Various kinds of amines are consumed by us in everyday foods. The origin of amines in foods may be as natural ingredients in plants and animals or produced by microorganisms in processing and preservation of foods. Biogenic amines, including histamine, tyramine, putrescine, cadaverine, spermidine and spermine are nonvolatile amines frequently occurring in fish products and fermented foods. For better or for worse, these amines influence our health. It is therefore necessary to know the content of amines in food for risk evaluation and maintenance of human health. In this article, nonvolatile amines in foods and their influence on our health are reviewed.
