia MI http://www.michiganallergy.com/food_and_histamine.shtml

Histamine Intolerance - Histamine Intolerance Information

http://foodallergies.about.com/od/commonfoodallergies/p/histamineintol.htm

Histamine avoidance diet for people with urticaria, hives and angioedema.

http://sun1.awardspace.com/Conditions/Solar_Urticaria/histamine_diet.htm

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