Bone Broth Is Supposed to Support Your Gut, but It Might Be Behind Your Pounding Head

Educational content only. This article is for general education and is not medical advice. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. If you have frequent or severe head pain, or any new or worsening symptoms, talk with a qualified healthcare professional.

You started sipping bone broth every morning because everyone said it was good for your gut. A few weeks in, you notice something odd: a pounding head by lunchtime, flushed cheeks, a stuffy nose, maybe a little bloating. It is easy to blame stress or sleep. But for some people, the broth itself may be part of the problem.

Isn't bone broth supposed to be good for your gut?

It is a comforting, protein-rich food, and many people enjoy it. But the science behind the big gut-health promises is thinner than the marketing suggests. Cleveland Clinic notes there is still not much research on bone broth's benefits and that it is not a silver bullet (Cleveland Clinic). Harvard's Nutrition Source points out that a cup of bone broth has about 5 to 10 grams of protein and only small amounts of minerals, and lists improved digestion among marketing claims rather than established benefits (Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health).

None of that makes broth bad. It just means that if broth seems to make you feel worse, it is worth taking that signal seriously instead of pushing through.

A food can be wholesome and still be too much histamine for your body right now.

Why is bone broth so high in histamine?

Histamine forms when bacteria break down an amino acid called histidine, which is found in protein-rich foods like meat, poultry, and fish. The longer protein foods sit at warm temperatures, or are held for days, the more time histamine has to build (Maintz & Novak). Bone broth checks several of those boxes:

• Very long cooking. Many recipes simmer bones for 12 to 48 hours.
• Slow cooling. A big pot can stay warm on the stove for hours. USDA advises refrigerating leftovers within 2 hours and dividing large amounts into shallow containers so they cool quickly (USDA).
• Days in the fridge. Batch-made broth is often sipped over the better part of a week. Histamine can continue to build in cooked protein foods during storage.
• Reheating does not help. Histamine is heat-stable, so reheating to a safe temperature (FoodSafety.gov) protects you from germs but does not remove histamine that is already there.
• Common add-ins. Many recipes add vinegar to draw minerals from the bones, and vinegar is itself often listed among higher-histamine foods (foods high in histamine).

Researchers have also noted that histamine content in foods varies widely depending on freshness, storage, and preparation, which is why the same food can affect you differently from one batch to the next (Sánchez-Pérez et al.).

How could histamine in broth lead to a pounding head?

Histamine helps widen blood vessels and acts on receptors throughout the body, including the brain and blood vessels (Jochum). Head pressure is one of the symptoms most often reported in people with histamine intolerance, along with flushing, congestion, itching, and digestive upset (Comas-Basté et al.).

When your body cannot clear dietary histamine quickly enough, often because of lower activity of the gut enzyme DAO, a histamine-heavy food may tip the balance (Maintz & Novak). Broth is rarely the only source. Add a glass of wine, aged cheese, or leftovers, and the histamine bucket fills faster.

Is it the histamine or the glutamate?

Long-simmered broth is also rich in naturally occurring glutamate, the same amino acid found in MSG, and some people wonder if that is the culprit. The evidence does not point strongly in that direction. The FDA considers MSG generally recognized as safe and notes that placebo-controlled studies have not been able to consistently trigger reactions, even in people who report sensitivity (FDA).

For histamine-sensitive people, histamine is the more likely factor to investigate first. The best way to know what applies to you is to test it carefully, one variable at a time.

How can I enjoy broth with less histamine?

You may not need to give up broth for good. These changes can help lower the histamine load:

1. Cook it shorter. A shorter simmer, or a pressure cooker, gives histamine less time to build than an all-day or overnight pot.
2. Start with the freshest ingredients. Use fresh or freshly frozen bones and meat, not packages that have been sitting in the fridge for days.
3. Skip the vinegar. Leave it out, or use only a very small amount.
4. Cool it fast. Divide hot broth into shallow containers and refrigerate within 2 hours (USDA).
5. Freeze single servings right away. Instead of keeping a big jar in the fridge all week, freeze mug-sized portions and thaw one at a time.
6. Do not keep a pot going for days. "Perpetual" stockpots that stay on the stove may be convenient, but they give histamine plenty of time to build.
7. Try a fresh vegetable broth or a quick meat stock. Made and eaten the same day, these may be gentler options.

For more everyday ideas, see our low-histamine diet guide and histamine intolerance causes and tips.

How do I know if bone broth is my trigger?

Run a simple, structured experiment. If your symptoms are mild and do not include any of the warning signs above:

1. Take a broth break. Stop all bone broth for about two weeks while keeping the rest of your diet steady, and log how you feel.
2. Reintroduce it the low-histamine way. Make a fresh, short-cooked batch, freeze it in portions, and try a small serving on a calm day.
3. Increase slowly. If you feel fine, try a larger serving the next day, then a normal mug.
4. Test the old way separately. Later, if you want to know whether preparation matters, try a serving of long-simmered or several-days-old broth and compare.
5. Share your notes. Bring your log to your doctor or a registered dietitian, especially if head symptoms are frequent. Learn how experts approach this in the gold standard for diagnosing histamine intolerance.

Can a DAO supplement help if I still want bone broth?

If histamine from food is part of your picture, a DAO enzyme supplement taken with meals may help support the breakdown of dietary histamine in the digestive tract.* In one small study, people with histamine intolerance who took DAO with meals reported fewer symptoms (Schnedl et al.); the study was small and did not use a placebo group, so more research is needed. A DAO supplement works best alongside smarter broth habits, not instead of them.

OmneDiem DAO products use DAOgest®, a standardized, porcine kidney-derived DAO, the form used in the human research. Learn what DAO is and why porcine vs. pea DAO matters.

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What else do people ask about bone broth and histamine?

What is the bottom line?

Bone broth can be a comforting part of your routine, but its long-simmered, batch-cooked nature can make it a hidden source of histamine. If your gut-friendly ritual seems to come with a pounding head, flushing, or congestion, try a broth break, switch to fresher and faster methods, and track what changes. And on days your plate runs higher in histamine, the Histamine Digest family may help support the breakdown of dietary histamine.* For more, visit the OmneDiem News & Education Hub.

Sources

1. Cleveland Clinic. Bone broth: benefits, how to make it, and nutrition. health.clevelandclinic.org
2. Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, The Nutrition Source. Collagen. nutritionsource.hsph.harvard.edu
3. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service. Leftovers and Food Safety. fsis.usda.gov
4. FoodSafety.gov. Safe Minimum Internal Temperatures. foodsafety.gov
5. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Questions and Answers on Monosodium Glutamate (MSG). fda.gov
6. Cleveland Clinic. Histamine intolerance. my.clevelandclinic.org
7. MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine (NIH). Food Allergy. medlineplus.gov
8. Jochum C. Histamine intolerance: symptoms, diagnosis, and beyond. Nutrients. 2024. PubMed Central (NIH)
9. Comas-Basté O, et al. Histamine intolerance: the current state of the art. Biomolecules. 2020. PubMed
10. Maintz L, Novak N. Histamine and histamine intolerance. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2007. PubMed
11. Sánchez-Pérez S, et al. Low-histamine diets: is the exclusion of foods justified by their histamine content? Nutrients. 2021. PubMed
12. Schnedl WJ, et al. Diamine oxidase supplementation improves symptoms in patients with histamine intolerance. Food Science and Biotechnology. 2019. PubMed

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This article is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for advice from a qualified healthcare professional. Talk with your doctor before starting any new supplement, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, taking medications, or managing a health condition.