Cinnamon

Cinnamon is notable for salicylate, histamine and oxalates. Clear on tyramine, sucrose, FODMAPs, lactose, oligosaccharides, sorbitol, fructose, nickel and gluten.

Yes — cinnamon is high in salicylate. Cinnamon is dried bark, measured at 57.24 mg of salicylic acid per kilogram — third of the five spices in the survey, and an order of magnitude under cumin, though Swain's older figure of 152 put it higher. The practical dose is a pinch, but cinnamon supplements taken daily in capsule form are a different order of exposure entirely.

Cinnamon contains only low levels of histamine. Cinnamon is rated 0 of 3 by the Swiss list — compatible, no symptoms expected at usual intake — and carries no letter, where the list marks L on every entry it holds to be a liberator. The dose is the saving grace - a teaspoon in a cake divided by eight slices is a background contributor rather than a trigger. Cinnamon tea or a cinnamon supplement is a different quantity entirely.

Cinnamon contains only low levels of oxalates. Cinnamon carries oxalate, which the sweetness and the small spoon both disguise. It is one of the ten spices Ghosh Das measured, and what makes it gentler than the amount suggests is the FORM — only 6 per cent of its oxalate is soluble, against 91 per cent in turmeric, and soluble is the fraction the body takes up. No total figure for cinnamon is published, only that proportion. Amounts vary by brand and recipe, so always check the label of the exact product.