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by Elisa Adams
Almost all of us know at least
one person who gets headaches from eating in a Chinese restaurant. Fortunately,
once MSG was discovered to be the cause, we learned to say “No MSG, please”
and to avoid the soup — which
is not made-to-order and, in most Chinese restaurants, is already laced with
MSG.
Why do some people react so
violently to MSG? MSG is monosodiumglutamate, a chemical related to the amino
acid called glutamic acid. In vegetables, glutamic acid is bound to a protein,
and together they work to keep the digestive tract healthy. In food processing,
glutamic acid is split apart from the protein and becomes “free glutamate.”
Used as a “flavor enhancer,” it has no flavor itself. Instead, it affects
the way the brain senses flavors.
Free glutamate works by
stimulating the nervous connection between your taste buds and your brain. It
changes your perception of how the food tastes, increasing your ability to taste
the yummy flavors — sweet and salty — and suppressing your ability to taste
bitter and sour ones, such as those warning you of the presence of rancid
fats.
Unfortunately, it also causes a
wide variety of subtle and not-so-subtle problems related to brain function.
It's toxic to everyone’s brain, but to those who can't metabolize it
effectively, even tiny doses can act like a poison.
Food processors use it to cut
production costs by giving you more “good taste” for only pennies. Current
labeling laws allow glutamate to be hidden in processed foods under more than 40
different names. Some of these are:
- Monosodium glutamate
- Calcium caseinate
- Sodium caseinate
- Textured protein
- Autolyzed yeast
- Hydrolyzed vegetable protein
- “And other spices”
- Modified food starch
Glutamate can be found in
anything protein-fortified, enzyme-modified, or fermented. It can appear where
consumers least expect it, such as in the new chickenpox vaccine. Canned tuna
packed in water often contains free glutamate as hydrolyzed protein. It is in
Sesame Street Pasta Shapes with Mini Meatballs in Tomato Sauce, even though the
label says "No MSG." Vendors supply restaurants with soup mixes
labeled “No MSG Added,” even when they contain free glutamate. The substance
is even in Gerber’s “Graduates” toddler food. The most obvious place where
glutamate hides is in food containing “hydrolyzed protein.” It can also be
labeled “flavoring,” “natural turkey flavoring,” or “natural
flavoring.”
The list of food products
containing this neurotoxin is growing. It is in most salad dressings, processed
meats, snack foods, soups, and prepared foods on the grocery store shelves. Be
careful of “light” foods with reduced fat. Food producers often replace the
lost flavor that fat once provided with flavor-enhancing free glutamate. It has
also been found in drinks, chewing gum, and candies, frozen entrees, ice cream
and frozen yogurt. “Free glutamate” is used in almost all processed or
manufactured food, providing “big taste” for little money.
Is this really such a big
deal?
Women who ingest MSG while
pregnant increase the risk of the endocrine system of their unborn child being
affected, with a measurably smaller pituitary, thyroid, ovaries or testes,
resulting in later reproductive dysfunctions. It affects insulin metabolism and
diabetes, resulting in both excess insulin secretion and insulin resistance, the
causes of adult-onset diabetes. MSG also increases allergy sensitivity,
increasing the risk of greater reactions to perfumes, hairspray, and other
chemicals, including aspartame (NutraSweet).
MSG is currently under
investigation in connection with the dramatic rise in Alzheimer's, ALS (Lou
Gehrig's disease), and Parkinson’s, three brain diseases that were rare or
nonexistent in the 1800s and earlier. Exposure to processed foods seems to be an
across-the-board trigger for most of the increases in diseases that show up in
Americans beginning at about age 30, increasing as time passes, as exposure
allows more strange chemicals to accumulate in our fatty tissues, including both
breast and brain tissue.
The best defense against the
diseases of the twentieth century is to stick to eating whole foods, preferably
organically grown. Fish, fruits, and vegetables do not contain MSG. The foods
you grow in your own garden are safe to eat. You can even freeze greens and
berries easily and enjoy them all winter.
Good health to you!
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