Supplementation with resistant potato starch (RPS) branded as Solnul may help to reduce serum histamine levels in healthy adults, and this may result in improvements to intestinal permeability, or what’s known colloquially as “leaky gut,” according to a study published in the Journal of Functional Foods.
 
Histamine, whether produced from gut microbes or present in one’s diet, is linked to gut inflammation which can increase the permeability of one’s intestine and result in a number of digestive issues, as well as allergy-like symptoms.
 
In the study, the authors conducted metabolomic analysis in 48 participants who consumed either a placebo or 3.5 grams of RPS daily for four weeks.
 
Based on the study’s findings, RPS was able to decrease serum histamine levels, but didn’t influence histamine-degrading enzymes. Instead, RPS is thought to work via prebiotic activity; by reducing the abundance of histamine-secreting microbes.
 
Markers of intestinal permeability were also reduced in the participants according to the metabolomic dataset. For instance, amino acids which are characteristically elevated during ‘leaky gut’ were reduced significantly, and a metabolite of collagen breakdown called hydroxylysine was decreased, along with decreases in acetyl spermidine. Short- and medium-chain carnitine ratios decreased which is also thought to be a sign of improvements to intestinal permeability.
 
“Histamine sensitivity was thought to be due to our bodies’ inability to break down histamine and stop the inflammatory response,” said Jason Bush, PhD, chief scientific officer at MSP, the supplier of Solnul. “Our findings connect changes in histamine to reductions in histamine-producing bacteria and improvements in gut barrier function via Solnul supplementation using a combination of microbiome and metabolomic data.”
 
Metabolomics is the large-scale study of small molecules within cells, biofluids, tissues, or organisms, commonly known as metabolites. This particular study looked at serum metabolites, offering a snapshot of the physiological pathways of an organism.
 
“This type of research is particularly exciting for us as few companies are using metabolomics to substantiate claims for their ingredients” said Jason Leibert, chief growth officer at MSP. “These cutting-edge structure/function claims will give our commercial partners a competitive advantage and support the health goals consumers are seeking.”
 
According to Solnul, the structure/function claims for its RPS ingredient which this clinical study allows for include ‘enhances gut barrier function,’ ‘reduces histamine sensitivity,’ and ‘significantly decreases collagen breakdown metabolites, which may help to support collagen integrity.’