MCAS Symptoms Triggered by Food Sensitivities
I struggled with MCAS symptoms for several years before ever understanding what they even were. At that point, my first thought was to research supplements to beat MCAS. Eventually, I realized that this was not possible. Without changing my diet, environment, and lifestyle, I would be triggered back into MCAS episodes. Though I resisted this initially, once I finally embraced it, I was able to overcome MCAS once and for all.
In this article, I will discuss how food sensitivities can trigger MCAS symptoms. After, I’ll talk about how you can heal the gut to reduce the severity of food sensitivities. Next, I will discuss how mold sensitivity can be the culprit behind food sensitivities. In addition, I will cover the hypoallergenic diet and food rotation, which are critical to overcoming MCAS symptoms.
How Foods Can Trigger MCAS Symptoms
When you have MCAS, typically, there is an imbalance in the gut microbiome. With MCAS patients, there are limited amounts of lactobacillus/bifidobacterium and overgrowths of harmful bacteria, which trigger the immune system. In this situation, there is chronic inflammation of the gut lining. This causes the gut barrier to become more leaky, allowing food particles to enter the blood. Eventually, this leads to food sensitivities, which trigger MCAS symptom flares.
To beat MCAS symptoms, you must simplify your diet in several ways. First of all, you have to only consume foods that have the simplest protein structures. Once your body stabilizes, then you can try to add foods that are harder to digest. This is the safest and most effective method for controlling your MCAS symptoms via diet. To learn more, read about the step-by-step process for the elimination diet. It covers the hypoallergenic foods, the steps to implementation, and anything else you would want to know.
Healing Gut to Resolve Food Sensitivities
The first step to healing your gut is following the diet discussed above. After you learn how to become diligent and committed to the diet, it’s time to reform your gut microbiome. This can be accomplished by maintaining the diet and adding supplements to assist in the healing process. Despite what others may say, you do not want to take strong antimicrobials. I don’t care if they are natural or not. That is not the right path to permanently resolve your gut issue.
In contrast, you need to take supportive supplements, such as probiotics, prebiotics, and toxin binders. If you can restore the beneficial bacteria, provide a consistent food source for it, and eliminate the toxins preventing it from growing, you can restore gut health. Remember, it’s not about killing the pathogens to restore balance; it’s about growing the beneficial bacteria and keeping the immune system calm.
My favorite probiotic is Probiota Bifido by Seeking Health. It contains only bifidobacterium strains, which is precisely what you need to calm down your MCAS symptoms. The reason is, bifidobacterium degrades histamine, calms down the mast cells, and discourages food allergies. Learn more about bifidobacterium’s effect on food allergies in the study linked.
Regarding prebiotics, my favorites are raw colostrum, acacia senegal, arabinogalactan, inulin, and apple pectin. My favorite toxin binders are micronized zeolite, carbonized bamboo, and bentonite clay. Learn more about each of these groups in the links provided.
Mold Exposure Can Cause Food Sensitivities
For years, I neglected the possibility that mold could be causing people’s health issues. I thought, if I can’t see it, then there must not be a problem. Later on in life, I had some experiences with my daughter that changed my perspective completely. By the age of 5, my daughter became extremely ill and disabled. Eventually, I realized that there was mold in the places we were living. After we eliminated exposure, she went from disabled to thriving in a matter of six months.
Once we were no longer living in mold, most of the food sensitivities disappeared. I was shocked because I did not realize there was a correlation until then. From there, I looked further into the reason for the miraculous shift. I discovered that mycotoxins can prevent beneficial bacteria from replicating, irritate the gut lining, trigger pathogens, and impair protein/fat digestion. Finally, it became clear why the mycotoxin exposure was causing the food sensitivities.
Hypoallergenic Diet is Best for Mast Cell Activation
When people have MCAS, they have a tough time breaking down proteins. This can be due to a dysfunctional gut microbiome or mold exposure. Regardless, you have to transition to a diet that is founded upon foods with the simplest of protein structures. With this in mind, I created the hypoallergenic food list. It breaks up foods into four categories, depending upon the complexity of their protein structure.
The foods with the simplest protein structures are least likely to cause severe reactions. In contrast, something like gluten can be a big trigger because of its complexity. With this in mind, I would stick to the “green foods” listed below until you stabilize.
Green Foods – Low Potential to Develop Sensitivity
Fruits: Apples, Pears, Bananas, Blueberries, Wild Blueberries, Applesauce
Vegetables: Brussels sprouts, Kale, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Swiss Chard, Cucumbers, Collard Greens, Carrots, Purple Beets, Golden Beets, Lettuces
Starches: Red Potatoes, Sweet Potatoes, Golden Potatoes, Rice Farina, Rice Puffs, Any Type of Rice
Proteins: Lentils, Black Beans, Garbanzo Beans, Great Northern Beans, Cannellini Beans (keep in mind, most people must start slow with beans and simultaneously decrease meat intake)
Fats: Olive Oil, Avocado Oil
Other: Sea Salt, Raw Honey
Drinks: Water
How Often to Eat: Daily or Every Other Day (Beans)
These are considered “green foods” because their protein structures are simple to digest. I also have created a category for yellow foods, orange foods, and red foods. They are divided based on the complexity of protein structure. To learn more about this, click on the hypoallergenic food list. It is an absolute game changer if you are struggling with MCAS symptoms.
