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Foods with more histamine that should be avoided in case of migraine, allergy and intolerance
What foods have histamine and why not eat them?
Food rich in histamine. Among all, the canned fish and the cured cheeses stand out, although there are other rich foods. All of them should be avoided in case of migraine.
Histamine is a substance produced by the body itself that can also be found in food.
There is no need for all people to decrease the consumption of foods containing histamine: it is only recommended to make this type of dietary restrictions to people who have histamine intolerance or symptoms, such as migraine, dermatological or gastrointestinal problems.
Who should not eat foods with a lot of histamine?
The intolerance to histamine is due to a deficit in the DAO enzyme, which can be genetic, or caused by the taking of drugs (there are up to 90 drugs that block this enzyme).
What are the foods with more histamine?
Not all foods have the same level of histamine and there are foods much more inadvisable than others, and therefore the rigidity of the recommendations (for example “special days”) may change slightly depending on the food we are talking about. Knowing which foods are the richest in histamine will help to better follow the nutritional guidelines:
- Cheeses are one of the food groups richest in histamine, especially the very fermented and cured cheeses, such as Roquefort and Cabrales cheese. For example, Roquefort cheese can have 200 mg of histamine per 100g.
- Canned fish, such as canned tuna, also top the list of foods richest in histamine.
Does cooking destroy histamine?
Histamine and other biogenic amines are thermostable, so that, once formed in food, they are not eliminated by cooking.
Table foods rich in histamine
The following table shows the histamine content of the food, expressed in mg per 100g:
| Food | Content in histamine (expressed in mg of histamine per 100g) |
|---|---|
| Balsamic vinegar (100ml) | 400 |
| Fermented soybean derivatives | 230 |
| Roquefort cheese | 200 |
| Canned or preserved oily fish (salmon, mackerel, sardines, …) | 150 |
| Frozen fish | 89 |
| Emmental type cheese | 50 |
| Vinegar (100ml) | 50 |
| Fresh milk | 40 |
| Pasteurized milk | 16 |
| Sausages | 5 |
| White fresh fish | 2 |
| Avocado and eggplant | 2 |
| Cold cuts and sausages | 1 |
| Lentils, beans | 1 |
| Chocolate | 0,5 |
| Meat | 0,4 |
| Olives | 0,2 |
| Yogurt | 0,1 |
| Legumes | 0,1 |
| Mushrooms | 0,1 |
| Tomato and tomato sauce | 0,05 |
| White frozen fish | 0,02 |
Can you eat foods that have less histamine?
It should be taken into account that people with histamine intolerance can present symptoms even in low doses of histamine. Therefore, as a general rule, strict adherence to dietary guidelines is recommended, at least during intense episodes of migraine.
Good food for migraine
Natural treatment of migraine
More information on histamine and migraine.
