Meat and Seafood Handling Tips for the Low Histamine Diet

by Anne Kessler, MScN

Histamine plays an important role in our body’s immune response, digestion, wound healing, and nerve signaling in the brain. However, if the amount of histamine in our body is greater than our body’s ability to break down histamine, we may have something called histamine intolerance. Individuals may have elevated levels of histamines in their bodies due to allergies, high intake of high histamine foods, imbalanced gut flora, gastrointestinal disorders like IBD and celiac disease, abnormal mast cell functioning, or low levels of the enzyme diamine oxidase (DAO) that helps us breaks down histamine in the body. Certain medications can also increase histamine release or inhibit the DAO enzyme.

Common symptoms of histamine intolerance include migraines, headaches, dizziness, memory loss, anxiety, runny nose, sneezing, congestion, itching, hives, diarrhea, gas, stomachache, nausea, vomiting, shortness of breath, asthma, anaphylaxis, cardiac arrhythmia, abnormal blood pressure, painful menstruation, muscle cramps, and/or low muscle tone.

Many individuals with histamine intolerance benefit from following a low histamine diet, but just as important is how you prepare, cook, and store these foods. Histamine levels, especially histamine levels in meat and seafood, significantly increase when they are not properly prepared, cooked, or stored. Individuals will have a different histamine tolerance level. Consider experimenting with these different tips to see which ones work the best for you.

Meat & Seafood Handling Tips:

1.     Choose meats and seafood that are fresh or have been frozen soon after they have been caught or slaughtered. Freezing significantly slows the development of histamine in foods. Meats develop histamines more quickly while in the refrigerator, so if you are consuming fresh meats, be sure to consume them soon after purchasing or freeze them until desired use. Individuals who are very sensitive may better tolerate pasture raised meats and wild caught seafood.

2.     Avoid aged, smoked, cured, and ground meats. Histamines levels increase as a product ages, so it makes sense that aged, smoked, and cured meats would be higher in histamines. Ground meats contain a lot of surface area for histamine producing bacteria to grow, and so ground meats may cause an increase in symptoms for some people. Some individuals on a low histamine diet will freshly grind their own meats or will purchase ground meats from a company that flash freezes their meats.

3.     You can thaw meat in the refrigerator, but some individuals feel better if they thaw their meat more quickly by running warm water over small cuts of meat. Or you can choose to thaw your meat until it is still a little bit frosty and then cook it from there. Another option is to place frozen meats directly into a pressure cooker. Pressure cookers are a great option for low histamine cooking.

4.     The longer something cooks, the higher the amount of histamines in that food. Avoid slow cooking methods (slow roasting in the oven, boiling soups and stews for hours, slow cookers, etc.) as these will increase the amount of histamine in your food. Consider boiling, sautéing, quick roasting in the oven, or using a pressure cooker. The char from roasting and grilling may cause symptoms in some persons but not others. Some individuals may also negatively react to the charcoal or propane used in grilling.

5.     Avoid keeping leftovers in the fridge. Immediately freeze leftovers after cooking to reduce the growth of histamine producing bacteria. Some individuals may make their plate and then immediately place their leftovers into a glass or silicone storage container in the freezer. Avoid plastic containers as these may leech toxins into the food, which in some persons may aggravate their symptoms further.

6.     The low histamine diet relies heavily on the use of your freezer, and so I recommend investing in a freezer alarm. More than once, our freezer door has been accidentally left open by myself, my husband, or by company staying with us, and everything spoiled. Not only will it give you peace of mind knowing that your freezer door is completely closed, but it will also save you money.

7.    Finally, I should note that freezing meats significantly slows down the production of histamines in your foods, but it does not completely stop it. For this reason, I recommend that uncooked frozen meats should be cooked and consumed within 4 months. Meats that have already been cooked prior to freezing should be consumed within 2-3 weeks. 

At Hive Mind Medicine, we provide personalized nutrition therapy for patients experiencing histamine intolerance and related mast cell conditions. For more information about histamine intolerance, strategies for following a low histamine diet, or for help trouble shooting your ongoing triggers, please reach out to our front office to schedule a nutritional consultation.

References:

1.     Maintz L, Novak N. Histamine and histamine intolerance. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 May;85(5):1185-96.

2.     O’Hara B. Meat Handling Tips: Preparation, Cooking, and Storage — what to know for those with Mast Cell Activation Syndrome or Histamine Intolerance. Mast Cell 360. Published December 2, 2021. Accessed October 30, 2023. https://mastcell360.com/meat-handling-tips-preparation-cooking-and-storage-what-to-know-for-those-with-mast-cell-activation-syndrome-or-histamine-intolerance/

3.     Joneja J. Histamine Intolerance: A Comprehensive Guide for Healthcare Professionals. Berrydales Books; 2018.

4.     FDA. Are You Storing Food Safely? U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Published 2019. https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/are-you-storing-food-safely

5.     Food Bytes. Uiowa.edu. Published 2013. Accessed October 30, 2023. https://www.healthcare.uiowa.edu/fns/Nutritional/Food%20Bytes/2013-05.htm?_ga=2.195989356.1962451798.1698694534-323330582.1698694532

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Anne Kessler, MScN, specializes in providing holistic nutrition therapy for patients with a wide variety of gastrointestinal conditions including IBS, SIBO, candida overgrowth and SIFO, GERD, IBD, diverticulosis, Celiac Disease, histamine intolerance and MCAS, as well as food allergies, sensitivities, and intolerances.

Anne earned a Master of Science in Nutrition from the National University of Natural Medicine and is presently a candidate for board certification as a Certified Nutrition Specialist. During her training at NUNM, she interned on Clinical Nutrition Shifts with Dulcie Childs, RD, and the GI Mentor Shift with Dr. Steven Sandberg-Lewis. She is certified through the Food as Medicine Institute as a Food as Medicine Everyday Educator.

Hive Mind Medicine blog posts are for educational purposes only and are not intended as medical advice. Please consult with your health care practitioner for personalized guidance.