Are You Stuck in the Histamine Trap?
Ever feel like your body is on high alert all the time? You react to foods, struggle with random symptoms, and no matter what you do, things just don’t seem to improve? Maybe someone told you that you have histamine intolerance, so you cut out all the high-histamine foods—cheese, wine, fermented goodies—but somehow, you’re still not feeling great.
Here’s the thing: what if histamine isn’t really the issue? What if there’s a bigger, deeper problem going on?
Histamine intolerance and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) symptoms overlap. Sometimes, mast cells can become too trigger-happy, releasing a whole cocktail of inflammatory chemicals, including – but not limited to, histamine. Understanding the difference between these two conditions is the key to actually feeling better.
Histamine Intolerance: When Your Body Can’t Keep Up
Histamine is a completely normal chemical that plays a role in digestion, brain function, and immune responses. But if it builds up and isn’t broken down well, it can cause symptoms:
Common Signs of Histamine Intolerance:
- You flush or get hives after eating high-histamine foods (hello, wine and cheese nights!)
- Frequent headaches or migraines
- Sinus congestion or post-nasal drip
- Bloating, reflux, or IBS-type digestive issues
- Feeling anxious or having heart palpitations
- More ‘histamine’ symptoms at perimenopause or at certain times in the menstrual cycle
Histamine intolerance can happen when people don’t break it down fast enough – particularly when enzymes like DAO (diamine oxidase) or HNMT (histamine N-methyltransferase) aren’t working as well as they could do. Histamine intolerance can also happen when there are just too many ‘triggers’ in their histamine ‘bucket’ – leading to the bucket spilling over.
But what if histamine isn’t the real culprit?
MCAS: The Bigger, Messier Picture
MCAS is a whole different beast. Sometimes, mast cells (a type of immune cell) can become ‘trigger-happy’, releasing not just histamine, but lots of other inflammatory chemicals too. And they can be triggered by all sorts of things—stress, infections, hormones, toxins, changes in temperature, even smells! If you feel like your body is reacting to absolutely everything, it might be time to dig deeper.
Symptoms of MCAS:
- Histamine intolerance may or may not be present – depending on where the activated mast cells are in the body
- You react unpredictably to foods, smells, or environments
- Constant inflammation or random allergic-type reactions
- Brain fog, fatigue, and dizziness that get brushed off as hormonal or stress responses
- Gut issues that don’t improve, no matter what diet you try
- Sensitivity to supplements, medications, or even stress itself
MCAS often gets mistaken for histamine intolerance, but the truth is, histamine is just one piece of the mast cell puzzle. If mast cells are over-activated, you may need a slightly different approach which involves calming the mast cells down.
So, What’s Really Going On?
Histamine intolerance and MCAS don’t just pop up out of nowhere. There’s always a root cause, and that’s where we start. In our experience, some of the biggest triggers for overactive mast cells and histamine intolerance include:
- Mould toxicity – Hidden mould exposure can keep your mast cells on high alert.
- Gut imbalances – SIBO, leaky gut, or dysbiosis can make histamine issues worse.
- Chronic infections – Covid, Lyme, Epstein-Barr, parasites, gut, nasal and oral bacteria… they can all keep your immune system in overdrive.
- Toxin overload – Environmental chemicals, heavy metals, and pollution can trigger immune dysfunction.
- Genetic factors – Some people can be more prone to histamine overload because of their genes (like DAO or MTHFR variations) – but genes are not your destiny, and we can dial up or dial down these reactions depending on our diet and lifestyle choices
This is why just avoiding high-histamine foods isn’t enough, especially if mast cell activity is involved to a greater degree. Long-term solutions come from figuring out what’s actually behind the overreactions.
Why a Low-Histamine Diet Isn’t the Answer
Sure, cutting out high-histamine foods might help a little. But if you find yourself terrified of eating out or introducing new foods, that’s a sign that diet alone isn’t fixing the issue.
Meet Michelle
Michelle, 38, came to us after struggling with bloating, dizziness, and skin flushing for years. She had been on a super strict low-histamine diet, but she was still reacting to everything. After some digging, we found out she had high levels of mould toxins and gut dysbiosis, which were triggering her mast cells. Once we focused on clearing the toxins, healing her gut, and calming her nervous system, Michelle was finally able to reintroduce foods she hadn’t eaten in years. And best of all? She got her energy and confidence back.
Are You Ready to Feel Better?
At the Eat Drink Live Well Clinic, we help people get to the root cause of their histamine and MCAS issues so they can get their life back. No more endless food restrictions, no more fear of reacting to every little thing—just a roadmap for the way out.
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References
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- Afrin, L. B., et al. (2020). Mast cell activation disease: An update. Blood Advances, 4(14), 3614-3621.
- Theoharides, T. C. (2022). Mast cell activation syndrome and the brain. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 16, 828445.
- Molderings, G. J., et al. (2021). Risk factors and comorbidities in mast cell activation syndrome. Immunologic Research, 69(3), 167-176.
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