Probiotics, histamine and urticaria/hives

I promised myself the same thing! I learned so many helpful tips from these forums for treating my hives that I promised myself if I ever found "the cure" I would post it! I haven't found the cure, but I've controlled my hives to the point where I only take a zyrtec about every 72 hours and that keeps them almost completly away. When I do break out, it's when I'm testing a food for allergies normally so hopefully once I find all the triggers, I won't even need them that often.

I also treated myself for leaky gut after noticing that when doing the elimination diet, anytime I added new food I was reacting no matter what. I began taking grapefruit seed extract, probiotics and digestive enzymes. It took about 5 days, but after that I noticed results!

I was doing the elimination diet as well, so I've gradually been adding food to my diet to see if there are also food allergies that trigger my hives. My reactions to the food are so different than the hives that I've experienced on and off for about 15 years, that I know the foods have contributed, but leaky gut was a main culprit as well. The foods I've noticed that make my hives worse (they also cause my chest, face and ears to become flushed for about 2 hours) are: avocado, grapes, tomato, wheat, and black pepper. 4 of the 5 things are linked to a latex allergy (which I know my sister has), so I am researching that as well.

All that to say, treating my hives for leaky gut is what helped me as well :)

Hi all!

I was diagnosed with chronic urticaria 4 month ago, and the first thing my family doctor told me was that I will keep it for a few months or years... I didn't give up and I did my own research on English, French and Polish forums and other websites. I’ve learned lot of information I would like to share with you.

There are a few things that attracted my attention and I learned that very often there is an internal cause for urticaria. For example I found that it can be caused by chronic dehydration of our body. Check out this forum and particularly post of someone named "taiwanguy"
http://www.healthboards.com/boards/allergies/732835-chronic-idiopathic-urticaria.html
I am using this method for a few weeks and it works out very well for me.

I also tried out acupuncture and cupping with a certified Chinese doctor and the results were just amazing (zero rush after first visit), in addition to this she gave me a mix of different plants to drink and she had a look at my tongue saying that I have problems with my stomach and my bowel movement. It gave me an idea to check out if I don't have any bacterial of viral infection. I did blood tests and I found that I have an abnormal results for helicobacter (60 U/ML (normal <15)). I found a lot of websites explaining the relationship between helicobacter and urticaria. This bacteria was discovered by Robert G. Edwards (Nobel price in 2005) and you can find plenty of articles explaining how this bacteria infection can be linked with chronic urticaria.

Very often after 60 days our case is closed and classified as a chronic urticaria, I know that there are a lot of people who have it for several years and I feel really sorry for them. Through my own experience I understood that very often there are other health problems that are linked to this awful disease which destroy our life.

Instead taking all of those drugs you should try to find information by yourself and do a complete panel tests to check if each of our organ function well and very important: listen to your body if you don't have any other problems: stomach pain, dehydration, if your bowl movement works correctly, do a list of food and take notes each day: eaten food, doses of medication, severity of hives, edema.... I had edema 6 times in only two months and I was hospitalized 6 times because of life treating symptoms (eyes, lips and throat swelling) before figuring out that edema were caused by the medication they gave me. Sometimes one of those drugs :prednisone, benadryl, ceterizine and renatidine combined with other drugs such as ibuprofen, advil… can cause edema.

I hope my experience will help you!

H pylora can cause hives, stomach troubles and leaky gut syndrome as well! Have you ever been diagnosed with this bacteria?

To those who may be interested in my case: once H pylora eradicated my hives disappeared completely as well as my stomach pain (just one week after)! I accelerated this process taking nigell oil twice a day two hours before meal. This amazing oil is made from Nigella sativa: a plant growing in South India as well as in North Africa! The list of benefits is very long, check it on the web! You can buy this oil on the web or in an Indian grocery store (I prefer the second option, cheaper and better quality). Nigell oil can be very efficient against H pylora, the link below describe a comparative scientific study (nigella sativa oil vs antibiotics)
http://www.saudijgastro.com/article.asp?issn=1319-3767;year=2010;volume=16;issue=3;spage=207;epage=214;aulast=Salem
I red on the web that Nigel oil help efficiently supports cell and connective tissues renewal (leaky gut syndrome)!

