What is the best low histamine protein powder?
Written by Jack Schrupp and reviewed by Ella McGonagle, M.S. Nutrition
drink wholesome is the best low histamine protein powder. It is additive-free, dairy-free, and made with real foods, not protein isolates – 99% of supplements fail to meet at least one of these criteria. This makes it perfect for kids, as well as for people just looking to boost their protein intake without the processing and added junk. Order samples to see if our protein powder is right for you.
★★★★★
“It has ingredients you can actually pronounce and is freaking delicious.”
-Kallie
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drink wholesome is the best low histamine protein powder.
What are histamines?
What is histamine intolerance?
What is the low histamine diet?
What is the best protein powder for the low histamine diet?
Why drink wholesome?
What are histamines?
Histamines are chemicals that act as neurotransmitters (chemical messengers), trigger the release of stomach acid to help with digestion, and cause inflammation as part of a local immune response.
What is histamine intolerance?
Histamine intolerance is a disorder associated with an impaired ability to metabolize (break down) histamine. Histamine is produced by the body and taken in from food. In healthy individuals, enzymes break down histamine, but sometimes this activity is impaired, which causes histamine to build up in the bloodstream. High levels of histamine can cause headaches, nasal congestion, fatigue, hives, and digestive issues.
Common causes of histamine intolerance include: 1) medications or foods that inhibit enzyme function or production 2) foods that trigger histamine release and 3) gastrointestinal disorders such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBS), leaky gut syndrome, and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). Research is starting to suggest that a disrupted gut microbiome may be a significant driver behind histamine intolerance. Gastrointestinal disorders (G) like IBS, leaky gut, and SIBO cause significant inflammation in the gut, which may impair enzyme function and production. Research also suggests that gut inflammation can cause excessive histamine production. Excessive production, paired with impaired enzyme activity can lead to increased histamine absorption and accumulation in the bloodstream. In other words, the inflammation resulting from a disrupted gut microbiome may be the main cause of histamine intolerance.
What is the low histamine diet?
The low histamine diet aims to reduce the symptoms of histamine intolerance by avoiding histamine-rich and histamine-releasing foods. Research has shown that reducing histamine-rich foods in the diet dramatically reduces symptoms. Foods high in histamine include things like alcohol and other fermented beverages, dairy products, processed and fried foods, and food additives. Histamine-releasing foods include things like pineapple, shellfish, and tomatoes.
The low-histamine diet is not a histamine intolerance treatment, but rather a temporary band-aid for symptom relief. This is why addressing the underlying causes of histamine intolerance, one of which may be GI disorders like IBS, leaky gut, and SIBO, is so important. Moreover, because each of these conditions can be managed through diet, picking the right protein powder can make all the difference.
What is the best protein supplement for the low histamine diet?
There are two types of protein supplements: ready-to-drink (store-bought) protein shakes, and protein shakes made with protein powder. In order to make a low histamine protein shake with protein powder, you have to mix the powder with milk or water. This requires a blender or a shaker bottle, and a little extra time and effort. Some people prefer ready-to-drink protein shakes because they are more convenient, but if they knew what they were drinking, they would probably vomit.
Ready-to-drink protein shakes are full of emulsifiers, stabilizers, thickeners, sweeteners, and flavors. Ingredients like these improve characteristics like taste, texture, and shelf stability, but can cause uncomfortable side effects and long-term gut damage (more about this soon). Given the connection between the gut microbiome and histamine absorption, finding a protein supplement that is easy to digest is crucial if you are struggling with histamine intolerance. This is why I recommend that you make your own low histamine protein shakes with protein powder. That said, not all protein powders are created equal, and many contain the same additives found in ready-to-drink protein shakes!
Why drink wholesome?
Unlike the average protein powder, drink wholesome is made with simple, easy to digest ingredients. Our vanilla protein powder, for example, is made with egg whites, coconut, vanilla, and monk fruit. Our vegan vanilla protein powder, is made with almonds, coconut, vanilla, and monk fruit. Ingredients like these are low histamine, and generally well-tolerated by patients with histamine-related issues. The main reason why drink wholesome is the best protein powder for histamine intolerance, however, is that it is gut-friendly.
Disclaimer: Every person has unique dietary triggers, and some people with histamine intolerance are not able to tolerate egg whites and almonds. Order samples to see if our protein powders are right for you.
One of the reasons why we make the best low histamine protein powder is that we do not use food additives. Most protein powders, on the other hand, are full of food additives. Although not necessarily bad for you in small quantities, additives can add up quickly (especially if you drink a protein shake every day) and cause gastrointestinal (GI) side effects like bloating, constipation, diarrhea, gas, and stomach pain. This is because food additives are hard to digest, and sit in your gut for longer than food should, which gives your gut bacteria more time to eat. As they eat, these bacteria produce gas, which causes bloating and stomach pain. Gas also slows colonic transit (the amount of time it takes food to travel through the colon), and can lead to constipation. In the long term, food additives can disrupt regulatory pathways in the intestine, which can result in the development of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and systemic inflammatory disorders.
