Is MSG in food causing you health problems? This health blurb only delves into the self reported acute side effects of others to help you make your own assessment. Let’s start with what is MSG, followed by ways it could be affecting you, then what you can do to determine if MSG in food might cause you side effects.
MSG in Food
MSG stands for monosodium glutamate, a sodium salt of glutamate. MSG is a flavor enhancer additive, which means a chemical substance has been added during processing of food to improve or intensify a products flavor. Essentially, this effect is brought about by stimulating certain nerve endings in your taste buds.
Glutamate is in many foods naturally and is classified as a non-essential amino acid. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein. This building block can be made by your body, so minimal consumption of the stuff via your diet is not necessary for health maintenance. Glutamate plays many roles in your body, one being an important neurotransmitter.
MSG Side Effects
It’s estimated that about a third of the population report some sort of adverse side effect from MSG. How or why isn’t known. And if MSG actually causes any adverse reactions is a raging controversy.
Reported side effect after consuming foods consisting of added MSG involve extremely diverse symptoms. To discover if you potentially have a sensitivity to MSG, here’s a list of short term side effects to monitor for:
- rash
- tremors
- flushing
- bloating
- diarrhea
- dyspnea
- arthralgia
- headache
- chest pain
- depression
- mouth sores
- hyperactivity
- mood swings
- anxiety attack
- gastric distress
- fatigue, weakness
- nausea & vomiting
- migraine headache
- excessive sweating
- facial pressure, tightness
- numbness, tingling or burning
- irregular heart beat, tachycardia, palpitations
What’s interesting is various symptoms mimic those of an allergic reaction or food intolerance (to what?), as well as asthma. But note, experiencing any of these health effects does not automatically mean MSG is the culprit. And there is a correlation between how much MSG additive is in what you eat and incidence of side effects. For some it only takes a bit, while others it takes much more to provoke a response.
So now you may realize you’ve inexplicably had one or more of these listed side effects. Did you chalk the discomfort up to something you ate and move on? Well, there’s an easy way to narrow down if added MSG in food might be causing you ill effects. Stop eating those foods for about a week and monitor how you feel.
In order to avoid foods containing MSG you may need to completely restructure your diet, notably no food from a package nor eating out. Go back to basics, which can be generally found in the outside areas of your supermarket. And MSG is added to liquids, so drink water.
Why add MSG to food? One benefit is it can save profiteers money. For instance, when you consume a manufactured meal containing meat, it’ll probably taste more meaty than it actually is. Also, some argue more calories are consumed by those suffering appetite loss, i.e. the elderly and cancer treatment patients. So for those of us whose appetites are good to go does this added ingredient result in over eating? Early research seems to support some sort of association!
Unless you consume a diet made predominantly from your own scratch, you can only imagine how much of this food additive stuff you’re taking in. MSG is pervasive in the marketplace and no clearly spelled out labeling is required. For instance, what does the word “flavoring” on a label mean? MSG?