Good luck!

Thank you for your advice! I'll try it!

[email protected]
Thanks!

I forgot to post, the few things I have found that help....


A styptic pencil, the type you use in shaving if you cut yourself. I wet it and rub it on the area. It helps shrink it and keep it calm for a while. However, it's very visible.

So then I got the weird idea to try deodorant one day.... It doesn't shrink it, but it certainly helps it feel a lot better for quite a while, like 6 hours for me. It dries clear, it's cheap and easy to keep around.

It helps with most of them, but not the extra firey ones. For those I use oragel or some sort of numbing stuff, then the deodorant.

Sometimes I use cranberry juice when it's in my tongue. If they aren't too bad or are already going down, it helps it go faster.

Apple cider vinegar made me worse, internally or externally. I've tried milk, lemon, baking soda.... again I've tried everything I can think of.

I've always been fat, still am. But overall I'm fairly active and try to eat healthy foods. My problem is portion control.

At the time I was doing Nutrisystem and had been taking yasmin for 3-4 months straight (no inactive pills). Once I came off of them, I got a giant pimple that popped while exercising and got infection really bad. 3 days into the antibiotics, I started with them.

Now.... I THINK the first one was on Easter. It was in my throat, so I'm not positive. I bought a new temperpedic the next weekend. A lot of people mentioned getting them after that.

So we looked into getting a new bed, but then had other expenses and couldn't justify buying a new bed JUST IN CASE.


My aunt is very active. She got a cut on her leg, cellulitus like me. She started with them.

My friend was in labor and got them. She also got an infection during labor, but after the first flare up.

My cousin gets them, but it seems to be from nuts.


I find stress really triggers mine, most medications and most foods. Mine also seem better at the beginning of my menstrual cycle. Antihistamines so not help at all.

I'm SO SO SO SO SO SO SO sick of them. Every morning, the first thing I wake up, I check, where are they today?

That's what got me thinking it was the bed, I generally get them while sleeping.

I tried a bunch of stuff in case it was dust mites.

I've barked up every tree I can think of.

I know it's a bit late on the reply but I can tell you that I was told by my allergenist to take 10mg zyrtec and 400mg tagamet daily. This worked for me in the past, and like you I go long periods with and without them. I've yet to find anything that's been incredibly successful for me. Which is why I'm here trying to do as much research as possible. So far here are some things that I've learned that have helped or at least pointed me in a direction of where to go from here.

What I am currently doing:
I'm taking 1 prednisone a day if i absolutely have to (which is most days)
10mg zyrtec and 400mg tagamet (this isn't helping yet but I've only been doing it for 4 days so I figured I'd keep with it and see if it needs to build up in my system...as like you...I haven't had them in years so I can't remember if they worked immediately or not)
I've been using benadryl extra strength cream but not really seeing much of a help there....I JUST read the suggestion of deodorant on the hives and ran to the bathroom to try it and it actually really does help!
Ice. Mine seem to react to cold and icing them makes them go away faster.
I stay away from the urge to try to "sleep it away" by forcing myself to stay away from the couch and bed because I know I am allergic to dust mites.
I'm also using an OTC sleep aid my doctor recommended saying it would also help with the hives (and does seem to and I actually sleep!....I forget the name but check the back of a nyquil sleep med (the one that is just for sleep) and then look for the generic. (I got the walmart one for $2) I've woke up with far less outbreaks since taking this.
Wearing very loose clothing
changing my detergent to "all" I think it's "free and clear" or something like that i relied on marketing on choice because it said #1 dermatologist recommended on the box. I had just recently started using the Tide pods and worried that could have been the cause so now I'm trying to rewash all my clothes and bedding
-allergy pillowcases...this also might sound really funny too but it helped ALOT I put a trashbag (one of the white normal kitchen ones) over my pillow (desperate much? lol) and then put a pillowcase over it. I don't know why it helps (because I have the best allergy pillowcase out there being allergic to dust mites), but I think it might have to do with the fact that it doesn't allow my pillow to hold my body heat as much...less heat less hives.

