1. < Skin Health

Have had histamine intolerance for two yeas primarily affecting face i

Posted by cniebler38 @cniebler38, Aug 13, 2023

How can I control skin itching from histamine intolerance particularly at night. Have used hydrocortisone cream and trying quercetin but concerned as have stage 3 kidney disease where I have to watch using supplements.

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Mentor
Lori, Volunteer Mentor | @loribmt | Aug 13, 2023

Welcome to Connect @cniebler38. Chronic itching, especially at night, is just awful. I went through a period of that myself and admit I’d rather have pain than itching! Mine was brought on by chemo and a host of meds so eventually it has disappeared. But you have my sympathy!

I did a little research this morning to see what antihistamines are safe to use if someone has kidney disease and found several articles from credible sources.
They all seem to concur that antihistamines are generally safe for patients with kidney disease and pose no issues. The exception being long term heavy use. However, antihistamines can interfere/interact with some medications so it’s important to check with your doctor/pharmacist first to see if it’s ok.

Most antihistamines such as Benadryl (can cause drowsiness), Claritin, Allegra and Zyrtec are mentioned as being safe for CKD. However, it’s important to avoid products with decongestants such as Claritin-D, Allegra-D and Zyrtec-D along with any product containing pseudoephedrine such as Sudafed.

Since there were quite a few sources, I picked these two to post for you:
From Kidney.org
https://www.kidney.org/blog/ask-doctor/what-antihistamines-andor-decongestants-can-i-take-ckd
~~~
University of Michigan’s nephrology dept:
https://www.med.umich.edu/1libr/Nephrology/OTCMedsForCDK.pdf
There’s also a list of meds to avoid if you have kidney disease
Meds to avoid with kidney disease:
https://www.kidney.org/atoz/content/5-drugs-you-may-need-to-avoid-or-adjust-if-you-have-kidney-disease
Do you have any other underlying medical conditions that are causing your histamine reaction? Have you tried taking an antihistamine?

REPLY
2 replies
Mentor
Ginger, Volunteer Mentor | @gingerw | Aug 13, 2023

@cniebler38 I echo a welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect!

As a kidney disease patient myself, it can be a real balancing act to live daily, dealing with diet and health concerns. One of the things that can cause itching is your calcium and phosphorous levels. Do you get regular labwork done to monitor your kidney situation? Watching your diet, and intake of high value calcium and phosphorous foods, may help. That may mean limiting dairy to 3/4 cup of less a day, chocolate, dairy in general [ice cream, cheese], dark colored sodas. Even though a nephrologist or general practitioner may not agree with my opinion, following a good renal diet is critical at any stage of kidney disease, and may help slow kidney function decline. There are several qualified sites to look at diet, and we have our kidney and bladder support group here on Mayo Clinic Connect https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/kidney-conditions/
From the National Kidney Foundation about nutrition: https://www.kidney.org/nutrition
From DaVita Kidney Care: https://www.davita.com/diet-nutrition
From Fresenius Kidney Care: https://www.freseniuskidneycare.com/recipes-and-nutrition

Hoping this will give you some insight to your itching issue!
Ginger

REPLY
1 reply
cniebler38 | @cniebler38 | Aug 13, 2023
In reply to @gingerw "@cniebler38 I echo a welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect! As a kidney disease patient myself, it..." + (show)
@gingerw

@cniebler38 I echo a welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect!

As a kidney disease patient myself, it can be a real balancing act to live daily, dealing with diet and health concerns. One of the things that can cause itching is your calcium and phosphorous levels. Do you get regular labwork done to monitor your kidney situation? Watching your diet, and intake of high value calcium and phosphorous foods, may help. That may mean limiting dairy to 3/4 cup of less a day, chocolate, dairy in general [ice cream, cheese], dark colored sodas. Even though a nephrologist or general practitioner may not agree with my opinion, following a good renal diet is critical at any stage of kidney disease, and may help slow kidney function decline. There are several qualified sites to look at diet, and we have our kidney and bladder support group here on Mayo Clinic Connect https://connect.mayoclinic.org/group/kidney-conditions/
From the National Kidney Foundation about nutrition: https://www.kidney.org/nutrition
From DaVita Kidney Care: https://www.davita.com/diet-nutrition
From Fresenius Kidney Care: https://www.freseniuskidneycare.com/recipes-and-nutrition

Hoping this will give you some insight to your itching issue!
Ginger

Jump to this post

Thank you. I will join the support group.

REPLY
cniebler38 | @cniebler38 | Aug 13, 2023
In reply to @loribmt "Welcome to Connect @cniebler38. Chronic itching, especially at night, is just awful. I went through a..." + (show)
@loribmt

Welcome to Connect @cniebler38. Chronic itching, especially at night, is just awful. I went through a period of that myself and admit I’d rather have pain than itching! Mine was brought on by chemo and a host of meds so eventually it has disappeared. But you have my sympathy!

I did a little research this morning to see what antihistamines are safe to use if someone has kidney disease and found several articles from credible sources.
They all seem to concur that antihistamines are generally safe for patients with kidney disease and pose no issues. The exception being long term heavy use. However, antihistamines can interfere/interact with some medications so it’s important to check with your doctor/pharmacist first to see if it’s ok.

Most antihistamines such as Benadryl (can cause drowsiness), Claritin, Allegra and Zyrtec are mentioned as being safe for CKD. However, it’s important to avoid products with decongestants such as Claritin-D, Allegra-D and Zyrtec-D along with any product containing pseudoephedrine such as Sudafed.

Since there were quite a few sources, I picked these two to post for you:
From Kidney.org
https://www.kidney.org/blog/ask-doctor/what-antihistamines-andor-decongestants-can-i-take-ckd
~~~
University of Michigan’s nephrology dept:
https://www.med.umich.edu/1libr/Nephrology/OTCMedsForCDK.pdf
There’s also a list of meds to avoid if you have kidney disease
Meds to avoid with kidney disease:
https://www.kidney.org/atoz/content/5-drugs-you-may-need-to-avoid-or-adjust-if-you-have-kidney-disease
Do you have any other underlying medical conditions that are causing your histamine reaction? Have you tried taking an antihistamine?