Food Rotation Plan Reduces MCAS Symptoms
When you’re struggling with MCAS symptoms, you need to be overly cautious about how often you consume certain foods. Most people with MCAS have a leaky gut, which increases the possibility of food sensitivities. If you eat something too often, and part of it is undigested, your body can eventually become sensitive to it. When this happens, your MCAS symptoms become exacerbated. This is what I have experienced myself and seen with nearly everyone who has MCAS.
For this reason, it’s critical to rotate your foods as much as possible. Ideally, you want a 3–5 day rotation plan to prevent your body from developing a significant number of antibodies. Keep in mind, if you’ve developed a sensitivity, you may have to avoid that food for several months to eliminate the reaction. Also, there is a possibility that certain foods don’t work well with your body. You must learn how to take the hint and roll with the punches. Don’t be stubborn or blind. This is critical to beating MCAS symptoms.
FAQ – MCAS Symptoms and Food Sensitivities
What is the root cause of most mast cell activation symptoms?
MCAS symptoms are caused by overactive mast cells. The reason they are acting so aggressively is because they are being consistently exposed to something that irritates them. In most cases, this is a food they are consuming regularly, toxic mold, or stress. I would estimate that nearly 90% of MCAS cases have mold hypersensitivity. Also, almost every person with MCAS symptoms has food sensitivities. In short, if you don’t address the food, environment, and stress triggers, you will be stunted in your healing.
Are animal products safe when you have symptoms of mast cell activation?
When people have MCAS, typically, they have an overgrowth of histamine-producing bacteria in their stomach. This is typically because they have been consuming animal products multiple times daily for years. To escape this situation, you must go drastically in the other direction. Instead of consuming animal products, focus on plants. This is the true path to healing your MCAS symptoms.
If you have MCAS, consuming animal products adds fuel to the fire. Remember, if you want to really overcome MCAS, you must restructure your gut. The only way to accomplish this is by increasing plant fiber and following the hypoallergenic food list. This fiber feeds the good bacteria, which produce short-chain fatty acids that calm down the mast cells and increase regulatory T cells. I’ve seen this dietary strategy work successfully for myself, my daughter, and many clients. It was based on science and then confirmed with experience.
Why do certain foods trigger MCAS symptoms more than others?
Each food has a unique protein structure and a different level of complexity. Some foods have protein structures that are harder to break down than others. These include wheat, eggs, dairy, nuts, seeds, oats, etc.. When these foods are not broken down properly, parts of the protein leak into the blood and trigger MCAS symptoms. This is the story for nearly everyone with MCAS. I struggled with it for over a decade before finally understanding this concept.
To overcome MCAS, you must heal the gut. The easiest way to do this is by consuming foods with the simplest protein structures. When this is done, there is little chance for a sensitivity to develop. This allows the gut to heal up, allowing you to tolerate foods with more complex protein structures. To learn more about this, read about the hypoallergenic food list. I have broken down the plant-based foods into different categories based on their risk/complexity of protein structure. Also, if you’re interested MCAS friendly breakfast, lunch and dinner recipes, visit the links provided.
Can you be MCAS symptoms by eliminating food sensitivities?
I have seen people make significant progress by eliminating food sensitivities. In most cases, if ALL of the food sensitivities are removed, the person can stop their flares. Once this happens, the body can stabilize and start to heal itself. If symptoms are still present after making all possible dietary changes, there is likely to be an environmental trigger. The most dangerous of all environmental irritants are mycotoxins. Toxic molds produce them, and they are often a major problem for people with MCAS. Learn more about how mycotoxins cause MCAS symptoms in the article linked.
Which foods are least likely to trigger MCAS symptoms?
As I mentioned above, the hypoallergenic food list is the best place to start. This is because it focuses on consuming foods with the simplest protein structures so you can prevent food sensitivities from developing. Ideally, you want to transition from a diet high in meat and animal products to one that focuses mostly on plants. The reason is, animal products are very hard to break down, and because of it, they can irritate the gut lining. In addition, most people with MCAS have issues breaking down protein/fats. This is why eating these daily is a recipe for disaster. When animal products are not digested properly, toxic byproducts are produced, which makes the leaky gut even worse.
Conclusion – Remove Food Sensitivities to Improve MCAS Symptoms
If you’re struggling with MCAS symptoms, you must make dietary changes to see the most progress. Whether the root cause is an imbalanced gut microbiome or mycotoxin exposure, food sensitivities must be addressed. If you don’t, you will continue to have a leaky gut and irritated immune system, which will make it impossible to heal from MCAS. As mentioned above, the first step to healing is starting the hypoallergenic diet. From there, you can identify the hidden irritants that are preventing you from healing.
If you have questions about MCAS or any other chronic illness, get in touch. I’m willing to help and blessed to have the opportunity.
Happy healing everyone!
Matt Nedin
Certified Holistic Nutritionist
EndSickness, Founder
Phone: (734) 846-8619
Email: endsickness@gmail.com
WhatsApp/Telegram: +17348468619
