You're dealing with pesky histamine sensitivities, and the typical remedies just aren't cutting it. What if the solution lies in an unexpected place—your eating pattern?
Did you know when you eat and how often you eat can affect your histamine levels just as much as what you eat.
That’s right!
Emerging research suggests that various fasting protocols could help regulate histamine levels and provide relief for those struggling with histamine intolerance.
From the initial histamine spike to the long-term benefits, we'll explore the fascinating science behind how fasting may become your new histamine-fighting superpower.
Here's What You Need to Know About Fasting When You’re Living With Histamine Intolerance
During fasting, several important processes occur that can affect histamine levels:
Initial Response
It’s true what you've heard: in the initial stages of fasting, your histamine levels might spike. Although evidence is lacking, animal studies suggest it could be because not eating for a prolonged time can be stressful as your body has to mobilize stored nutrients (1).
Stress, after all, triggers the release of several stress hormones, which in turn, stimulate the release of histamine. This is true for psychological stress as well as physical stress.
The result is temporarily elevated histamine levels and worsening symptoms.
Long-Term Effects
Fasting has become a popular method for achieving a range of health-related goals, from weight loss to better heart, brain, and gut health. With such a wide range of benefits, surely it can help with histamine intolerance too (2)?
Indeed, it can! While your histamine sensitivity may worsen when you initially start fasting, in the long run, it could help you better manage your symptoms.
One of the greatest benefits of fasting is the effect it has on your gut microbiome—the colony of friendly bacteria living in your digestive tract . Since histamine intolerance originates in the gut, restoring intestinal health is an important factor to help you to overcome this condition (3,4).
Fasting can improve the balance between good and bad bacteria in the gut. Having more beneficial microbes in the large intestine leads to a healthier gut lining and better immune function. It means you become less likely to react to a range of random foods (5).
Extended fasting periods can also trigger autophagy, the body's cellular cleaning process. It helps remove damaged cell components, including mast cells that release histamine. So, this cellular cleanup may help reduce the overall histamine burden in your body (6).
Mast Cell Regulation
Another animal study suggests that fasting can help stabilize mast cells. When you give your digestive system a break, the reduced digestive demands may help lower your body's histamine production (7).
Additionally, the break from food antigens—substances in food that trigger a histamine response—can help calm your overactive immune responses.
Types of Fasting to Help You With Histamine Intolerance
Abstaining from food has been part of traditional cultural and religious practices for centuries. Thanks to science, we now know that even the occasional fast is associated with health benefits.
But that doesn’t mean you have to go without food for days on end. There are several ways to reap the benefits for your symptoms of histamine intolerance:
Intermittent Fasting
There are three ways you can include intermittent fasting in your plan of action against histamine intolerance (8):
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16:8 fasting involves extending your overnight fast to up to 16 hours and eating all your calories and nutrients within an 8-hour window. For example, you could eat your last meal of the day at 6 pm and your first meal at 10 am.
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The 5:2 method suggests you eat your normal calorie intake for 5 days of the week. Then on two non-consecutive days, you reduce you calorie intake to about 500 calories. For example, on a Tuesday and Friday, you would consider eating only one small meal.
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Alternate day fasting means doing a modified fast similar to the 5:2 fasting routine, but this time you fast every second day while eating your normal diet on alternate days.
Consistency is key for managing histamine levels and overall well-being. For this reason 16:8 intermittent fasting may be the best option for you if you are sensitive to histamine. Many people find the daily restricted eating window easier to follow than limiting your intake only on certain days.
Extended Fasting
Not eating for longer periods of time can also benefit general health. Typically, people who follow these protocols fast for 24-72 hours, drinking only water. Some extend the fast for up to 10 days.
Interestingly, research suggests that prolonged fasts can improve immune system function. They also offer greater autophagy benefits than other fasting methods, but a longer fast requires careful monitoring and preparation (9).
Additionally, this who have trouble with regulating their blood sugar along with their symptoms of histamine intolerance, may find this extended period of fasting more troublesome than beneficial.
Time Restricted Eating
Your built-in 24-hour clock controls many functions and processes in your body, including histamine release. Aligning your eating pattern with your circadian rhythm can therefore help regulate natural histamine cycles.
Similar to 16:8 intermittent fasting, time restricted eating involves extending your overnight fast and limiting the number of hours for eating during the day in line with the rising and setting of the sun (10).
Potential Challenges and Side Effects of Fasting with Histamine Intolerance
Fasting offers several benefits for people with histamine intolerance, mast cell activation syndrome, chronic inflammation, and seasonal allergies. Before you start fasting, consider the following potential challenges:
- You may experience a temporary increase in symptoms.
