Histamine is a biogenic amine that is found in many foods and is also produced by the body itself. It regulates numerous metabolic processes and the immune system.

 

With a histamine intolerance, an imbalance between the ingested histamine and the possibility of histamine degradation by the enzyme diamine oxidase (DAO) leads to different, sometimes very unspecific symptoms on different organ systems (gastrointestinal tract, migraine, shortness of breath, cardiac arrhythmia, dizziness, itching, ...).

 

Symptoms improve with a low-histamine diet. Histamine is found in many foods, with the histamine content increasing due to maturation and fermentation processes. The tolerance of the food varies individually and also depends on other factors such as stress.

 

Histamine intolerance still leads a shadowy existence in medicine and society and is also a very complex disease.

 

The Swiss Interest Group Histamine Intolerance (SIGHI) provides detailed information on HIT and low-histamine diet.