MSG - Monosodium Glutamate facts
MSG is called a "flavor enhancer" commonly added to Chinese food, canned vegetables, soups and processed meats. It is not a preservative and it has no nutritional value. It does nothing to food, but it does affect the person eating it. MSG is not a naturally occurring substance, it's man-made from glutamic acid, which is an amino acid found in all complete proteins. MSG is a major "excitotoxin" and is known to damage the part of the brain that governs many other systems in the body. Current research links MSG to neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's, Huntington's, Parkinson's, and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Children and elderly are most vulnerable to the degenerative effects of MSG. Although the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has classified MSG as a food ingredient that is "generally recognized as safe," the use of MSG remains controversial.
Americans are now consuming an estimated 160 million pounds of MSG annually. Dr. George Schwartz, toxicologist and author says two tablespoons of MSG on a piece of bread will kill a medium-sized dog in minutes!
MSG symptom complex are: Symptoms are usually mild and don't require treatment. However, some people report more severe reactions. The only way to prevent a reaction is to avoid foods containing MSG.
- Headache, sometimes called MSG headache
- Flushing
- Sweating
- Sense of facial pressure or tightness
- Numbness, tingling or burning in or around the mouth
- Rapid, fluttering heartbeats (heart palpitations)
- Chest pain
- Shortness of breath
- Weakness
- Nausea
Some benefits of MSG:
- Improves taste means improves nutrition.
- Reduces sodium intake.
So as you can see the benefits do not out weigh the damaging effects mentioned below.
Harmful side effects of MSG:
- Brain Damage: MSG is an excitotoxin, which in a nut shell means, these chemical transmitters excite your brain cells to death.
- MSG may aggravate or precipitate many neurological disorders.
- Heart Problem: Extreme rise or drop in blood pressure and Slow heartbeat.
- Alzheimer's disease
- Visual Problems like Blurred vision, Difficulty focusing, Pressure around eyes.
- Headaches & Migraines
- Tumors
- Birth Defects and Reproduction Disorders - MSG is a known "mutagen" (mutates fetuses) and causes significant damage to intellectual development, growth patterns, reproduction and gonadal functions.
- Neurological/Emotional Disorders
- Obesity is one of the most consistent effects of excitotoxin exposure and is a growing problem, nationwide, that knows no age or sex boundaries.
- Asthma
Avoid MSG in your food:
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Carefully read product labels at the market. Whenever you see it, avoid the products with MSG in their ingredients.
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At restaurants, ask if they serve dishes containing MSG.
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For MSG, minimize and/or avoid manufactured, processed, and fermented foods. Replace them with natural, unprocessed, unfermented foods whenever possible.
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Mostly MSG is used in fries and drinks to enhance the flavor and to get you addicted to their foods. So avoid fast foods.
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Cleanse your colon regularly to prevent this swelling.
Products and/or additives that often contain MSG so always read the labels
Malt extract and flavoring
- Barley malt
- Tamari
- Natural flavor(s) and natural flavoring(s) such as pork, beef, chicken, etc.
- Bouillon
- Soy sauce and extract
- Soy protein isolate and concentrate
- Seasonings (the word seasoning
- Broth and Stock
- Whey protein isolate, and concentrate
- Milk solids in low fat milk products
- Spices (sometimes)
- Protease enzymes and enzymes (depending upon the source)
- Mei-Jing ans Wei-Jing
- Anything protein fortified, enzyme fortified, ultra-pasteurized, or fermented
- Carrageenan
- Maltodextrin
- Kombu extract
- Subu
- Worcestershire sauce
- Pectin
- Ajinomoto
The safest and easiest way to take care of your brain health is avoid all food additives by eating a raw food, whole food diet and when ordering out ask if MSG is used. And if so maybe you should rethink the placed where you eat. After all, your body was created to utilize food as it was created, so avoid MSG.
(Sources: hilary.com, mayoclinic.com, ezhealthydiet.com, msgmyth.com/ ghchealth.com)