How my hives are acting:
they are heat or pressure (not sure which) sensitive and usually form over night and go away over the course of the day. I go to bed everynight thinking "which side of my face do I want to be swelled up tomorrow?" and assess which side is or is not swollen already and that's the side i sleep on. They had been doing pretty good and had been semi mild (still leaving me stuck in the house because I won't be seen in public as I am but ya know...tolerable) until tonight.

Tonight I actually started looking online to see if a huge hive outbreak could be a sign of the medications starting to work (worse before better thought process of an optimist lol) Only to find out that earlier this evening my assumption of Ibprophen being an anti inflammatory might HELP (and combat the headache I was having from a new med for a back condition) was incredibly WRONG and the reason why I went from having a teeny hive on my hand to now having hives on my: forehead, cheek, chin, beneath my nose, the back of my neck, chest, stomach, elbow and ankle within just a few hours. (merry freakin christmas haha). I just took a prednisone and my nightly routine of meds (all mentioned above) and I'm about to head to bed and hope the meds work some magic during the night

So yeah, DO NOT take ibprophen when you have hives....bad bad bad.

Things I've yet to do this time but did help me in the past and I will be doing it again after the holiday:

Aveeno baths, they are packets and it's an oatmeal powder you put in your bath...remember to keep the water as cool as you can and still be comfortable as heat can be a trigger (at least for me) this really does sooth
oral benadryl (this is 50/50 for me sometimes works, sometimes doesn't. I've decided to throw it in the mix after reading that some people have success with adding benadryl to the zyrtec/tagamet mix so what the hell...can't hurt lol

Things I learned from researching that I am going to try:
If you're like me, you feel like you've been poisoned and start looking at everything as a possible contaminant. Because of that, I remembered that I used to sell a colon cleanse system and how many times I had to recite that it removed toxins from the body and replaced bad bacteria with healthy yada yada. Feeling pretty darn toxic lately I wondered if doing a cleanse could help.

I looked into it and found that several people have seen a decrease in their hives from doing a colon cleanse and also read where other people have even done kidney and liver cleanses (but only one at a time) these do take time everyone that did it said it took about 6 weeks or so to see results. But I'm definitely going to be doing this.

Being a coffee fanatic this next thing both breaks my heart and fills me with hope at the same time. A sign of a dehydrated body can be hives. I am horrible the only time I ever drink water is when I work out (which is not as much as I should). Again this is a solution that if it works takes a while. So even though I know I should be cutting out everything but water I am resigning myself to one coffee (instead of coffee all day....i love my keurig lol) and at least 64oz of water a day. I guess it's good motivation to make a lifestyle change huh? But this seems like such a simple solution and after reading in detail why people came across this and why it works I'm almost certain this could be the reason why.

I also read that here could be an over abunance of yeast causing hives....I have yet to really look into this but i know there is the candida diet that Idid look at and I am happy that I pretty much (aside from my coffee habit) eat a very similiar diet to the restricted diet list...I would just have to give up cheese and actual milk :( but I already elliminated the lactose as potential allergen last time around.)

A word of advice jus'me, if you can tolerate the hives do not take prednisone. It is not only horrible to your health but you will gain weight with it that your doctor will probably tell you will go away when you stop taking the med but it doesn't. I was skinny when I got my first round of hives I went from a size 10 (seriously, big boned, very low BMI) to a size 18(fat, high BMI) in 7 months!!! I now go on average 2 years without hives then 6-8 months with them then a couple years off. Which sucks because I will lose some of the weight and have a hive outbreak and gain it all back plus. (example: i went from 10 to 18 to 12 to 22 to 14 to 26!!! I was a 14 a month ago and I'm back into my 16s) talk about depressing! But without it my hives get so bad my skin swells until it can't swell anymore then blisters and tears :**( I know you posted last month so I'm hoping that maybe you got lucky and you no longer need this information.

