Prosciutto

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

Yes — Prosciutto is high in histamine. Prosciutto is salted and dried for twelve to thirty-six months with no starter culture and no deliberate fermentation - salt and time and nothing else. It still accumulates amines, because three years is three years, but the process is slower and cleaner than a fermented sausage's. The age on the label is the number that matters. A survey of dry fermented sausages puts the risk at negligible for a healthy person and at a 34 per cent chance of passing the safe threshold for someone taking an MAOI.

Yes — Prosciutto is high in tyramine. Prosciutto is salted and air-dried for twelve to thirty-six months with no starter culture and no deliberate fermentation - salt and time and nothing else. Time alone is enough to build tyramine: three years of enzymes and native bacteria produce plenty. The months on the label are the number to read.

Prosciutto contains only low levels of salicylate. Prosciutto is cured with salt and little else, which is why it stays low in salicylate — the plainest of the cured meats on this axis.

Prosciutto contains only low levels of nickel. Prosciutto is air-dried for a year or more, which concentrates it by removing water. Meat starts so low on this axis that even that much concentration keeps it here. The nickel here follows a national survey covering four decades - the kind of series that shows whether a level is drifting, which a single study never can. Amounts vary by brand and recipe, so always check the label of the exact product.