| Swiss Interest Group Histamine Intolerance (SIGHI) |
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| Translations may contain older or less information than the German original page! Symptoms
General remarksInconsistency of symptomsHistamine serves various functions in our body. This is why histamine intolerance (HIT) may trigger a wide range of symptoms, affecting different organ systems. People suffering from HIT may display highly diverse symptoms. Every person has individual weak spots, which may be afflicted earlier than other parts in the body. Sufferers may be troubled by many of the following symptoms, either simultaneously or alternately. People may also only display one or few of the symptoms typical for HIT, like for example an isolated headache. Some afflictions are chronic or very frequent, others may only occur sporadically. The symptoms are so varied that the people affected by HIT often do not suspect a single trigger Also refer to Symptome > Erfahrungsberichte Severity of the diseaseThe severity of the disease may vary widely. Healthy people or those who are only slightly affected may only have symptoms in extreme situations, for example after the intake of a sumptuous meal in combination with alcohol or medications. In severe cases with only little reactivity of the enzyme that breaks down histamine, the metabolic disorder may - if left untreated - lead to exhaustion and an inability to work, which may only last days or become chronic in the worst case. As long as the disorder is not diagnosed and treated, many people affected by HIT are constantly suffering from poor health and have an impaired quality of life. One day, they may be afflicted by one ailment, the next it is something else. Most of them are, however, not really sick (in the sense of incapable of working), and may be able to lead a more or less normal life. Unspecific symptomsImportant: The symptoms listed here are mostly unspecific symptoms, which may be due to other causes. Therefore it is necessary to clarify whether other diseases may be the cause (differential diagnostics). It is not possible to diagnose HIT solely based on the symptoms. Should a patient, however, repeatedly suffer from one or more of the listed symptoms, which cannot be traced back to a clear trigger, HIT should be taken into consideration. Please also refer to Hinweis zu Gesundheitsthemen! Symptoms of histamine intolerance (HIT)Enumeration without claim to completeness. Symptoms are listed, which are proven to be directly connected with HIT as well as those, which are often mentioned by people affected and which clearly diminish or disappear with a histamine elimination diet, even if the connection has not been established scientifically. All of those symptoms may, but do not have to occur Digestive tract, gastro-intestinal systemThe most frequently observed troubles that occur with HIT are acute or chronic gastrointestinal symptoms. These problems are often unspecific because the often extensive consultation does not lead to a clear pathological finding. Often people are diagnosed with an irritable stomach or an irritable colon respectively. A direct connection between food intake and the symptoms is often difficult to discern. This is due to the fact that the ingredients of ingested foods are only slowly absorbed by the body during the bowel transit time, which may last several hours, so that problems may only manifest themselves with a considerable delay. Putrefied foods or those with high histamine content, however, may trigger abdominal cramps and severe diarrhea within 15-30 minutes. Digestive problems, flatulence, abdominal pain, stitch, stomach or intestinal cramps, frequent or chronic diarrhea, morning diarrhea Histamine increases the motility of the bowel movements, so that the bolus passes the intestines faster than normal, which impairs the absorption of nutrients because of the short retention time. More rarely also constipation or constipation alternating with diarrhea heart burn, acid reflux Inflammatory gastro-intestinal disorders, irritable bowel syndrome Nausea, vomiting Sea sickness, motion sickness Chinese restaurant syndrome (disputed) Symptoms similar to gastric flu (gastroenteritis) Cardiovascular systemDrop in blood pressure, low blood pressure (hypotension) Cardiac arrhythmias (allodromy) Palpitation (stronger heart beat caused by a release of adrenaline) Racing heart (tachycardia), panic attacks Skin, mucous membranes, airwaysPerennial rhinitis, swelling of nasal mucous membrane, runny nose (rhinitis, rhinorrhea) especially after food intake, also independent from type and histamine content of food, possibly aggravated by cold/smoke/smog/smells Blowing the nose may lead to nosebleed (because of increased permeability of the blood vessels) Excessive sweating, attack of sweating, night-time sweating, perspiring hands/feet, hot flashes Flushing of face following meals (flush), heat build-up, facial skin feels slightly irritated Skin blemishes, acne, pimples, blackheads, overproduction of