Oh there is also another thread on this message board, I think it's called "what cured my hives" or something and it's an old post from around 2003 I think and it mentioned a little known drug that has worked for several people in getting rid of the symptoms of hives. These were people that have hives that don't ever go away completely and they were saying how it worked but when they stopped taking it, the hives came back. I'm thinking about asking my doctor about it because if i'm thinking if I take it for the next 6-7 months I can just avoide the outbreaks until the hives decide to leave me alone lol. *shrug*

I'm really glad I found this message board....it's nice to know i'm not the only person going through this. It's so hard :( I wake up every day wondering if it's going to be a day that I'm going to be able to leave the house, or how much makeup I'm going to have to cake on, on which way I need to style my hair to hide a swollen eye etc etc (thank god I have long sidebangs lol). I've really felt alone in it. I hide away because it's not like I can go to bars or on dates not knowing if I'm going to have to cancel a date because I look like a freak. Not to mention the emotional toll it all takes, especially the weight gain. It's like waking up in a new body and not feeling like it's yours. My body is so wrecked from the ups and downs and the swelling hives has caused in my eyes has resulted in premature aging around my eyes. :( Nobody notices it but me, but it's hard to not notice when you're struggling with extra creases when putting on eyeliner :| I really hope the water thing works for me, because over the years whenever I've gotten them, only ONCE did the zyrtec/tagamet regimen work. Good luck to you jus'me and everyone else out there that's dealing with this. You're not alone.

I finally discovered that the unexpected cause of my chronic hives / urticaria was a food allergy to FRUCTOSE. I stopped eating/drinking high-fructose corn syrup and sugar (which is sucrose that digests into glucose and FRUCTOSE). No fruits or fruit juice either.

I am able to have any of the sugar substitutes.

Remember, you will find high-fructose corn syrup and sugar in MANY foods, drinks, and sauces such as tomato sauce, bbq sauce, and ketchup.

I believe it's a genetic-based allergy because my Mother and Grandmother both suffered from the same chronic hives. Sadly they are both deceased and I am bummed that I was never able to help them with my life-changing discovery.

I sincerely hope this info helps cure many people suffering from chronic hives.

P.S. This may have also been the cause of my ulcerative colitis since the cause is unknown. Unfortunately, I had my colon removed in 2006, so I cannot confirm this theory.

Post Edited (godsmack67) : 1/2/2013 3:58:49 AM (GMT-7)

ravich said...
I just joined.. today only to share my exp with urticaria... and have gone through many forums like this.. and was kinda depressed seeing no sure causes and cures...

This hives happened to first time in 1998, I was only 13 years then.. my parents were worried too.. tried lot of local therapies from local people in India.. But it kept on happening again and again.. there were times.. like for months I never faced urticaria attack.. and there were years.. I had it very frequently... certainly with changing weather... I remember I used to get signals of itching and harsh skin... then in next day or 2.. a heavy or higher than moderate attack..

In 2011 it disturbed me a lot, when I was living in most populated and polluted city of India, Mumbai.. initially I faced digestive problems, along with minor hive attacks.. when my digestive problem was resolved.. it still keep on appearing .. and this time with vengeance .. after arnd every 15 days in a cycle.

From say november 2011 I joined gym 1st time in life.. with good cardio exercises daily basis, I noticed.. hives started reducing.. slowly and gradually.. during this time I was taking homeopathic medicine too from sept 2011... which stopped in feb 2012 and was consuming fruits in good amounts.

