Bioiberica reveals market opportunity in histamine intolerance to boost gut health

While food intolerances like lactose and gluten are recognized as common digestive issues, Bioiberica sees a market gap for products to address histamine intolerance, a condition that “often goes undetected.” It is linked to a range of symptoms, including bloating, abdominal pain, headaches, hives, and dizziness. 

The Spanish ingredient supplier says histamine intolerance is an emerging concern, offering an opportunity for supplement brands to provide targeted, effective solutions. The condition stems from a deficiency of diamine oxidase (DAO), an enzyme that breaks down histamine in the gastrointestinal tract. 

Nutrition Insight discusses the impact of DAO deficiency on histamine intolerance and the opportunities to address it with Daniel Martinez-Puig, head of R&D, Human Health at Bioiberica.

“There are a few key reasons why histamine intolerance has historically flown under the radar, despite the fact that it’s thought to affect up to 1–3% of the global population,” says Martinez-Puig. “First, the word ‘intolerance’ is closely associated with more well-known sensitivities to lactose or gluten, both of which typically manifest mainly with gastrointestinal effects.”

“While histamine intolerance stems from a deficiency in DAO, its effects can be extraintestinal — think sneezing, itching, or hives. As a result, many people impacted by histamine intolerance may mistake its effects for hay fever and never know their issues stem far more from pizza than pollen.”

At the same time, he says that awareness is growing and that the global market for digestive enzyme products is expected to expand in the coming years, making histamine intolerance an “exciting area” for nutraceutical innovation.

Martinez-Puig highlights that histamine intolerance’s impact occurs most frequently in women, accounting for 80% of cases.

“Although the patients are predominantly middle-aged women, conclusive studies to confirm gender differences are lacking,” he adds. “However, an estrogenic regulation of DAO activity has been described, suggesting a potential effect of the menstrual cycle or menopause on the effects of histamine intolerance.”

DAO in histamine breakdown

Martinez-Puig explains that DAO, or histaminase, is a key enzyme naturally produced in the body that metabolizes and inactivates histamine in the digestive tract. Meanwhile, histamine is a chemical compound that plays several important roles in the immune, digestive, and central nervous systems.

We previously spoke with Martinez-Puig about scientific research on Bioiberica’s solutions for gut, joint, and skin health.“If, in the event of DAO deficiency or impaired DAO activity, histamine is not broken down properly in the intestine, this can lead to an imbalance between histamine intake and the body’s ability to degrade it.”

“In individuals with the condition, the consumption of histamine-rich foods and beverages — like cheese, tomatoes, or wine — or potential histamine liberators — like strawberries, pineapples, or cocoa — leads to the appearance of gastrointestinal and extra-intestinal effects,” Martinez-Puig details. 

DAO-based supplements can support individuals dealing with histamine intolerance, without common side effects associated with traditional antihistamines, he continues.

DAOgest scientific support

Martinez-Puig points to research indicating that Bioiberica’s DAOgest at a daily dose of 4.2 mg is effective and safe in reducing the effects of histamine intolerance from the first week of intake.

“In our latest observational study evaluating DAOgest, we set out to assess the potential effect of oral DAO supplementation in improving allergy-like effects in individuals with histamine intolerance.”

The researchers recruited 83 individuals with histamine intolerance for a four-week supplementation course of the Histamine Digest supplement, which contained 4.2 mg of DAOgest, enriched with vitamin C and the antioxidant enzyme catalase.

“Supplements were taken before the main meal of each day, and the effects of histamine intolerance were evaluated using a standardized questionnaire at baseline visit and every week for the duration of the study,” details Martinez-Puig.

He says that the researchers detected a significant improvement from baseline at week one across all histamine intolerance effect subcategories: more than 90% in gastrointestinal and skin effects, more than 80% in nervous and respiratory effects, and up to 38% in circulatory effects.

Combining DAOgest with vitamin C helps to boost efficacy by enhancing its histamine-degrading capacity.“These improvements were maintained throughout the study period,” underscores Martinez-Puig. “What’s more, no side effects associated with oral supplementation of the DAO product were recorded.”

The supplement combined DAOgest with vitamin C to boost efficacy and convenience. He details that in vitro studies have shown that pairing the nutraceutical with 10 mg of vitamin C may enhance its histamine-degrading capacity.

“The vitamin may act as a ‘neutralizer’ or ‘scavenger’ for hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) — a harmful reactive oxygen species produced as a byproduct during the process of histamine breakdown. By neutralizing H2O2, vitamin C helps reduce oxidative stress that can otherwise inhibit DAO activity, helping DAOgest function even more efficiently.”

Market opportunities

According to Martinez-Puig, demand for DAO-based products and awareness of histamine intolerance are rising but still relatively low. At the same time, he points to the strong interest in digestive supplements as a whole.

“The gut-brain, gut-immune, and even gut-skin axes are becoming mainstream concepts as consumers increasingly recognize most roads to health lead back to digestion.”

“A booming market means brands need to offer demonstrable and differentiated benefits to rise to the top,” he highlights. “Solutions like our DAOgest ingredient offer just such an opportunity, especially when paired with other high-ticket inclusions such as pro- and prebiotics.”

DAOgest’s high concentration of active DAO enzyme also allows for increased activity at lower concentrations, highlights Martinez-Puig. As such, he says it’s an “ideal addition” to gastro-resistant capsules and other convenient dosing formats.