Histamine Haven: The Essential Guide and Cookbook to Histamine and Mast Cell Activation

By Tracey Reed B.Ed. CHNC and Luka Symons B.A. CHNC

“… Tracey and Luka have written an easy-to-understand reference book brimming with information and amazing recipes. (...) Following the paleo low histamine diet covers the majority of issues that arise within individuals suffering from complex multi-symptom illness. A must read!”
—Dr. Bruce Hoffman, Co-author of the paper Diagnosis of mast cell activation syndrome: a global “consensus-2” with Dr. Lawrence Afrin

Histamine Haven is a resource guide and cookbook designed to share the science behind histamine intolerance and mast cell activation disorders.

Tracey Reed and Luka Symons, both holistic nutrition professionals, share how changing their diet allowed them to navigate these conditions and symptoms with ease. They provide detailed information, helpful tips and tricks, and more than 140 easy recipes that lead to a delicious and empowering journey to wellness.

Histamine Haven is:
• low histamine
• low lectin
• low salicylate
• low oxalate
• low mold
& fits in with an AIP approach

Histamine can do lots of great things for you, but what about when you have too much? Can foods high in histamine be contributing to your health problems?

Get to the bottom of what’s ailing you and discover a diet that alleviates symptoms with this essential guide to histamine and mast cell activation.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Archway Publishing
• Release date: Apr 5, 2023
• ISBN: 9781665725668

Tracey Reed B.Ed. CHNC

Tracey Reed and Luka Symons developed this book. They both suffered from unexplained symptoms—and nothing seemed to help. Understanding the role that histamine and mast cells were playing in their symptoms empowered them to take control of their own health. Their aim is to enable you to create a safe haven when it comes to food & nutrition.

Book preview

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Copyright © 2023 Tracey Reed B.Ed., CHNC & Luka Symons B.A., CHNC.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

The information provided is not intended as medical advice, nor is it intended to replace the care of a qualified health care professional. This content is not intended to diagnose or treat any diseases. Always consult with your primary care physician or licensed healthcare provider for all diagnosis and treatment of any diseases or conditions, for medications or medical advice as well as before changing your health care regimen.

Archway Publishing

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.archwaypublishing.com

844-669-3957

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Photographs by Eluvier Acosta.

ISBN: 978-1-6657-2568-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6657-2566-8 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022911491

Archway Publishing rev. date: 10/11/2023

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For our moms,

who showed us the importance

of being in the kitchen.

Tracey and Luka have written an incredibly informative book describing the latest dietary approaches to reduce inflammation and histamine issues which are ubiquitous within today’s chronic disease epidemic. Tracey and Luka have written an easy-to-understand reference book brimming with information and amazing recipes. Thousands of books have been written about a myriad of dietary approaches to well-being, but it is my opinion, that following the paleo low histamine diet covers the majority of issues that arise within individuals suffering from complex multi-symptom illness. A must read!

Dr. Bruce Hoffman

Owner of The Hoffman Centre for Integrative and Functional Medicine

Co-author of the paper Diagnosis of mast cell activation syndrome: a global consensus-2 with Dr. Lawrence Afrin

The knowledge and recipes in this book hold a key solution to regaining your health! Tracey and Luka have done humanity a great service by diving deep into this critical topic. This book contains expert guidance, volumes of referenced research, and an abundance of absolutely delicious recipes. From the content of these pages, you will no longer have to guess what the hidden causes of your symptoms are, and you will know exactly how to work your way out and through the health challenges, you have struggled with by simply being in your kitchen. This book is a must for all serious seekers of health regardless of whether you suffer from histamine intolerance or mast cell activation syndrome.

Malcolm Saunders

Co-owner of Light Cellar

Author of the books Elixir Life: Modern Nutrition Meets Ancient Herbal Wisdom and Chocolate Life: the Alchemy of Cacao for Flavour, Function, Feeling.

Contents

Introduction

Our Stories

Part 1: Everything You Need to Know About Histamine

-   What is Histamine?

-   When Healthy Foods Make You Sick

-   Histamine Symptoms

-   Why Are Symptoms So Varied?

