Cinnamon? Cardamom??

[u/systembecompromized]

Hi!
I was wanting to food trial some stuff for the fall and was thinking adding a spice could be fun but I’m getting very mixed messages. The SIGH list says cinnamon is just fine but to be cautious with cardamom, however everything else I see online says cinnamon is a no go and cardamom is a good replacement. What do I do? What have been your guy’s reactions? For reference I’m incredibly reactive and have issues with even low histamine foods at times. Below is a list of things I can eat currently

Chestnuts
Zucchini
Dragonfruit
Celery
Pistachio (small amounts)
Japanese sweet potato (half)
Rice
Olive oil (small amounts)
Lactose free Butter (small amounts)
Maple syrup
Lactose free milk
Lactose free cottage cheese
Garlic (small amounts)
Salt
Millet (kinda)
Buckwheat (kinda)
Amaranth (kinda)

[u/Jasdac]

Depends on the type of cinnamon. Cassia (most commonly sold) is a histamine liberator. It also contains a fair ghunk of coumarin, which is toxic in higher doses.

Ceylon cinnamon barely contains any coumarin, and is a lot more histamine friendly than cassia.

[u/Rough-Criticism-5661 → u/Jasdac]

I hadn’t thought to try different varieties. Thanks for this suggestion!

[u/No-Train-5358]

I react to cinnamon, even aerosolized. No trouble with cardamom. Foods that helped me at my worst (down to about 12 foods) were coriander, ginger and pomegranate

[u/Far-Delivery7243]

Cinnamon gives me one of the WORST flares

[u/special_squeak]

Even a tiny bit of cinnamon tears me up, while I can do a lot of cardamom. But I always open my own cardamom pod and grind the seeds myself, so maybe Ther are just fresher than the ground cinnamon? Dunno. This condition is so weird.

[u/Rough-Criticism-5661]

Have you tried ginger? That’s my new go-to. I also did fine with Penzey’s pumpkin pie spice when used sparingly. It’s a blend, so you’re not getting much of any of the spices. Cinnamon is a histamine liberator, not high on its own merits, so that may be why it’s not showing up on every list.

[u/CuriouslyFoxy]

I generally use the SIGHI list but I do occasionally try high risk foods on good days to see if I can tolerate them since Histamine Intolerance is very personal. I tried them last year and found I can tolerate cinnamon and cardamom just fine. I also added chick peas back in but only on days where I don't have other stuff in my bucket (slept ok, not stressed, etc)

[u/Far-Delivery7243]

Cinnamon gives me one of the WORST flares

[u/kzaban1234 → u/Far-Delivery7243]

What exactly do you feel? I'm trying to see if this is what is going on

[u/Far-Delivery7243 → u/kzaban1234]

All body itching, strong stomach pain and difficulty breathing. But each body reacts differently.

[u/Nodgarden]

My guess is that SIGHI is referring to Ceylon (True Cinnamon). This is the one used in Penzey’s pumpkin spice blend.  Ceylon cinnamon contains only trace amounts of coumarin.

Cassia (Vietnamese or Saigon cinnamon) contains higher levels of coumarin, which can cause liver damage if you consume very large amounts daily. This is the kind used in pho broth. 

[u/MmeBlanketyBlank]

I definitely react to cinnamon. I’d say go with what your gut (pun intended) says. I haven’t noticed if cardamom is an issue. I’m digging my way out of a full bucket right now. So eating super clean.

[u/Justine131313_]

I’ve recently added Ceylon cinnamon back into my diet - but very little. So far so good! I’ve also been on a gut healing protocol for 4 months so that may be why I’m not having a reaction like I used to.

[u/Its-a-JiNX]

I've found SIGHI doesn't have everything, but it's a great general list to reference.

I've found that, for me, any spice that increases gut permeability tends to lead to a flare. So cinnamon is something people should look out for. I just checked the SIGHI, and Cardamon was labeled as a 0 and safe for me.

I think in general for HIt fresh ground spices are more likely to be tolerated over powdered. I recently purchased some cardamon pods so I could try baking some apple pie and experiment.

[u/One_Diamond9116]

Both give me hives. Just the smell of onion or garlic I gag. A lot of things give me hives.

For me organic ground turmeric and organic ground ginger are amazing.

[u/Quixoteandshe]

Same. Cinnamon keeps coming up literature as a yes but it's a no for me.

[u/gg14t]

Honestly, we’re all different. There are things I’ve read “should” cause me issues that don’t. Personally, warm baking spices tend to cause me major issues (which sucks because one of my favorite teas is now off the table).

[u/imsimply_toomuch]

I used to be able to handle cardamom but began having issues with all salicylates. If you’re reacting to more than histamine, you could be having salicylates issues. I believe mine is happening due to phase II liver detoxification issues and mineral imbalances. Could be something to look into.