Wissenswertes

Coffee and histamine intolerance

Approximately 30 million people in Germany regularly enjoyed their caffeinated coffee in 2021. Across the entire European Union, around 40 thousand 60-kilogram bags of coffee were consumed in 2020/21. Coffee is one of life's daily pleasures and is hard to imagine for many people, especially as an eye-opener before or during breakfast.

However, particularly with histamine intolerance, coffee consumption can trigger various symptoms. But coffee doesn't actually contain much histamine. Why is coffee so poorly tolerated by people with histamine intolerance? What alternatives are there so that you don't have to give up coffee entirely? We aim to answer these questions in this blog article.

Coffee and Histamine (Intolerance)

According to the SIGHI list, coffee is rather low in histamine and is therefore rated as 1. The problem: caffeine amplifies the effect of biogenic amines. Since biogenic amines are metabolized via the same pathway as histamine, a competitive situation arises. Thus, coffee practically blocks the DAO enzyme, which is already involved in histamine breakdown. In addition, coffee is considered a histamine liberator.

This means that endogenous histamine is released in your body by mast cells – without you actually consuming anything containing histamine. Histamine symptoms can appear up to 72 hours after coffee consumption.

Important for you and for us: We always point out that you should not only pay attention to the histamine content of the food itself but also avoid/limit potential histamine liberators, DAO inhibitors, or biogenic amines. Depending on your individual tolerance limit.

Whether you should generally avoid coffee cannot be answered definitively. It depends on your individual tolerance and also on how much histamine your body has absorbed in the last few hours. Since coffee can intensify these symptoms, we recommend opting for alternatives. We will show you these further down in the blog article.

What symptoms coffee can trigger in people with histamine intolerance

The symptoms can be very diverse. Possible symptoms include:

Skin redness
Gastrointestinal complaints
Headaches or migraines
Heart palpitations
Inner restlessness
Mucous membrane irritation/increased sneezing/runny nose

Alternatives to coffee for histamine intolerance

Alternative number 1, to retain the taste of coffee, is decaffeinated coffee. However, you should consider a few things here:

decaffeinated coffee should be produced without chemical solvents
look for organic decaffeinated coffee

Decaffeinated coffee with No Coffee

If you don't want to completely give up coffee, high-quality decaffeinated coffee can be a good alternative. Especially if caffeine is consciously avoided as a potential trigger.

One example is No Coffee. The coffee is naturally decaffeinated. Exclusively with water and without chemical solvents. It also contains no artificial flavors or additives that can also affect tolerance.

The advantage: Without caffeine, one of the factors that can be problematic for histamine intolerance is eliminated. Caffeine is suspected of influencing histamine breakdown via the DAO enzyme and promoting the release of endogenous histamine.

In addition, the organic Arabica beans used are naturally low in acid and are roasted particularly gently. This can be more digestible for many people overall.

Important: Tolerance is always individual. Even decaffeinated coffee should therefore be tested carefully – preferably in small quantities and, if in doubt, in consultation with your doctor.

If you would like to try No Coffee, you can currently save 10% with the code HISTAFOOD10.

🛒 You can check out and try the No Coffee products here.

Another tolerable alternative to conventional coffee for histamine intolerance is grain coffee, especially chicory or spelt coffee. You should avoid other grains such as barley, malt, or rye.

These alternatives naturally lack the energy boost. People with histamine intolerance can also use an eye-opener. Fortunately, there are other options besides coffee consumption.
For example, you could:

go for a walk in the fresh air
do yoga or stretching exercises
develop a routine that automatically wakes you up

For the morning ritual of sitting at the table with a warm cup, low-histamine or even histamine-reducing tea (e.g., Tulsi tea, hibiscus tea, peppermint tea) is also recommended. In addition, vitamin C contributes to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue.

You should definitely note: What is definitely not an alternative is the popular lupin coffee. Lupins are protein-rich legumes and contain histamine.

Special feature: Espresso for histamine intolerance

Espresso is often tolerated better by many affected individuals. One reason for this may be that espresso beans are roasted more gently and for longer. In addition, espresso is brewed faster than conventional filter coffee. This can be gentler on the stomach, as fewer irritating substances enter the drink. Still water is often drunk with espresso, which also increases tolerance.

Are you looking for a practical addition to your everyday life? Our DextroFit combines vitamin C from acerola with dextrose in a practical lozenge. The contained vitamin C contributes to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue and to a normal energy-yielding metabolism. DextroFit is suitable for a low-histamine, low-fructose, gluten-free, and lactose-free diet and is ideal for on the go.