-   Conditions Associated with Histamine & Mast Cell Mediators

-   Getting To the Root of Histamine Troubles

-   The Science Behind the Diet

Part 2: Other Really Important Stuff You Need to Know

-   Calm

-   Digital Detox

-   Sleep

-   Liver & Gut Support

-   Talk To Your Doc

-   Connection

Part 3: Eating

-   Turning Your Kitchen into a Haven

-   Foods

-   Out of the Kitchen

Part 4: Read This Before You Start

Part 5: Meal Plans

Part 6: Recipes

-   Kitchen Staples

-   Flavors & Sauces

-   Breakfast

-   Soups

-   Mains

-   Salads & Sides

-   Baking

-   Snacks

-   Beverages

-   Desserts

Acknowledgements

References

Introduction

This book is here to help anyone suffering with histamine intolerance or mast cell activation.

Estimates vary widely in the research literature as to how many suffer from these conditions, ranging from 1%¹ up to 17%.² It is likely largely under-diagnosed due to restrictive diagnostic criteria.³

Many have never even heard of these conditions. Curious to know more?

Histamine intolerance occurs when the body has built up too much histamine, either because it produces too much, or has difficulty breaking it down.

Mast cells are best known for releasing histamine and other chemicals during an allergic reaction. Mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS) is one type of mast cell activation disorder where mast cells are hyper-reactive, and release excessive amounts of chemical mediators. Unlike an allergic reaction, there are various triggers that stimulate the release of chemical mediators. These reactions are sometimes referred to as pseudo-allergies, or idiopathic allergies (unknown cause), because the antibodies involved in an allergic response aren’t present.

Both conditions can result in a variety of seemingly unrelated symptoms that come and go, or even migrate in the body.

Increasingly, people are suffering from symptoms their doctors can’t explain. Over time, more symptoms show up, and more and more prescriptions are offered. This list might include things like proton pump inhibitors for GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease), asthma or nasal inhalers, antihistamines or EpiPens, cortisone creams, pain medications or anxiety medications.

Have any of these been suggested to you? Maybe you thought you’d be on them for a short while, and it turned into months or years or decades.

Often no diagnosis is offered that explains all the symptoms. In some cases, a diagnosis may fit your collection of symptoms, but there is no effective treatment. Why? Because your doctor was not taught about the histamine or mast cell connection.

Perhaps you have even done the rounds with specialists. An allergist, an ear-nose-throat specialist, a dermatologist, a gastroenterologist, a hematologist, a rheumatologist etc. Each doctor offers another prescription. Maybe those prescriptions help, but maybe they don’t—or maybe they make things worse.

Perhaps you’ve tried the natural route, and nothing seems to help. You react differently to herbal remedies than anticipated, or they exacerbate symptoms. Your practitioner can’t explain why and offers a new treatment. You keep trying things to little or no avail.

You may have lucked out and found a practitioner who understood histamine issues. You’ve been handed a low-histamine food list and left to figure out how to proceed on your own. You found some recipes online and are managing your symptoms, but you still wonder what is at the root of your issues. Could your histamine intolerance be mast cell activation syndrome?

All these situations are frustrating. We know— we’ve been through it too.

As nutrition professionals, we had to unlearn what we had been taught about how to use food for wellness. Some of that we learned the hard way by experiencing the effects in our own bodies—not fun! But we took those experiences, did the research to understand what happened, and learned the right way to manage histamine symptoms.

Somehow you found your way here, and boy are we glad you have! Maybe a friend or practitioner suggested you research histamine intolerance or mast cell activation syndrome. Maybe you were sick and tired of feeling sick and tired, and took matters into your own hands. It doesn’t matter how you got here—it just matters that you are finally here. You want to feel better.

There are good cookbooks out there that follow a low-histamine diet. They can help manage symptoms, but don’t address the root of your histamine issues. They sure don’t address the complexity of mast cell activation.

Sometimes it is hard to convince people that diet can make such a huge difference. We want to change that perception. We have both seen first-hand how powerful diet can be, in our own health, and in clients struggling with histamine intolerance or mast cell activation syndrome.