- It is likely that you will be hungry.
- Initial energy fluctuations are common.
- Fasting is not recommended for some people, including pregnant women and people with eating disorders. It should be approached with caution if you have diabetes, and avoided during acute illness.
Tips to successfully implement fasting for histamine management:
- Begin with shorter fasting windows—start with a 12-hour fast and work your way up to 16 hours.
- Monitor your symptoms carefully. Remember you may feel worse initially.
- Stay well-hydrated—drink plenty of clean, plain water.
- Choose low-histamine foods when breaking fast. Even though your symptoms should improve, it is still recommended to limit your consumption of histamine.
- Start with small portions.
- Include anti-inflammatory foods such as brightly colored fruit and vegetables and omega-3 rich fats.
- Avoid common histamine triggers.
How to Maximize the Benefits of Fasting
You can enhance fasting benefits for histamine intolerance by incorporating healthy lifestyle habits into your daily routine.
First and foremost, follow a low-histamine diet. Focus on fresh, low-histamine foods and include those with natural antihistamine properties such as onion, garlic, watercress, fresh ginger, and apples.
Lifestyle modifications can also be useful. Managing stress with techniques like meditation and yoga, getting enough good quality sleep, doing gentle exercise, and reducing your environmental toxin exposure help to manage elevated histamine levels.
Add Fasting to Your Histamine Intolerance Toolbox
Fasting shows promise as a tool for managing histamine levels, particularly through its effects on autophagy and mast cell regulation. While initial responses may vary, many people report improvements in histamine-related symptoms with regular fasting practice.
Key takeaways:
- Start gradually and monitor your response.
- Choose a fasting protocol that suits your lifestyle.
- Combine fasting with other histamine-reducing strategies.
- Consult your healthcare provider before starting, especially if you have underlying conditions.
References
- Irie M, Nagata S, Endo Y. Fasting stress exacerbates classical conditioned histamine release in guinea pigs. Life Sciences. 2002 Dec;(6):689–98.
- Song D-K, Kim Y-W. Beneficial effects of intermittent fasting: a narrative review. Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science. 2023 Jan 31;(1):4–11.
- Professional CC. What Is Your Gut Microbiome? Cleveland Clinic. 2023.
- Smolinska S, Winiarska E, Globinska A, Jutel M. Histamine: A Mediator of Intestinal Disorders—A Review. Metabolites. 2022 Sep 23;(10):895.
- Mesnage R, Grundler F, Schwiertz A, Le Maho Y, Wilhelmi de Toledo F. Changes in human gut microbiota composition are linked to the energy metabolic switch during 10 d of Buchinger fasting. Journal of Nutritional Science. 2019.
- Shabkhizan R, Haiaty S, Moslehian MS, et al. The Beneficial and Adverse Effects of Autophagic Response to Caloric Restriction and Fasting. Advances in Nutrition. 2023 Sep;(5):1211–25.
- Nakamura S, Hisamura R, Shimoda S, Shibuya I, Tsubota K. Fasting mitigates immediate hypersensitivity: a pivotal role of endogenous D-beta-hydroxybutyrate. Nutrition & Metabolism. 2014;(1):40.
- Nye K, Cherrin C, Meires J. Intermittent Fasting: Exploring Approaches, Benefits, and Implications for Health and Weight Management. The Journal for Nurse Practitioners. 2024 Mar;(3):104893.
- Longo VD, Cortellino S. Fasting, dietary restriction, and immunosenescence. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 2020 Nov;(5):1002–4.Christ P, Sowa AS, Froy O, Lorentz A. The Circadian Clock Drives Mast Cell Functions in Allergic Reactions. Frontiers in Immunology. 2018 Jul 6.
- Manoogian ENC, Laferrère B. Time Restricted Eating: What we know and where the field is going. Obesity 2023 Jan 25;(S1):7–8.
Anita Tee
My name is Anita Tee. I'm a nutritional scientist specializing in histamine intolerance. I hold a Master of Science in Personalized Nutrition and a Bachelor of Science in Human Biology and Psychology.
For the past ten years, I have used my experience in nutritional and medical health sciences to create a scientifically backed, natural approach to healthcare that relies 100% on evidence-based research.
As I previously suffered from - and overcame - histamine intolerance, my focus is to increase recognition and expand the available resources and protocols for resolving the disorder. To date, I have helped over 4,000 individuals fully resolve or better manage their histamine intolerance symptoms.