Jump to this post

Thank you. I am taking 2 Zyrtec and Claritin recommended by allergist 2 years ago. Another OTC that histamine intolerance researchers recommend is Quercetin which I have been trying for the past week at 1 tablet of 500mg. Recommended dosage not to exceed 1G daily. There are cautionary notes about its affect on the kidneys in higher dosage and that it might not be good for people with kidney disease. My GFR is 51. My goal is to reduce the late night itching caused by a late night histamine release. Have had some relief but will try one more week . Nighttime is worst.

REPLY
mayoklinko | @mayoklinko | Nov 1, 2023

@cniebler38 barring any food allergies; have you tried following a food ‘histamine’ elimination diet or spoken to a dietitian about it?

Not endorsing or advertising on anyone’s behalf, but a quick internet search for ‘ histamine intolerance’ led me to this site, nutritionbyerin dot com / how-to-follow-histamine-elimination-diet

REPLY
itchyandscratchy | @itchyandscratchy | Nov 2, 2023
In reply to @loribmt "Welcome to Connect @cniebler38. Chronic itching, especially at night, is just awful. I went through a..." + (show)
@loribmt

Welcome to Connect @cniebler38. Chronic itching, especially at night, is just awful. I went through a period of that myself and admit I’d rather have pain than itching! Mine was brought on by chemo and a host of meds so eventually it has disappeared. But you have my sympathy!

I did a little research this morning to see what antihistamines are safe to use if someone has kidney disease and found several articles from credible sources.
They all seem to concur that antihistamines are generally safe for patients with kidney disease and pose no issues. The exception being long term heavy use. However, antihistamines can interfere/interact with some medications so it’s important to check with your doctor/pharmacist first to see if it’s ok.

Most antihistamines such as Benadryl (can cause drowsiness), Claritin, Allegra and Zyrtec are mentioned as being safe for CKD. However, it’s important to avoid products with decongestants such as Claritin-D, Allegra-D and Zyrtec-D along with any product containing pseudoephedrine such as Sudafed.

Since there were quite a few sources, I picked these two to post for you:
From Kidney.org
https://www.kidney.org/blog/ask-doctor/what-antihistamines-andor-decongestants-can-i-take-ckd
~~~
University of Michigan’s nephrology dept:
https://www.med.umich.edu/1libr/Nephrology/OTCMedsForCDK.pdf
There’s also a list of meds to avoid if you have kidney disease
Meds to avoid with kidney disease:
https://www.kidney.org/atoz/content/5-drugs-you-may-need-to-avoid-or-adjust-if-you-have-kidney-disease
Do you have any other underlying medical conditions that are causing your histamine reaction? Have you tried taking an antihistamine?

Jump to this post

Antihistamines cause memory issues too

REPLY
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