Increasingly we are seeing dietary protocols like the Autoimmune Protocol, the GAPS™ diet or a ketogenic diet gain in popularity, and profoundly impact people’s lives for specific health conditions. Now the Histamine Haven Protocol exists for those with histamine intolerance and MCAS.

We intend this book as an all-in-one resource. The first section of the book is all about histamine: we took a deep dive into the research, then tried to make it accessible by explaining it in simpler terms.

Part 2 discusses a few things you can do to help yourself, including what questions to ask your doctor. This section is all about empowering you with lifestyle tools to help manage histamine symptoms.

Then we move into all things food. Everything you need to know to succeed in the kitchen, and keep histamine and mast cell triggers in foods low can be found here. We have lists of all the foods you can eat, plus cool tips like which foods are anti-histaminic, and how to draw out the flavors in simple foods, and what to do if there are other foods that you can’t eat. We finish things off with tips for snacks, packed lunches, dining out and eating while travelling.

There is a ton of great information in those first sections, but if you aren’t into reading, or the science behind it, jump straight to Read This Before You Start.

Of course, this book is brimming with over 140 recipes that will deeply nourish you, and the ones you love.

We hope this book helps you on your journey to feeling well. A journey isn’t about where you are. A journey is about your experiences and perceptions. If this book helps you better understand the experiences and perceptions of your own body, then it will have done its job.

Welcome to the beginning of a new journey!

Tracey’s Story

My story begins at birth. I was born prematurely, and my mom was sent home from the hospital. Not only was I separated from my mother, but I would also never receive the benefits of breast milk.

From just a few months of age, I suffered from skin issues. Rashes, itchy skin, and unexplained hives were a regular part of childhood. My sensitive nose meant I struggled with allergies, was a mouth breather at night, and was extremely sensitive to smells like perfumes or that new car smell. These symptoms just seemed normal.

When puberty hit, there was an onslaught of new symptoms. Blistering, oozing, and intensely itchy eczema on my hands, exercise-induced asthma, and painful periods were part of my teen years. Medications my doctor suggested didn’t help. By high school I started having jaw issues as well, likely because of poor breathing habits.

Despite the symptoms, my quality of life had been good, but that changed in my early twenties. I met a man I loved, and we moved to Korea together. The extreme nausea and fatigue I experienced meant that many days were spent in bed, and I felt sick most of the time. I also had a bull’s eye eczema all over my torso. Korea is a humid country, and back then many homes and buildings had mold. I started exploring things with a variety of doctors, and discovered that neither conventional nor alternative medicine had any answers. This was in the early 90s. I now know that mold is a huge trigger for me, but back then few people were talking about mold.

Fast track through marriage, the birth of two children, 5 moves to 3 different countries, and the adoption of our third child. I decided it was time to explore a new career, so I went back to school to study nutrition.

After completing my studies, I decided to put my youngest son on a GAPS™ diet. He had been extremely malnourished as an infant in China, and his brain development had been significantly impaired. GAPS™ is an acronym for Gut and Psychology Syndrome. The premise of the diet is that by restoring gut health, you also restore brain health.

The changes in my son were profound: his tantrums and behavioural issues disappeared.

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Tracey

As I was following the diet along with my son, I noticed that when I was eating a lot of homemade, probiotic-rich yogurt I would have urinary urgency. Urine would trickle out before I could reach the toilet seat.

It was embarrassing, so I never told anyone about it, but it was an important clue. Yogurt is espoused as being great for your gut. And it is! But it is also high in histamine. My urinary urgency stopped when I started cutting out fermented and cultured foods.

Once I started examining the role of histamine in my health, I had a bunch of questions. I found a functional medicine doctor who could help me answer those questions, and who diagnosed me with MCAS (mast cell activation syndrome).

The impetus for this book comes from having searched for resources that address the complexity of mast cell activation, and not having found any. I wanted something that anyone could pick up and adapt to their needs. It had to be gut healthy, anti-inflammatory, liver supporting, and also address all the potential reactions to different food compounds. We’ve worked hard to take something complex and make it simple and delicious.