sebaceous gland, oily skin Rashes, flushes, itching, eczema, hives (urticaria) Itching (e.g. itchy scalp, itchy vaccination scars) Physical irritation such as scratching, strokes or heat triggering flashes/rash or itching Upper arms covered in little red spots/pimples, partially keratinised or purulent (impaired keratinisation), perhaps in connection with pollen allergies? Hands with burning/aching inflammation/blisters/nodules/calluses (Bild) Sun allergy: the skin goes very quickly red in the sun, but the sunburn disappears on the following day. Dry lips Aphtha lesions of the oral mucosa, which become small yellow-white holes/wounds that hurt and will not heal for days and sometimes months. In addition to the oral mucosa, some papillae on the tongue may hurt like an aphtha. Chronic cough, constant tickly throat, dry cough, bronchitis, irritated bronchia Constant clearing of the throat, particularly in stress situations Sputum: viscid mucus to expectorate, frequent clearing of throat, perhaps also breathy vocal cords, particularly after sumptuous meals (similar to cystic fibrosis) Oedema (=Swelling because of fluid retention in the interstitial tissue), e.g. swollen eyelids, leg swelling Nervous systemHistamine plays a role in the regulation of the circadian rhythm and acts as neurotransmitter. High levels of histamine in the body may lead to a wide range of neurological symptoms. Neurological symptoms are in particular pronounced with a HIT type HNMT. Headache, fatigue, sleep disturbance may also be typical symptoms of a HIT type DAO. Headache, migraine, feeling of pressure in the head, dizziness Fatigue, loss of energy, lack of motivation, exhaustion Insomnia, problems falling asleep or sleeping through the night, only superficial catnapping without deep sleep, dreamlessness Lack of concentration, impairment of cognitive performance, slowness Forgetfulness, limited ability to retrieve memories Noise sensitivity, search for tranquillity and uneventfulness, vulnerability for sensory overload susceptibility to stress, impaired ability to withstand stress, feeling of bournout (feeling of mental and nervous exhaustion and breakdown) Clearing of throat in stress situations Tension, nervousness, jumpiness (also without external cause), restlessness, tingling sensation, feeling of caffeine overdose Muscle twitching, tremor, clenched jaws, grinding of teeth (bruxism), worn down teeth Symptoms similar to those of poisoning with a mild neurotoxin Melancholia, sadness, weepiness, depressive moods, depressions (often without visible cause) Thoughts of suicide Temporary loss of impairment of the sense of smell Personality changes, perhaps other mental/neurological disturbances Endocrine systemMenstrual Molimina: Dysmenorrhoea (=menstrual cramps), Amenorrhoea development disorder, failure to thrive Susceptibility to infections, immune systemIncreased susceptibility to infectious diseases, frequent infections increased susceptibility for inflammations, inflamed areas Sore throat Hoarseness Flulike symptoms without defined onset of disease, prolonged malaise, pain in the limbs Sinus infection (sinusitis): frontal sinusitis, maxillary sinusitis, inflammation of other sinuses such as sphenoid or ethmoid sinuses Constant swelling painful lymph nodes Tonsillitis, adenoid vegetation (adenoid hyperplasia), possible surgical removal of tonsils. (The tonsils serve the immune defence. Their removal may further acerbate the increased susceptibility for infectious diseases.) Lump in one's throat Inflammation of connective tissue: tissue underneath the skin with inflammatory pain or tenderness Painful feeling of inflammation, heat or pressure in the head, chronic (non-bacterial) inflammation of the brain (chronic encephalitis) Painful/burning bladder, desire to void, frequent urination (similar to bacterial bladder infection) Conjunctivitis, irritated reddened eyes Yellow-white boogies collect in the corners of the eyes or mouth Misted, impaired vision Inflammatory rheumatic diseases, rheumatoid arthritis (e.g. knuckle joint rheumatism) Soft-tissue rheumatism: e.g. pain in the tendons or joints, back pain: the back muscles hurt similar to a strained muscle/muscle ache (muscular rheumatism, inflammation of a muscle) Periodic toothache, inflammation of the gums or wisdom teeth Herpes simplex labialis (oral herpes, cold sores) or symptoms similar to herpes (e.g. badly healing skin cracks) DietAlcoholic beverages not tolerated or only in small quantities Ravenous appetite Deficiencies of vitamins and nutrients (iron deficiency, vitamin B12 deficiency) because of impaired absorption mechanisms of the inflamed/irritated bowels MiscellaneousA body that is constantly inflamed, irritated and weakened may potentially be more sensitive to minor environmental influences, which would remain unnoticed in a healthy person. Sensitivity to electric smog? Sensitivity to terrestrial radiation, water veins, energy points, lattice structures and other phenomena of radiesthesia?
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