Caramelized Onions Histamine Information

Caramelized onions are a commonly consumed food item, known for their unique flavor. The caramelization process involves cooking onions slowly until their sugars are broken down to produce a rich, sweet, and savory note. Talking about histamine and caramelized onions, it is important to first clarify that onions are generally considered low histamine food, as suggested by the Swiss Interest Group Histamine Intolerance (SIGHI) (1). Onions also contain an enzyme known as diamine oxidase (DAO), which is one of the main enzymes responsible for breaking down histamine in our body (2). This suggests that consuming onions might potentially help with the metabolism of histamine and mitigate its negative effects to a certain extent. However, during the process of caramelizing onions, a variety of reactions occur, including the Maillard reaction, which can actually lead to the production of histamine. Further, cooking time and methods can influence histamine content, suggesting that prolonged heating during caramelization might increase histamine levels (3). It should be noted that individual responses to foods can vary enormously. While onions are not typically classified as a high histamine or histamine liberator food, certain individuals may react differently. Also, serving the caramelized onions with other high histamine foods or histamine liberators, such as hard cheese or red wine, could potentially exacerbate histamine responses. References: 1. Swiss Interest Group Histamine Intolerance (SIGHI): http://www.mastzellaktivierung.info/downloads/foodlist/21_FoodList_EN_alphabetic_withCateg.pdf 2. Maintz, Laura, and Natalija Novak. “Histamine and histamine intolerance.” The American journal of clinical nutrition vol. 85,5 (2007): 1185-96. doi:10.1093/ajcn/85.5.1185 3. Shalaby, A.R. (1996). Significance of biogenic amines to food safety and human health. Food Research International, 29(7), 675-690.