Why is MSG bad?

[claddaghmom]

I just cannot understand MSG and why it's bad. I think glutamic acid is important for our cells and I've heard via BBC that MSG goes into your body as sodium and the gluten digests as it should and there is nothing to worry about it. I know if you have a stroke or heart attack where blood flow is lost to cells they can reverse function and take in calcium then glutamic acid causing them to break down and die but I don't see how it's bad as it helps cells....


Thoughts on this? Resources? 

[claddaghmom]

*bump*

Is MSG maybe a scapegoat or hype or something? :-/ 

[Gator-mom]

A nutrition instructor several years ago told our class that the man who invented MSG gave it to his dog and caused his dog's brain cells to explode and die.  I don't know how accurate that story is and I have no references..she was a little bit of a wacky teacher.

I do know that some people are allergic to MSG though.  My ex's dad had meniere's disease and if he ate MSG it caused it to flare and give him extreme vertigo.

[LaLaLaLa]

MSG gives me a wicked headache whenever I eat it.  That's my personal reason for staying away from it, although I know a lot of people hate it for other reasons.  Their reasons don't matter to me as much as a blazing headache does.

[Cutie Patootie]

It gives me fairly instant horrid headaches as well, so something can't be right.

[skreader]

Some people have a bad reaction to it. It's never bothered me.

When I moved to Taiwan in the late 80's I was shocked to see some people had containers of it (味精 - wei jing)  by their cookers along side the oil, soy sauce, sugar & salt.

So, I think it's just another flavoring (or flavor enhancer) - too much isn't very good - like salt or sugar.

[broodymama]

It's a horrible migraine trigger for me, I have to be very careful about reading all labels when we go shopping to avoid it in its many forms.  It took a very long time to get DH used to doing this, MSG doesn't bother him at all but a handful of Doritos would leave me in agony.  I've never read much beyond that, though there's a book on it I'm reading a few pages at a time whenever I'm at my chiro's office.  My DD1 is only 4.5 years old but she is already prone to migraines  so I avoid it for her too.

[Arduinna]

Originally Posted by claddaghmom 

*bump*

Is MSG maybe a scapegoat or hype or something? :-/ 

IMO, yes.

[MAMom]

My understanding of it is because MSG -- along with many other food additives -- is an excitotoxin, which damages nerve cells. 

[Drummer's Wife]

It's a migraine trigger for me, too.  It's almost instant - so I have no doubt it's doing something bad to my body right after I ingest it. 

[jenP]

If I eat food with any significant amount of added MSG, I have, how to say this delicately?....um, a "colon-cleansing event" within a half hour.

I wonder if this is a simple allergy, like my friend who has the same reaction if she eats mango (no one would say that is evidence of mango being "bad," just that some individuals have an allergy), or is it truly that MSG is bad for people? I would like to know more about it and also about the difference between naturally-occurring MSG in fresh foods like tomatoes and naturally fermented foods like cheese and soy sauce, versus chemically-produced MSG that is added to so many processed foods that would otherwise lack flavor. Are they truly the same, or does the molecule take another form when it is artificially produced, and is this other form bad for the health while the natural form is not? Or is it a difference in amount of MSG in fresh natural foods vs. processed foods that may be behind the problems some people experience? I get the feeling there is something fishy going on when manufacturers of processed foods claim that MSG is just fine for you because it is in tomatoes and parmesan cheese, after all! Also, if MSG is just fine, I wonder why it is hidden in foods under so many assumed names? I would like to know more about it but I have not come up with much solid information.

[daisymommy]

Because the MSG everyone is bad-talking is not the same thing as naturally occuring glutamic acid.  It is a relatively new (meaning only the last few decades) man made, synthetic additive that can wreak havoc on your body.  I too get migranes, virtigo, dizzy, very sick after having some in my food.  It can be a neurotoxin and excitotoxin.

[skreader]

10 decades.... patented in 1909. I'd say if MSG bothers you, avoid it. If it doesn't bother you, ignore the issue.

Originally Posted by daisymommy 

Because the MSG everyone is bad-talking is not the same thing as naturally occuring glutamic acid.  It is a relatively new (meaning only the last few decades) man made, synthetic additive that can wreak havoc on your body.  I too get migranes, virtigo, dizzy, very sick after having some in my food.  It can be a neurotoxin and excitotoxin.

[sunnygir1]

Hmmm.  I always thought it was bad.  It makes my mom sick when she eats it.  When I was a child I would get a raw tongue and mouth when I ate it, so I have always avoided it.

I generally avoid manufactured food additives.  I don't think they are good for the body -- they certainly are not food, as I define it.  I don't eat artificial flavorings or colorings or artificial preservatives.

I guess you could look at it from the other side -- what is MSG doing in your diet that is positive?  Is it providing something that your body really needs that it can't/isn't getting elsewhere.  For me, based on my knowledge and eating habits, the answer is no.

[CCJWGM]

MSG is naturally present in certain foods and using these foods has been present for centuries/thousands of years.  The present chemical processed form of MSG is poison imo. 

For a biased anti-MSG site check out http://www.msgtruth.org/  I'm sure there are a gazillion MSG is great sites to balance that one out. Sorry, I can't provide an unbiased site since I don't know of one.

MSG is also sprayed on crops now under the name AuxiGro. I came across this researched almond intolerances.  Almonds are apparently heavily sprayed with AuxiGro.   http://www.truthinlabeling.org/msgsprayed.html

My DD is heavily bothered by MSG and I avoid it like the plague for her.