Is salmon high in histamine?
Fresh salmon is mostly low in histamine: fresh oily fish averaged 3.27 mg/kg in lab tests, and salmon has far less histidine than tuna. Smoked, canned and leftover salmon rate higher.
- Histamine
- Varies by sample
- Other amines
- Notable levels
- Liberator
- Not on the lists we use
- DAO blocker
- No evidence
Why sources disagree. Salmon has far less free histidine than tuna-type fish and fresh oily fish measured low on average, but nine of ten published diets exclude fish as a group.
What each source says
| Source | Verdict | What it says, in our words |
|---|---|---|
| Lab measurements, Spain 1 | Measured | Fresh oily fish averaged 3.27 mg/kg in 49 samples; 95% had 6.66 mg/kg or less. Salmon was not reported separately. |
| FAO/WHO review, 2018 3 | Most salmon-family fish have under 1,000 mg/kg free histidine, against 5,000–20,000 mg/kg in tuna-type fish. | |
| EU food law 4 | Histamine limits target histidine-rich fish families such as tuna, mackerel and sardines, not salmon. | |
| 10 published low-histamine diets 1 | 9 of 10 exclude fish as a group. | |
| SIGHI food list 5 | See source | See SIGHI's own list for its rating. |
Measured histamine
| Food tested | Samples | Histamine | Other amines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fresh oily fish sold in Spain (group; species not given) 1 (Table 1) | 49 | mean 3.27 mg/kg, range nd–111.26 mg/kg, 95th percentile 6.66 mg/kg | cadaverine mean 13.22 mg/kg (up to 400.23); putrescine mean 2.37 mg/kg |
| Semi-preserved fish (group) 2 (Table 1) | 49 | mean 3.48 mg/kg, range nd–34.9 mg/kg | median 2.18 mg/kg |
| Canned fish (group) 2 (Table 1) | 96 | mean 14.42 mg/kg, range nd–657.05 mg/kg | median 5.93 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
Freshness matters more for fish than for almost any other food, because histamine and other amines form as bacteria grow during storage and cooking does not destroy them. Buy salmon fresh or frozen, keep it cold, and cook it soon. Smoked, canned and leftover salmon have had more time for amines to form.
Fresh oily fish averaged 3.27 mg/kg; salmon is a low-histidine species. (estimate)
Not measured on its own; semi-preserved fish averaged 3.48 mg/kg, up to 34.90. (estimate)
Not measured on its own; canned fish averaged 14.42 mg/kg, up to 657.05. (estimate)
Not measured. Storage time adds histamine, and reheating does not remove it. (estimate)
Why we rate salmon 1
Salmon is often lumped together with tuna and mackerel as "oily fish", and many low-histamine lists exclude all three. For histamine, salmon is a different case, and the reason is histidine. Histamine in fish is made by bacteria from free histidine, an amino acid in the flesh. A 2018 joint review by the FAO and the World Health Organization reports that most fish in the salmon family have less than 1,000 mg/kg of free histidine, while tuna-type (scombroid) fish have roughly 5,000 to 20,000 mg/kg. Less histidine means less raw material for histamine. EU food law reflects the same biology: its histamine limits for fish are aimed at histidine-rich families such as tuna, mackerel, herring, sardines and anchovies, and salmon's family is not among them.
We do not have a salmon-only measurement. The best figure is for fresh oily fish as a group: 49 samples sold in Spain averaged 3.27 mg/kg, and 95% had 6.66 mg/kg or less. One sample reached 111.26 mg/kg, but the study does not say which species it was. The FAO/WHO review notes that concerns have been raised about salmon too, so a low-histidine fish is not a no-histamine fish.
The published diets are strict. Nine of the ten diets in a 2021 review exclude fish and fish products, and a 2020 review found that more than 60% of diets exclude oily fish specifically.
We rate fresh salmon 1, "mostly low", and mark it disputed. Processed forms rate higher. Smoked salmon has not been measured on its own; semi-preserved fish as a group averaged 3.48 mg/kg and reached 34.90 mg/kg. Canned fish averaged 14.42 mg/kg with a maximum of 657.05 mg/kg. Leftover salmon has had time for histamine to form, and reheating does not remove it. If you eat salmon, fresh or frozen fish cooked and eaten the same day is the lowest-risk way.
Questions about salmon and histamine
Is smoked salmon high in histamine?
It has not been measured on its own in the studies we use. Semi-preserved fish as a group averaged 3.48 mg/kg with a maximum of 34.90 mg/kg, so we rate smoked salmon 2 (moderate) as an estimate, higher than fresh salmon.
Is salmon lower in histamine than tuna?
Usually, yes. Salmon-family fish have far less free histidine, the raw material for histamine, than tuna-type fish (under 1,000 against 5,000–20,000 mg/kg). Storage still matters for both.
Evidence behind this page
- Fresh oily fish sold in Spain averaged 3.27 mg/kg of histamine across 49 samples, with 95% at or below 6.66 mg/kg and one sample at 111.26 mg/kg. 1
- Most species in the salmon family have less than 1,000 mg/kg of free histidine, compared with about 5,000 to 20,000 mg/kg in scombroid fish. 3
- Canned fish averaged 14.42 mg/kg of histamine (up to 657.05) and semi-preserved fish 3.48 mg/kg (up to 34.90). 2
- Nine of ten published low-histamine diets exclude fish and fish products. 1
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)
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; World Health Organization. Histamine in Salmonids: Joint FAO/WHO Literature Review. World Health Organization, Geneva, 2018. Link (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; World Health Organization 2018)
- European Commission. Commission Regulation (EC) No 2073/2005 on microbiological criteria for foodstuffs. Official Journal of the European Union L 338, 2005. Link (European Commission 2005)
- 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)