I hope this cookbook will help you.

Happy, Healthy Eating!

Tracey

Luka’s Story

002HHLukacolour.jpg

Luka

Looking back, I can see that histamine mediated troubles have been part of the picture for a long time. They are the centre of the spiral of my long journey to an ever-improving health outlook.

As I wound my way outward through life, bothersome little ailments start to show up, from the age of eight on. Eczema flares. Mood issues appear. I get an asthma diagnosis at 12. Then anxiety. Troublesome periods. Chronic pain and numbness in my hands and shoulders. Painful knees. When I get to university, frequent migraines knock me out for days. Digestive issues surface, depression and a few other mental health diagnoses are made. Weight gain, tinnitus, more eczema flare-ups, and eventually fertility issues.

Like many people do, I chalked it up to Being Human. I thought this was normal. There’s a brilliant saying I wish I had known then: What’s common is not necessarily normal.

Fast forward to my early forties: I was sitting in class at nutrition school, hearing for the umpteenth time the wonders of bone broth—a veritable miracle food. Around this time I began hearing about fermented foods and their remarkable benefits. I made a serious effort with the bone broth—I mean, I wanted to get better, right?

But it made me feel worse. And by worse, I mean a I-lost-a-pair-of-pants-and-four-hours-of-my-life-in-the-Emergency-Room kind of worse.

A similar thing happened when I introduced fermented foods: rather than making me feel better, they intensified my migraines, worsened my eczema, and fed the fire of anxiety. I had always been ‘that person’ who went against the grain. I could never do things simply. What worked for some, what appeared seemingly miraculous to others, only made me question my sanity: how was I ‘Doing It All Wrong’ all the time?

Then, in 2014, I had the great fortune of attending a weekend Cooking for GAPS™ workshop with the inimitable Monica Corrado. The subject of bone broth vs meat stock came up. I had never heard of a distinction: you can imagine my curiosity, given my history with bone broth.

It was a revelation to hear the word ‘histamine’ as part of the conversation—a new concept to me! As it turns out, bone broth is higher in histamine than meat stock, which is quite possibly a reason I couldn’t tolerate it. That weekend in Colorado, I felt the blinders come off, and started to see my way out of that spiral. I was given the tools to start figuring out what was within my power to improve my health.

While I still struggle with the occasional migraine (though their occurrence plunged from 18 migraines a year to one every year or so), and rare microscopic eczema flare-ups, my own health has seen considerable improvement since learning which foods can help. I feel so much better.

I have learned a few things along the way, and I want to share these with you. When histamine is a part of the picture, I find it’s showing up in a body that does not feel safe. Thus, the work becomes about building your own safe haven.

I winnow it down to these five rules:

1. Simplicity is key.

2. Take your time because it takes time.

3. Strip away the layers.

4. Participate wholly in creating your own safe haven.

5. Work on Trust.

These are lofty goals. But ones we can help you achieve with this cookbook. I wish you health, happiness, and mighty delicious flavors on your way through your own spiral, friend. Now go play with your food.

Luka

Part 1

Everything You Need to

Know About Histamine

What is Histamine?

When Healthy Foods Make You Sick

Histamine Symptoms

Why Are Histamine Symptoms So Varied?

Conditions Associated with Histamine & Mast Cell Mediators

Getting To the Root of Histamine Troubles

How the Histamine Haven Protocol Works – the Science Behind the Diet

What is Histamine?

Histamine is ubiquitous—and very much needed for human physiology!

Let’s start with the basics. Histamine itself is a compound derived from the smallest building blocks of protein: amino acids. When we digest and break down protein into amino acids, we continue the breakdown (or digestion), which results in amines.

One of those amines is called histidine. Histidine plays an important role in growth and repair, but some of it gets converted to histamine. At this stage, histidine goes through a process called decarboxylation—a chemical reaction that changes a compound and releases carbon dioxide—which renders it into histamine. At this point, your body will do one of several things: it may use it, it may store it, or it may inactivate it with the help of one of two enzymes, histamine-N-methyltransferase (HNMT) or diamine oxidase (DAO). Once deactivated, your body gets rid of it.

