There are MANY things that trigger mast cells to either partially or fully degranulate.  For example...

- Food proteins
- FceRI antibodies
- Anti-IgE antibodies
- Complement
- Prothrombin
- Fever
- Exercise
- Infection
- Hot food/drink
- Physical stress
- Emotional stress
- Pressure
- Vibration
- Hormones
- Sunlight
- Antibiotics
- Most opiods
- Anesthetics
- Beta blockers
- Heparin
- Latex
- Adhesives
- CT contrast
- Iodine
- etc...

Every single person has mast cells... and we desperately need them to protect us from viruses, parasites, and bacteria.  To a certain degree, mast cell degranulation is a normal, completely healthy process.  The danger is when you have too many mast cells, they trigger too easily, and/or they release all their contents at once causing shock.  

People like us are just getting way too much of a good thing

Heather

Ramona when I read your post I felt like I was reading an excerpt from my own life

Sneezing, tickle in my throat, nausea, heartburn, flushing, sweating, high BP, high heart rate, dizziness, itching, bathroom camping (as I call it) -- it makes me smile but not laugh (if that makes sense).

I will say this, when the itching gets way out of control I have found that Aloe works wonders...  Ok, actually my wife figured it out.  I would itch to the point where I would start breaking skin and for me if one area of my body starts itching then practically my whole body will follow.  She asked and asked and asked for months when it would happen if she could do anything for me and always offered to rub aloe...  Finally one day I was so tired of the itching and I caved (in my mind I thought there was no way it would help); but it does.

Now if there were only such simple remedies for everything else

Thank you Ramona; I am lucky to have my wife, she goes way above and beyond on my bad days and I couldn't imagine how I would function without her.

As to the Benadryl; as I was on my "Road" to diagnosis I was buying and taking the pill form of benadryl and found that it really did not make me feel any better and left me drowsy causing me to sleep quiet a bit more frequently and for longer periods of time.  (I think I read someone else post similar info about Benadryl recently)...

Just out curiousity is the liquid form better than the pill form?  I haven't tried liquid benadryl yet but would be open to it as it's OTC and inexpensive in comparison to Zyrtec and Zantac...

I can  extrapolate my question..

I am wondering if there is  a possibility of  a  bacteria/ virus that is the  reason  our  mast cells  are  so  easily  triggered..

So  just  as in   ulcers  where the bacteria is the  culprit  , maybe there is some  bacteria/ virus  which is alway  present  and if that  was no longer there   there would no longer  be  mast cell degranulation.

nanciswell wrote on 06/20/11 at 15:53:11:

That's not how it works.  Even normal people have mast cells that are constantly in a mild state of degranulation.  The mast cells release a lot more than histamine... there are also prostaglandins (which signal pain), cytokines (which signal to other types of cells), leukotrienes (which cause vasodilation), heparin (a natural blood thinner), PAF (a very potent vasodilator), serotonin, tryptase, etc...  Many of these things are necessary for the normal functioning of the human body.  You wouldn't want to completely stop degranulation.  It's like saying, "Can't you get rid of cancer by stopping cell division?"  I guess you could... but then you would die, because cell division is necessary for human existence.

As to your question about foods... in classic (IgE) food allergies, your immune system has decided that a certain food (or foods) is a deadly virus.  In response, it makes IgE antibodies to that substance... say, the protein in peanuts.  Every time you encounter that food, those IgE antibodies say, "Red alert, red alert!" and they connect to the high-affinity IgE receptors on your mast cells, causing them to release all their contents at once.  In that case, it's actually a good thing to vomit, because your whole GI system is lined with millions of mast cells.  You don't want that food continuing on its way down the rest of your system.

Some people with mast cell disorders (a small percentage) also have food allergies.  Most of us don't.  I don't.  My mast cells go off for other reasons that have nothing to do with IgE antibodies.  Apparently, what the research is now showing is that most people with these disorders... maybe even all of them... have genetic mutations that cause our mast cells to trigger much easier than normal.  That's not the kind of thing you can solve by avoiding a certain food or taking a pill.

Heather

Why not  a virus that  affects the  immune system  to  be trigger happy.. ??  

Like  maybe   one of the vaccines   we have gotten??  I have a  virus  from  the polio vaccine  called Simian  virus.. IT was not  supposed to be there in the first place  but it  was  being  injected into a  heck of alot of people as  how many  batches of  polio  vaccine where infected with the  monkey  virus..  

It was not until  1963  that  they made sure it was  not  in the vaccine.  It  leads to  chronic  neck/ shoulder / in my case  a frozen shoulder.  plus  cancer in the  brain..  Now  cancer  was not thought to be viral  for  a long time..  We need to keep an open  mind ..

nanci

Heather -- I've wondered about food allergies because within reason I have not had "many" limitations on what I can or cannot eat; my indigestion / heart burn has spiked over the last few years which I now understand can cause me to experience other issues; so I am mindful of what I eat and when I eat it.  Like pizza for dinner is a thing of the past for me, but I can still eat it for lunch or if there are left overs a small slice as a mid day snack (when I actually have an appetite)...  However I know that I am "NOT" allergic to anything I've ingested over the years.  I appreciate you pointing that out because I was one that thought food allergies were more common with Mast Cell Disease.

Ramona -- You are so sweet; I still have benadryl in the pill form that I have not taken; so I will take your advice today (as I am already reacting and putting on a show for my kids) and see if taking it with a warm beverage helps make it work a little quicker.  After I posted yesterday I started wondering if the drowsy feeling and amount of sleep I needed when I took it last year was more of a sign that it was working and my body telling me to REST

Lisa -- I promise "No More Scratching" -- I never thought about how scratching in one area could cause the mast cells to go nuts everywhere else; but it makes complete sense.  I tend to start itching more around the calves of my legs more frequently than any where else and if I scratch; within a minute or so I will be itching from head to toe (and for those who know what I am talking about; it is extremely uncomfortable).

I am also curious about Deborah's question about putting our antihistamine's under the tongue to get them into the blood stream to work faster.  It makes sense to me as well.

You are all so wonderful and I hope you are having a great day today...


~Lucas