Honey and histamine: A sweet wonder of nature – but is it also suitable for a low-histamine diet?

Thick , sticky, and incredibly sweet honey has been a popular ingredient in baked goods and a finishing touch for savory dishes for millennia. But is this liquid gold suitable for a low-histamine diet , or is it considered a high-histamine food? You can find out more about this and the versatility of honey in the following blog article.

Honey: Origin and taste

The sweet honey, which bees produce from flower nectar and which also serves as their food , has long been used by humans. Beekeeping has existed for more than 2,700 years. It is even believed that humans have been collecting and eating honey since the Stone Age.
Honey consists largely of sugar , which is why it tastes predominantly sweet . However, depending on the type of flower, it can taste somewhat milder or stronger . The most well-known varieties are dandelion honey, acacia honey, forest honey, lavender honey, and blossom honey.

Production of liquid gold

Bees are essential for honey production. Honey is made when bees collect flower nectar using their specialized mouthparts and store it in their honey sac , where it is mixed with saliva. The honey sac is a small pouch in the bee's esophagus. As the nectar is mixed in the honey sac, the sucrose it contains is broken down into glucose and fructose by enzymes in saliva and gastric juice, thus transforming it into honey. The bees then store this honey in the cells of the honeycomb. There, the water content of the honey is reduced to approximately 14-20% by countless wing beats, a process that can take up to 20 minutes . After this, the honey is ready. Its consistency depends on the specific ratio of glucose to fructose, which varies depending on the source of the nectar. Approximately 5 kilograms of nectar are required to produce 1 kilogram of honey.

To give you a small example: A bee has to make between 20,000 and 100,000 flights to collect just one liter of nectar . That's quite a lot of work!

Bee pollinates plant

Honey in a low-histamine diet: Is it suitable for consumption?

Generally , honey is well-tolerated on a low-histamine diet. However, some people do not tolerate honey very well. This is because it is a complex natural product consisting of more than 180 components. Furthermore, the natural content of essential oils and trace substances such as benzoic acid can be problematic.

Honey is suitable for the following diets suitable:
  • low-histamine diet
  • gluten-free diet
  • lactose-free diet
  • low-nickel diet
  • low-sorbitol diet
Honey is suitable for the following diets rather unsuitable:
  • low-fructose diet
  • low-salicylate diet

Honey in a low-histamine lifestyle: Shopping tips and storage

When buying honey, it is recommended to choose products with a Fairtrade or organic label , as these producers generally avoid chemical-synthetic pesticides. Avoid using any additives. This prevents harmful residues from ending up in the honey. Buying honey from a reputable source is also highly recommended. local beekeeper. This not only supports local bee colonies , but also beekeepers in the surrounding area.
Since honey is produced by bees, it is not a vegan food . Rice syrup or maple syrup are alternatives . are great vegan alternatives that are also perfectly suitable for a low-histamine diet.

By the way: Some of our HistaFood products, such as ourorganic berry bar or our organic grain bar,  They get their natural sweetness from the rice syrup they contain. This allows us to avoid using refined sugar in their production.

Honey in low-histamine cooking: Delicious recipes

To go along with this theme, we've put together some delicious recipes featuring honey . Enjoy!

Three delicious low-histamine dishes with honey

Feta and carrot snack

The recipe is: low-histamine, gluten-free, vegetarian

You will need the following ingredients for 1-2 servings:
Our tip: How about our HistaFood Organic Asian Sauce As a dip? It goes well with: sesame seeds (1) and spring onions (1)

Turkey with red cabbage and dumplings

The recipe is: low-histamine, gluten-free

You will need the following ingredients for 6 servings:
  • 1 red cabbage (approx. 1.6kg)
  • 2 onions (1)
  • 5 tablespoons butter
  • 6 cloves
  • 2 bay leaves
  • HistaFood Organic Herb Salt
  • 4 tablespoons of liquid honey
  • 400ml apple juice
  • 50g macadamia nuts
  • 8-12 potato dumplings
  • 2 cloves of garlic (1)
  • 8 sprigs of lemon thyme
  • 50ml acerola juice
  • 6-8 baby turkey fillets with skin (approx. 200g each; have the butcher remove the skin or 3 turkey inner fillets, approx. 400g each)
  • 400ml HistaFood Organic Vegetable Broth
  • 2 tsp cornstarch (tapioca or potato)
  • 1-2 tablespoons quince puree (organic)
Our tip: For your vegetarian or vegan guests, you can serve celery schnitzel.

Cream cheese board with whole-grain bread

The recipe is: low-histamine, gluten-free, lactose-free, vegan

You will need the following ingredients for 3-4 servings:
Our tip: You can of course also prepare this with butter. When it comes to toppings, the sky's the limit! Why not try: butter + sea salt + dates, cream cheese + figs (1) + honey or butter + HistaFood Organic Vegetable Spread + Spring onion (1).

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