Where do you find histidine and histamine, you ask? Why, in every protein food out there: animal and plant-based sources. Histamine is also produced by bacteria—and some of these bacteria reside in our intestinal tract. Certain fruits and vegetables have higher amounts of histidine and histamine in their composition as well. Your white blood cells also make histamine.

So, histamine is produced in the body when you eat food, by microbes in your gut, and by your regular metabolism. The histamine your body has stored is very much a necessary part of your body’s regular function, and is used in a variety of biochemical processes. You eat it, you make it, you have it, you need it, you use it.

Histamine carries out its work by binding to histamine receptors found on every single cell in the body. It should come as no surprise that histamine has the potential to affect every single organ and system in the body!

Histamine is an integral component of at least twenty-three different physiological actions in the body. They are the body’s response to an inflammatory crisis, inducing blood vessels to become permeable in order to release the immune system’s defense team. This helps to protect your body against foreign invaders. Think about when you cut your finger—histamine release is part of the immune system’s defense mode to help flood the injured area with fresh blood, carrying your immune system’s cleanup crew to neutralize potential infections or harm.

In a similar manner, histamine is integral to the allergic reaction: it induces permeability in mucosal linings to bring on a runny nose or watery eyes. This is part of the body’s defense mechanism, releasing more immune cells to help trap the perceived allergens, to reduce their impact on your well-being. All these reactions are mounted by your immune system in the interest of protecting you and keeping you alive.

Histamine performs key stimulatory tasks in the brain as well. It serves the role of neurotransmitter in circadian rhythms. This is your body’s inner 24-hour clock, and governs your sleep/wake cycle. Histamine is also part of the hypothalamus’s signalling system, to turn the fight or flight mode on and off. Histamine also influences libido and sexual arousal in all genders.

In addition, histamine stimulates the stomach lining to produce hydrochloric acid to break down the foods you eat, so that you can absorb the nutrients within.

Histamine triggers smooth muscles to contract: think motility in the gut, moving foods down the digestive tract. Think stimulation of the bladder lining, to promote urination. The smooth muscle tissue in the uterus is also triggered by histamine, necessary for pushing babies out into the world. Smooth muscle contraction is needed to move sperm along the reproductive tract. You also find smooth muscle tissue in your lungs, helping regulate air flow. Histamine also incites the smooth muscles that line your blood vessels, arteries, and capillaries to work; these are key players in blood pressure regulation.

Histamine is stored as granules in a few different types of immune system cells: mast cells and basophils. During an allergic reaction, these immune cells release the histamine granules mounting a response to a possible offender: the telltale reaction behind a true allergy.

Histamine does a lot of important and beneficial things for you. But what about when you have too much? Can foods high in histidine and histamine be at the root of your symptoms?

When Healthy Foods Make You Sick

Now that you have a grasp on the part histamine plays in so many important physiological processes, you are probably wondering why they seem to be such a problem.

Maybe you’re the person who tried bone broth, and got sick. Perhaps you tried fermented foods, but they made you feel worse. You might begin to correlate your daily addiction to chocolate with an increase in migraines. You may have tried collagen and gelatin in your morning smoothies, only to feel worse. Maybe you’ve felt your heart racing after eating leftover salmon burgers made with canned salmon. Are you eating a lot of avocados to reap the health benefits, but aren’t really seeing improvements?

Maybe you have been eating more prepared and pre-packaged foods lately for convenience, and notice your symptoms are getting worse.

There is a reason these foods seem to tip the scales. These all provide a plentiful amount of histamine, and contribute to an ongoing overabundance of histamine coursing through your body.

An analogy often used in explaining the case with histamine overload is a bucket. We prefer a sink analogy because it better explains the specifics. Imagine you have a sink with a tap and drain-pipe. The sink is there to catch water from the tap, and the pipe is there to drain the water away. The tap and pipe must be matched so that the pipe can drain off water at a rate equal to or faster than the tap brings in water. If they aren’t matched, your