When buying protein powder, one ingredient to avoid in particular is artificial sweeteners. Artificial sweeteners are among the most harmful food additives in the long term as they alter the composition of your gut microbiota (the collection of microorganisms that help you digest food). This can lead to serious, chronic GI problems, widespread inflammation, and permanent damage to the gut microbiome. Some sweeteners, especially sugar alcohols like xylitol, are also poorly absorbed by the gut (meaning they feed those hungry gut bacteria), and cause diarrhea because they draw water into your intestine. Now you finally have something to blame for those post-protein shake trips to the bathroom!
Here is a list of the most common food additives in protein powder:
acacia gum, acesulfame potassium, artificial flavors, aspartame, carrageenan, cellulose gum, dextrin, dextrose, erythritol, gellan gum, guar gum, gum arabic, inulin, locust bean gum, “natural” flavors, maltodextrin, rice syrup solids, soy lecithin, silica, sucralose, sunflower lecithin, xanthan gum, xylitol
When it comes to identifying food additives, go with your gut. 😉 As a rule of thumb, they are the ingredients that you cannot pronounce. Food additives are not the only thing to look out for when buying protein powder, however. There are several other ingredients that can upset your stomach.
the alternative:
Protein Matrix Comprised of (Whey Protein Concentrate, Whey Protein Isolate, Calcium Caseinate, Micellar Casein, Milk Protein Isolate, Egg Albumen, Glutamine Peptides), Polydextrose, Sunflower Creamer (Sunflower Oil, Corn Syrup Solids, Sodium Caseinate, Mono- and Diglycerides, Dipotassium Phosphate, Tricalcium Phosphate, Soy Lecithin, Tocopherols), Natural and Artificial Flavor, MCT Powder (Medium Chain Triglycerides, Nonfat Dry Milk, Disodium Phosphate, Silicon Dioxide), Lecithin, Cellulose Gum, Salt, Yellow 5, Sucralose, Acesulfame Potassium, Papain, Bromelain.
*This is the actual ingredient list of one of the best-selling protein powders in the United States.
drink wholesome is dairy-free.
Another reason why we make the best low histamine protein powder is that we do not use dairy-based proteins. Many protein powders are made with whey and casein, which are byproducts of cheese and yogurt production, and known to cause digestive issues, especially for people with lactose intolerance and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Over one in three Americans are lactose intolerant, and the prevalence of IBS is somewhere between 10 and 15 percent in the United States. It follows that you may be lactose intolerant or have IBS and not even know it. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a poorly understood condition, and it is unclear why dairy triggers symptoms. Lactose intolerance, on the other hand, is clearly understood. People with lactose intolerance are unable to fully digest lactose, the sugar in dairy. As you just learned, partially digested food feeds the bacteria in your gut, which produce gas and cause stomach pain.
drink wholesome is made with real foods.
A final reason why we make the best naturally caffeinated protein powder is that we do not use protein isolates. Most protein powders, on the contrary, are made with protein concentrates and/or isolates, foods stripped of everything but the protein. They are listed on the ingredient list as “collagen protein,” “pea protein, and” “whey protein” as opposed to “collagen,” “peas,” and “whey.” I will not go into the details, but protein concentrates and isolates undergo heavy mechanical and chemical processing before becoming protein powder. Sometimes, manufacturers use chemical solvents like hexane to isolate (separate) the protein from the food. This means that what you end up putting into your body looks nothing like real food.
If you think about it, your gut was designed to digest naturally occurring foods, not laboratory formulated imitations, so if you feed it anything but real food, it might get upset. The long term implications of eating processed foods are still not well understood, but more and more research is finding that it can alter the composition of your gut microbiota, and lead to permanent damage to the gut microbiome. It is therefore in your best interest to avoid protein powders made with protein concentrates and isolates.
Instead of protein concentrates or isolates, we make the best low histamine protein powder with egg whites and almonds. Egg whites are simply pasteurized and dried before becoming protein powder. Almonds are just roasted, pressed, and ground. Minimally-processed ingredients like these are an easy to digest, gut-friendly alternative to protein concentrates and isolates. Unless you have a sensitivity or allergy to eggs, egg white protein is the best protein for your gut. Egg whites are low in fiber, low-FODMAP, naturally alkaline, and have the highest protein digestibility-corrected amino acid score (PDCAAS) of any whole food. Our customers have experienced fewer digestive issues with egg white protein than with any other type of protein. If you cannot eat eggs, try our almond protein powder. Unlike protein concentrates or isolates, almonds contain lots of healthy fats, fiber, and other nutrients like calcium and vitamin E. We prefer almonds to other minimally-processed plant protein sources because they are more gut-friendly. Research suggests that almonds possess prebiotic properties and can improve the diversity and composition of the gut microbiome.
★★★★★
“I’ve had Crohn’s disease for 20+ years and it’s always been hard to find a protein powder my stomach can handle. I’ve had no problem digesting drink wholesome AND it tastes great. I highly recommend this protein powder if you have IBS or Crohn’s.” – Jesse
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drink wholesome is the best low histamine protein powder.
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This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. drink wholesome is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.