mace
Herbs & Spices
Is mace vegetarian-compatible?
See whether mace fits a vegetarian diet, with a clear compatible-or-avoid verdict plus its FODMAP, histamine and other trigger ratings in one place.
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Compare mace across criteria
Sensitivity notes
Why vegetarian diet checker matters
A vegetarian diet excludes meat and fish but may include dairy products and eggs. It focuses on plant foods with optional animal-derived products like milk, cheese, and eggs.
- Eggs and dairy can help meet protein needs
- Include a variety of plant proteins for balanced nutrition
- Iron-rich foods pair well with vitamin C
- Don't rely too heavily on cheese as a protein source
- B12 is still important if limiting animal products
Sensitivities
What mace contains
FODMAPs
Histamine & Amines
Plant compounds
Irritants
Additives
Allergens
Diet fit
Where mace fits
Therapeutic diets
Lifestyle diets
Religious diets
What to know about mace
Mace is the lacy crimson aril that wraps the nutmeg seed, so mace and nutmeg come off the same fruit of the same tree (Myristica fragrans) and share the same chemistry. That includes myristicin, the compound behind nutmeg poisoning, which mace carries too. On the everyday trigger criteria mace is mild: moderate salicylate, a slight histamine-liberating tendency, a little free glutamate, and clean on histamine, nickel, tyramine, sulfites and all FODMAP groups. The thing worth knowing about mace is not an intolerance, it is the dose ceiling.
Watch for
- Same source as nutmeg, so mace is not a substitute if you are avoiding nutmeg for reasons of chemistry rather than flavour
- Contains myristicin, elemicin and safrole.Around 5 g of ground nutmeg is enough to cause nausea, racing heart, confusion and hallucinations, and mace has produced the same picture, including a documented case of a child needing hospital care after accidental ingestion
- Culinary use sits nowhere near that.A blade of mace in a béchamel or a pinch in a spice blend is a small fraction of a gram, which is why the spice is on the shelf at all
- Moderate salicylate, so it adds to the load in the warm-spice blends it usually appears in rather than being an issue in isolation
- Ground mace loses aroma fast, which pushes people to use more of it than a recipe intended
Explore related in Herbs & Spices
Compare similar foods to build a personalized list of swaps that work for your system.
Vegetarian Guide
Everything you need to know about vegetarian compatibility and smart food choices.
A vegetarian diet excludes meat and fish but may include dairy products and eggs. It focuses on plant foods with optional animal-derived products like milk, cheese, and eggs.
These foods are typically compatible with a Vegetarian approach:
View all safe options
Practical guidance for following a Vegetarian diet:
- 1Eggs and dairy can help meet protein needs
- 2Include a variety of plant proteins for balanced nutrition
- 3Iron-rich foods pair well with vitamin C
- 4Don't rely too heavily on cheese as a protein source
- 5B12 is still important if limiting animal products
Pro tip: Keep a food diary to track your reactions. The Triggerbites app makes this easy with automatic pattern detection.
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Get the AppFAQ
Does mace fit a vegetarian diet?
Vegetarian: fits well for most plans.
What if I eat it occasionally?
Still check preparation and add-ins.
What are safer swaps?
Compare within the Herbs & Spices group.