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It's the Umami – Why the Truth About MSG is So Easy to Swallow

blogs.smithsonianmag.com

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Re: It's the Umami – Why the Truth About MSG is So Easy to Swallow

#61

Post by baby »

mahranch wrote: post #8

The MSG allergy is a myth, plain and simple. There have been plenty of scientific research studies done on the substance, and they found absolutely nothing. I don't know why this myth has persisted so long in popular culture. I compare it to people who rave about homeopathy. Any (perceived) effect is either anecdotal or placebo in nature. What most people don't know, is that MSG occurs naturally in many foods. Beef,…

I think people are talking about sensitivity, are you saying that everybody should be able to ingest dishes made with MSG and not feel bad because of the MSG?

Re: It's the Umami – Why the Truth About MSG is So Easy to Swallow

#62

Post by hristov »

mahranch wrote: post #8

The MSG allergy is a myth, plain and simple. There have been plenty of scientific research studies done on the substance, and they found absolutely nothing. I don't know why this myth has persisted so long in popular culture. I compare it to people who rave about homeopathy. Any (perceived) effect is either anecdotal or placebo in nature. What most people don't know, is that MSG occurs naturally in many foods. Beef,…

MSG is not in beef chicken spinach or tomatoes. There is a difference between the glutamic acid that is in these foods and the salt that is msg. Furthermore, MSG is manufactured using chemical processes which means that there are plenty of trace elements from the manufacturing processes in the end product. It is very much possible to be allergic to MSG.

Even the present article, despite being very much pro-MSG, allows that some people may be sensitive to it.

Re: It's the Umami – Why the Truth About MSG is So Easy to Swallow

#63

Post by gaadd33 »

hristov wrote: post #55
akiselev wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's like your eyes refused to show your brain the words that you didn't want to read. "Subsequent studies, however, provided mixed results: some confirmed findings of brain lesions in animals or symptoms in humans, but other studies were unable to replicate the results. Double-blind studies often showed little correlation between MSG and adverse symptoms. Parties on both sides of the debate slung accusations at the…

I very clearly mentioned in my original comment that there are other studies that show no effects. My point was and still is that if there are some studies that show negative effects and some studies that show no negative effects, the latter do not (for me at least) cancel out the former. It is entirely possible that there are negative effects that are not picked up by some studies. The fact that the FDA believes tha…

So essentially there's no way for you to ever feel that MSG is safe because the normal outcome is "no negative effects" which, for you, will never counterbalance the few studies that have shown negative effects. I suppose someone would have to publish a study that shows positive effects for you to consider it?

Re: It's the Umami – Why the Truth About MSG is So Easy to Swallow

#64

Post by tytso »

This reminds me about people who are fanatical about avoiding nitrates in Bacon, not realizing that the "natural" celery salt added to Bacon means that actually the expensive bacon sold in Whole Foods actually has more nitrates than conventional bacon. It's just "natural" nitrate, so it must be ok.....

Re: It's the Umami – Why the Truth About MSG is So Easy to Swallow

#65

Post by Camillo »

I still think "umami" looks out of place next to the other basic taste words. All the others come in adjective/noun pairs: sweet/sweetness, salty/saltiness, etc. Where's the adjective for "umami"? "Umami" again? "Umami-tasting"? It doesn't work well (and importing the Japanese adjective "umai" would make things worse, not better).

Instead, I highly prefer the adjective sapid with its corresponding noun sapidity. Sweet, sour, salty, bitter, sapid. Sweetness, sourness, saltiness, bitterness, sapidity. Much better.

Re: It's the Umami – Why the Truth About MSG is So Easy to Swallow

#66

Post by wahnfrieden »

gwern wrote: post #15
binarymax wrote: post #4

I've heard that the sickness associated with MSG is more likely due to ingesting old rice. If you want to get glutamates in your food, when cooking with meat proteins, add mushrooms, seaweed, or even a single prawn or anchovy.

> I've heard that the sickness associated with MSG is more likely due to ingesting old rice. Yes, I remember there being a British, I think, study in 2011 or 2012 that bought samples of cooked rice from various oriental food sellers and found that some were contaminated (moist warm food left out for hours); the reasoning is that when people report sickness or allergy to the MSG that oriental food in the West is notor…

Off-topic, but in case you're not using British English, please be aware that "oriental" is largely considered pejorative and offensive.

Re: It's the Umami – Why the Truth About MSG is So Easy to Swallow

#67

Post by wismer »

espeed wrote: post #44
dsrguru wrote: post #7

This article is both accurate and highly misleading. The author is correct that there is very little reliable evidence that links glutamic acid and/or glutamate to health problems. The backlash against MSG as a result of the "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome" craze, was not rooted in scientific inquiry. However, MSG is not just a source for glutamate like seaweed and tomatoes are. MSG is the sodium salt of glutamic acid a…

It's not the sodium, it's the glutamate (the "G" in MSG). Glutamate is an excitotoxin, and it's an additive in almost all processed foods, in various forms with many different names ( http://www.truthinlabeling.org/hiddensources.html ). Excitotoxicity is the "pathological process by which nerve cells are damaged and killed by excessive stimulation by neurotransmitters such as glutamate and similar substances" ( https…

I'm highly skeptical of Truthinlabeling.org. The person/group behind it seem to highlight a kindle book alleging a link between Alzheimer's and MSG? The information is also rather muddled and unclear. I would not consider this to be a reliable source.

I'd also encourage anyone reading the above links to take a peek at this: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Excitotoxicity

There are some notable discrepancies with the article and it seems clear that this is not a black and white issue, but rather complicated.

Re: It's the Umami – Why the Truth About MSG is So Easy to Swallow

#68

Post by Aloisius »

ricardobeat wrote: post #52
Aloisius wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Uh. I actually have an MSG sensitivity which took me forever to figure out what it was. For decades I'd occasionally be eating in a restaurant and my lips, tongue and/or back of my throat would go numb. It wasn't until I bought MSG and started putting it on pretty much everything in larger doses that I realized it was the culprit. I can reproduce it pretty easily by simply putting nothing but MSG on my tongue. It tak…

It is said that the human body itself produces up to 50g of glutamate every day ; an allergy to it should result in much more terrible effects than superficial numbness. Someone already posted a longer explanation: http://www.metafilter.com/131105/Dorito-Powder#5147903

It could also be the large amount of sodium that gets released when it touches my tongue as well, but the effect is undeniable.

Re: It's the Umami – Why the Truth About MSG is So Easy to Swallow

#69

Post by ScotterC »

dsrguru wrote: post #7

This article is both accurate and highly misleading. The author is correct that there is very little reliable evidence that links glutamic acid and/or glutamate to health problems. The backlash against MSG as a result of the "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome" craze, was not rooted in scientific inquiry. However, MSG is not just a source for glutamate like seaweed and tomatoes are. MSG is the sodium salt of glutamic acid a…

Point of reference. A chipotle burrito is about 2000 mg of sodium as well.

Re: It's the Umami – Why the Truth About MSG is So Easy to Swallow

#70

Post by Peeda »

Camillo wrote: post #65

I still think "umami" looks out of place next to the other basic taste words. All the others come in adjective/noun pairs: sweet/sweetness, salty/saltiness, etc. Where's the adjective for "umami"? "Umami" again? "Umami-tasting"? It doesn't work well (and importing the Japanese adjective "umai" would make things worse, not better). Instead, I highly prefer the adjective sapid with its corresponding noun sapidity. Swee…

It'd be savory/savoryness
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