From Feb 2012 I did major changes in diet... I was majorly eating only raw fruits and vegetables... and abandoned every food from industry this is very important change. no biscuits,no canned juices, no candies, NO SODA.. nothing... my food is from nature only... also . my cooked meal is never cooked in oil or fried, it's mostly boiled

My diet was like that.. till afternoon my calorie intake is from fruits.. in morning for 2 months, I had only melons till my hunger is over(5-6 pounds) then in afternoon an hour before cooked meal I used to have dozens of bananas, or equivalent papaya, mangoes etc .. in variation.. evening again I was eating carrots, cucumbers etc.. then boil cooked meal at dinner... PS : NO- NON VEG..., NO ALCOHOL, NO SMOKE, NO CAFFEINE. I was once a foodie too.. but for health.. I changed myself.. and got more disciplined and determined.

Following such a diet I noticed following changes Loss in body fat, active body and brain, Firm stool, ease in digestion, No or minute hives once in a while when I cheated with my own lifestyle for sake of my frnds..

THE KEY HERE IS .. HAVING EFFICIENT DIGESTION WITH FRUITS AND VEGETABLES.. THEY TAKE ONLY AN HOUR OR LESS TO DIGEST.. WHERE AS OUR COOKED MEALS AND ANIMAL FLESH TAKE 3 HOURS AND MORE ..MOREOVER FLESH DOESNT COMPLETELY DIGEST IN A DAY... KEEPING OUR COLON AND DIGESTIVE TRACK TOXIC.. AND FROM DIGESTIVE TROUBLES..WE EXP ACIDITY, GAS, ETC ETC AND RASHES, HIVES, URTICARIA...

I suggest try raw food and fruits and leave all the medicines.... you will be better very soon :)

Please refer "80 10 10 diet' book from Douglas graham, Food combination rules... and you can refer your diet plan given in his book, you can also see nutridiary.com .. to have an idea of your macro-nutrient ratio in a day.. till you get self idea about food you are eating.

Best Wishes

Hi Everyone! Thank you for sharing your experiences!

I have had mild allergies and athsma all my life. Once in a while, I would get hives, usually on my inner arms, and usually when I was around an animal. For the most part, I've been very healthy. Lately, however, I have been just ITCHY all the time, with occasional hives breaking out on my hip-bones (where my underwear touches) and my bra line (where my bra touches). Not chronically, and they come and go, and don't seem to bother me for more than an hour at a time.

My mother has Graves' Disease, vitiligo, and had her thyroid removed and takes thyroxin. She has also suffered from chronic hives and various skin conditions... Thrush, cold sores, SEVERE dryness....

I am more cautious about taking care of my issues because I don't want to have a lifetime of aggravation like what my mother has dealt with. I haven't shown any signs of vitiligo yet, (I'm 36), or thyroid problems.

I would just like to do everything I can to figure out the underlying cause of my minor conditions...

I cut out gluten for one week, and then broke out into major hives, so I gave up on that.

For now, I think I will try to eat mostly raw fruits and vegetables, and limit grains and sugars, since that seems to be a recurring theme..,. I don't want to go hyper-regimented until necessary, but I would appreciate suggestions for making small changes that might improve my condition!
THANKS

Hi there fellow hive sufferers! Hives are no joke & I feel your pain. This forum has helped tremendously. So many people out there with different stories, maybe different causes & treatments which work, but sharing them is better than any doctor I can visit. Thank you all & hang in there. You are NOT alone! :)

My story is an ongoing saga which started 16 years ago. I was stressed, working non-stop & started to get what looked like mosquito bites on my elbows/arms. Didn't take long for my entire body to be covered. Trips to the doctor started me on Zyrtec & Prednisone (for a week). Hives went away but as many of you know, they come back with a vengeance. I've actually posted my first story in 2009 (I think my name was sick_of_hives under chronic urticaria. Anyway, the hives went away after about 6 months, then 10 years later they returned. I seem to get them every year or two now & they last about 4 months.

