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>>[...]
>>wheat allergy.  She told me that I will always need to take plant
>>enzymes for the wheat allergy and for lactose intollerance...... She
>>said to take plant enzymes containing lactase, sucrase and
>>especially maltase (WHICH BREAKS DOWN GRAINS).   The one

> Would you trust someone who (1) "didn't know the cause", and (2) doesn't
> seem to know the difference between an allergy (which produces histamine
> reactions) and a food intolerance which doesn't?

> Don Wiss
> New York

Well, _I_ would not. Also the statement that 'maltase breaks down grain'
is somewhat too generalised. All three mentioned enzymes break down
a specific disacharide, namely lactose, sucrose and maltose. Maltose
is generated when starch is broken down into smaller units.
Although maltase is involved in breaking down carbohydrates, many
other enzymes are required to break down the different storage
molecules in grains.
Gluten consists of several proteins, therefore, proteases are the
enzymes that break down gluten. However, break down products may still
have some effect, so as long as the mechanism of CD is still
unclear, a GF diet is the thing to do.


regarding wine causing headaches, asthma etc:

To my knowledge (which might be a little outdated, sorry), it is not
really known why some wines cause problems that are not related to the
alcohol. One theory says that wine high in histamine is more likely
to cause troubles than wine low in histamine.
The histamine can arise during the process of wine making. It is
a problem of the wine maker, not of the grapes or the vineyard,
nor of the price.

>From what I recall, Californian wines tend to be low in histamine,
because in California winemaking is not so traditional, and more
scientific. In France, where people make wine like their great-
grandfathers used to make it, it can be more of a problem, but
it does not have to. The wine makers argue that wine is not a
staple food, so nobody has to drink it, so there is no reason
for changing the wine making procedure (as long as they still can
sell their wine :-)  ).

All wine lovers can do, if they know that some wines cause
problems is create/develop a list of wines they can drink
without problems, and stay away from mixed drinks like Sangria.

Marianne
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