Is avocado high in histamine?
Avocado is usually mostly low in histamine. Shop-bought samples in Spain had none detectable, but other studies found up to 23 mg/kg, and 3 of 10 published low-histamine diets exclude it.
- Histamine
- Varies by sample
- Other amines
- Low
- Liberator
- Not on the lists we use
- DAO blocker
- No evidence
Why sources disagree. Measurements disagree. Avocados bought in Spain had no detectable histamine, while other studies report up to 23 mg/kg. Three of ten published low-histamine diets exclude avocado.
What each source says
| Source | Verdict | What it says, in our words |
|---|---|---|
| Lab measurements, Spain 1 | Measured | No detectable histamine in 5 samples; small amounts of tyramine. |
| Other published measurements 1 | Measured | From not detected up to 23 mg/kg of histamine. |
| 10 published low-histamine diets 2 | 3 of 10 exclude avocado. | |
| Clinical review, 2024 3 | Lists avocado among foods a low-histamine diet avoids. | |
| SIGHI food list 4 | See source | See SIGHI's own list for its rating. |
Measured histamine
| Food tested | Samples | Histamine | Other amines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avocados sold in Spain 1 (Table 2) | 5 | not detected | tyramine mean 1.81 mg/kg; putrescine not detected |
| Range reported by other studies 1 (Table 4) | — | range nd–23 mg/kg | tyramine 0.5–5 mg/kg; spermine 2–8 mg/kg |
mg/kg = milligrams of histamine per kilogram of food. "Not detected" means below the laboratory's detection limit.
How freshness and processing change it
No study we found measured how ripening changes histamine in avocado. Histamine in food forms mainly through bacterial activity, so cut or mashed avocado left standing, such as guacamole made hours ahead, is a more cautious choice than a freshly cut one.
No detectable histamine in shop-bought samples. (measured)
Not measured. Cut fruit left standing gives bacteria time to act, and guacamole usually adds tomato and lime. (estimate)
Why we rate avocado 1
Avocado is one of the foods low-histamine lists disagree on most, and the reason is that the measurements themselves disagree. When researchers at the University of Barcelona tested five avocados bought in Spanish shops, none had detectable histamine. They did find small amounts of tyramine, another biogenic amine, at an average of 1.81 mg/kg. The same team's survey of other published studies found avocado histamine ranging from not detected up to 23 mg/kg. Both findings are real; they come from different fruit, different ripeness and different laboratories.
The published diets split the same way. A 2021 review compared ten low-histamine diets from the medical literature and counted which foods each one excluded. Three of the ten exclude avocado. That puts it in the same group as fresh meat and eggplant, and well below tomato (nine of ten) or aged cheese (ten of ten). A 2024 clinical review still lists avocado among the foods a low-histamine diet avoids, so you will keep meeting both answers.
We rate avocado 1, "mostly low", and mark it disputed. The rating follows our methodology: most measured samples had no histamine, the highest reported value is far below what aged cheese or fermented sausage can reach, and fewer than half of the published diets exclude it. The disputed mark is there because some measurements did find histamine, and we do not know which avocados those were.
If you are in the strict first weeks of an elimination diet set by your dietitian, leaving avocado out and adding it back later is a simple test: it is easy to reintroduce on its own and notice any effect. Eat it freshly cut rather than as guacamole made hours ahead. The claim that avocado "releases" histamine in the body has no human studies behind it.
Questions about avocado and histamine
Is guacamole high in histamine?
Guacamole has not been measured in the studies we use. It usually also contains tomato and lime, which most published low-histamine diets exclude, and guacamole made ahead has had time for bacteria to act, so it is a more cautious choice than fresh avocado.
Is avocado a histamine liberator?
We found no study showing that avocado, or any food, makes the body release its own histamine. A 2021 review notes that the "liberator" idea rests on a few in-vitro and animal studies.
Evidence behind this page
- Avocados sold in Spain had no detectable histamine (5 samples). 1
- Other studies report avocado histamine from not detected up to 23 mg/kg. 1
- Three of ten published low-histamine diets exclude avocado. 2
- No human studies show that any food releases the body's own histamine; the idea rests on a few in-vitro and animal studies. 2
Sources
- Sánchez-Pérez S, Comas-Basté O, Rabell-González J, Veciana-Nogués MT, Latorre-Moratalla ML, Vidal-Carou MC. Biogenic Amines in Plant-Origin Foods: Are They Frequently Underestimated in Low-Histamine Diets? Foods 7(12):205, 2018. doi:10.3390/foods7120205 (Sánchez-Pérez S et al. 2018)
- Sánchez-Pérez S, Comas-Basté O, Veciana-Nogués MT, Latorre-Moratalla ML, Vidal-Carou MC. Low-Histamine Diets: Is the Exclusion of Foods Justified by Their Histamine Content? Nutrients 13(5):1395, 2021. doi:10.3390/nu13051395 (Sánchez-Pérez S et al. 2021)
- Jochum C. Histamine Intolerance: Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Beyond. Nutrients 16(8):1219, 2024. doi:10.3390/nu16081219 (Jochum C 2024)
- Swiss Interest Group Histamine Intolerance (SIGHI). Food compatibility list for histamine intolerance. histaminintoleranz.ch (accessed November 2026), 2026. Link (Swiss Interest Group Histamine Intolerance (SIGHI) 2026)