So I am hypothyroid & had Hashimotos (probably back when I first got hives but not diagnosed...darn HMO!) They say autoimmune hives & Hashimotos are linked. For me, they don't seem to be directly linked. My labs for thyroid are good & I switched to a compounded natural dedicated thyroid a few years ago ( it's like Armour but no other additives so its good for me & hypoallergenic). I've had hives about 5 times in my life. I become depressed & obsessed to find a cure or at least put them in remission again. When I'm not having a hivey problem, I am not allergic to anything. Maybe some dust sneezing allergy but not bad. When I'm suffering, it's like a switch turns on & I'm super sensitive to lots of things. I avoid citrus, chocolate, alcohol, tomatoes, wheat/bread, sugary foods. I limit coffee, tea, & soda but I have so much on my plate that I can't give it all up.

So my hives are better. I'd say they're almost "gone" but what I've found is that my angiodema is sticking around a bit or maybe the hives focus on a couple areas & swell, like my wrists, knuckles or under my eyes. Like I said, my hives, at least initially, are stress induced. I'm not surprised I have them now. Work is crazy, working late nights, not enough sleep, not working out, eating crappy food, drink a glass of wine every night to destress. I'm actually a somewhat fit & healthy. I do eat out a lot (not a lot of time to cook). But that's my background. I get stressed & there might be a trigger like a stomach virus or feeling like I have to burp.

Sorry for the long story, but here is what seems to be helping me. I am drinking a ton of water & actually coconut water seems to help even more. I believe in the cellular dehydration problem. I also believe in the stomach/ possible leaky gut link. I've been drinking "intestinew" for the past 2 months. It has the L-glutamine. I also take a good probiotic. & added 1000mg of salmon oil 2x a day. I take a bunch of supplements & not sure what is exactly working (yes, desperation). But another one which I could see the difference is 400 mg of magnesium glycinate & 500mg to 1000mg of L-lysine 2 times a day (watch out! This makes your stools loose! Not a bad trade off though). I do take Zyrtec although I've been taking it for so long (even when I don't have hives) so not sure they were working. I was taking 10 mg 2x a day along with 150mg to 300mg of Zantac. I just started 10 mg of Xyzal 2 weeks ago & it wasn't the miracle cure I had hoped but it may be helping. My doc said its the same as Zytec but I read people's posts that it worked wonders. Mighty expensive though! Since my hives have improved I'm taking 10mg of Xyzal am & 10 mg Zyrtec pm.

I'm also 5 days into a Candida cleanse called "Candi Gone". That might be helping. I'm not really following the candida free diet but eating better. Since I'm stressed, & I was having trouble taking a deep breath & relaxing, along with anxiety of SEEING hives, Xanax has helped (or Alphrazolam). Not an antihistamine & I don't take it all the time but maybe 0.5 mg in am & half at night. I take hydroxyzine if I'm covered & can't deal with the itching but have cut this out except for one at night just in case.

My supplements are 6000iu of Vit D, 400 iu of vitamin e, 1000mcg of B12, 10 mg of DHEA, lots of vitamin c (I use sodium ascorbate which is supposed to help your adrenals). I also take coq10 & holy basil. A lot of supplements I know & I sometimes take curcumin & green tea too. Covering all bases. :). But what has helped the most I think is the l-lysine, magnesium, Vit c, Vit D, Xanax & of course Xyzal & Zantac.

I believe hives mean something is off or imbalanced in our body. Our immune system is confused. One other thing that's helped me is Advil. This is NOT a remedy for all. Many people get hives from NSAIDs ' my doc told me not to, but I do it anyway. It helps the hives go down, stops inflammation. Not the itch but I tell you my legs aren't covered with big lumpy cellulite looking red splotches for the past week. Be careful testing it out!! I think someone else in this post said it was bad for her. I'm just saying it worked for me. But I always seem to be weird like that & don't follow by the book. :)

My hives are not gone, but improved. I hope I'm on the road to remission. I hope this can help someone else as well. After the candida cleanse, I plan to cleanse my liver, then kidneys, then parasites. All through herbal cleanses from a company called Renew Life. It's a long process, but I'm focused now on my overall health & finding a balance. Don't forget water water water! Coconut water has potassium, calcium, & magnesium. So good for you! Good luck! Here's to no hives or puffy faces!! :)