Is bacon high in histamine?
Bacon is moderate in histamine: cured meat averaged 4.89 mg/kg in lab tests, with one sample at 150 mg/kg, and frying does not remove it. Only 2 of 10 published low-histamine diets exclude cured meat.
- Histamine
- Varies by sample
- Other amines
- Notable levels
- Liberator
- Not on the lists we use
- DAO blocker
- No evidence
Why sources disagree. Only 2 of 10 published diets exclude cured meat, but histamine was found in at least half of the cured meat samples tested, and one sample reached 150 mg/kg.
What each source says
| Source | Verdict | What it says, in our words |
|---|---|---|
| Lab measurements, Spain 1 | Measured | Cured meat averaged 4.89 mg/kg in 23 samples; one reached 150 mg/kg. Bacon was not reported separately. |
| Histamine intolerance review, 2020 2 | Measured | Reports 23 cured meat samples with an average of 12.98 mg/kg and a median of 0.80 mg/kg. |
| 10 published low-histamine diets 1 | 2 of 10 exclude cured meat. | |
| Low-histamine diet review, 2021 1 | No histamine expected in cured meat if freshness and hygiene are guaranteed. | |
| SIGHI food list 3 | See source | See SIGHI's own list for its rating. |
Measured histamine
| Food tested | Samples | Histamine | Other amines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cured meat sold in Spain (group; products not given) 1 (Table 1, row "Cured meat") | 23 | mean 4.89 mg/kg, range nd–150 mg/kg, 95th percentile 3.54 mg/kg | cadaverine mean 38.03 mg/kg (up to 305); tyramine mean 3.43 mg/kg |
| Cured meat (group), second report from the same team 2 (Table 1, row "Cured meat") | 23 | mean 12.98 mg/kg, range nd–150 mg/kg | median 0.80 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
Bacon is cured before you buy it, but it is still stored meat. Once a pack is open, use it soon or freeze the rest in portions. Frying and grilling do not remove histamine, and crisp bacon has lost water, so whatever histamine stays in it is packed into less weight.
Cured meat (group) averaged 4.89 mg/kg in one report and 12.98 in another; one sample reached 150. (measured)
Not measured. Time after opening adds histamine. (estimate)
Not measured; it is cured meat too, made from turkey. (estimate)
Fresh meat (group) had no detectable histamine in 199 samples. (measured)
Why we rate bacon 2
Bacon is cured pork, usually belly or loin, preserved with salt and often smoked. The studies we use do not report bacon on its own; the closest group is cured meat. In a Spanish survey, 23 samples of cured meat averaged 4.89 mg/kg of histamine, and one sample reached 150 mg/kg. A 2020 review by the same University of Barcelona team reports 23 cured meat samples with an average of 12.98 mg/kg, a median of 0.80 mg/kg and the same maximum of 150 mg/kg. The median tells us that at least half of the samples contained some histamine. Cadaverine, an amine also formed by bacteria, averaged 38.03 mg/kg, against 5.02 mg/kg in fresh meat. The tables do not say which products made up the group, so these figures describe cured meat in general, not bacon in particular.
The published diets are relaxed about cured meat. Only two of the ten low-histamine diets in a 2021 review exclude it, against all ten for salami and other dry-fermented sausages, which averaged 21.57 mg/kg. The review expects no histamine in cured meat as long as freshness and hygiene are guaranteed, and it also warns that keeping such foods on most diets is a risk for sensitive people when freshness is not. That is why we mark bacon disputed: the lists lean towards allowing it, while the measurements show histamine in at least half of the cured meat samples.
Frying does not help. Histamine is heat-stable, so frying or grilling bacon until crisp does not remove it. A 2018 review explains that cooking changes the amount of an amine in a food only by moving it into cooking water or by concentrating or diluting the food. Bacon loses water and fat as it crisps, so whatever histamine stays in it is concentrated into a smaller weight of food.
We rate bacon 2, "moderate", a step above fresh pork and below salami. Rashers from a freshly opened pack are the closest match to what was measured; a pack that has been open in the fridge all week has had more time for amines to form. Turkey bacon is cured too and was not measured, so it gets the same estimate. Where a recipe needs bacon, diced cooked ham, which measured lower (cooked meat products averaged 0.30 mg/kg), or fresh pork belly roasted until crisp, in the fresh meat group with no detectable histamine, can take its place.
Questions about bacon and histamine
Is crispy bacon lower in histamine?
No. Histamine is heat-stable, so frying does not remove it. Crisp bacon has lost water, so whatever histamine stays in it is concentrated into less weight, not reduced.
Is pancetta high in histamine?
Pancetta is cured pork belly, like bacon, and falls in the cured meat group, which averaged 4.89 mg/kg in one report and 12.98 mg/kg in another, with one sample at 150 mg/kg. It was not measured on its own; we rate it 2.
Is turkey bacon better than pork bacon for histamine?
Not on the evidence we have. Turkey bacon is cured as well and was not measured, so we rate it 2 like pork bacon. Fresh turkey, which falls in the fresh meat group, is rated 0.
Evidence behind this page
- Cured meat sold in Spain averaged 4.89 mg/kg of histamine across 23 samples, with a highest sample of 150 mg/kg; cadaverine averaged 38.03 mg/kg. 1
- A 2020 review reports 23 cured meat samples with an average of 12.98 mg/kg, a median of 0.80 mg/kg and a highest sample of 150 mg/kg. 2
- Two of ten published low-histamine diets exclude cured meat, against all ten for dry-fermented sausages, which averaged 21.57 mg/kg. 1
- Cured meat is not expected to contain histamine as long as freshness and hygiene are guaranteed, but keeping it on most diets is a risk for sensitive people when freshness is not guaranteed. 1
- Amines are heat-stable; cooking changes their level only by moving them into cooking water or by concentrating or diluting the food as it loses or gains water. 4
- Fresh meat sold in Spain had no detectable histamine across 199 samples, and cooked meat products averaged 0.30 mg/kg across 48. 12
Sources
- 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)
- Comas-Basté O, Sánchez-Pérez S, Veciana-Nogués MT, Latorre-Moratalla M, Vidal-Carou MDC. Histamine Intolerance: The Current State of the Art. Biomolecules 10(8):1181, 2020. doi:10.3390/biom10081181 (Comas-Basté O et al. 2020)
- 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)
- 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)