OPC hinders the HD enzyme and thereby inhibits (prevents) the production of histamine.
It has been known for centuries that OPC counteracts allergic reactions. Masquelier explains the anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic activity of OPC, on the basis of their antioxidant activity…Free radicals activate the release of histamine and other mediators and they are also produced by these mediators. This is how free radicals form essential components in the development and perpetuation of inflammations and allergic reactions.” (OPC in Practice, by Bert Schwitters in Collaboration with Prof. Jack Masquelier)
“An allergy is an inappropriate response by the body’s immune system to a substance that is not normally harmful. The immune system is the highly complex defense mechanism that helps us to combat infection. It does this by identifying “foreign invaders” and mobilizing the body’s white blood cells to fight them. In some people, the immune system wrongly identifies a nontoxic substance as an invader, and the white blood cells overreact and do more damage to the body than the invader. Thus the allergy response becomes a disease itself. Common responses are nasal congestion, coughing, wheezing, itching, hives and other skin rashes, headache and fatigue. The substances that provoke allergic responses are called allergens.” (Prescription for Nutritional Healing, James F. Balch)
HISTAMINE CAUSES ALLERGIC REACTIONS
Mast cells circulate throughout the body and they can release their inflammation mediators everywhere. It follows that degranulation of mast cells not only occurs in the final stage of capillary upheavals, but in each and every case of inflammation and allergy.
OPCs BLOCK HISTAMINE PRODUCTION
“OPC is an abbreviation for “Oligomeric ProanthoCyanidins,” natural health supporting compounds found in plants. OPC’s are concentrated in fibrous parts of fruits and vegetables and are often destroyed by cooking.
Histamine is produced in two ways: 1) Under the influence of hyaluronidase in mast cells; 2) by decarboxylation of an amino acid called histidine. OPC hinders the HD enzyme and thereby inhibits (prevents) the production of histamine.
It has been known for centuries that OPC counteracts allergic reactions. Masquelier explains the anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic activity of OPC, on the basis of their antioxidant activity…Free radicals activate the release of histamine and other mediators and they are also produced by these mediators. This is how free radicals form essential components in the development and perpetuation of inflammations and allergic reactions.”
A CNN chat transcript on a report on the OPC grape seed extract and allergies
OPCXtra – Isotonic OPC