Truth in Labeling Campaign Blog
The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth about MSG and manufactured free glutamate
Reactions to MSG and other sources of manufactured free glutamate are reactions to poison. They’re not allergic reactions, and the rules for allergies don’t apply.
You may hear people refer to an “MSG allergy,” but that’s incorrect. And allergists aren’t the ones to ask about your reactions to MSG.
If you notice that sometimes things besides monosodium glutamate (MSG) cause “MSG” reactions, it will help you to know that 60+ other ingredients contain the same brain-damaging manufactured-free-glutamate that is found in MSG https://bit.ly/3BdGYMY
The Truth in Labeling Campaign website is getting a facelift. References to monosodium glutamate (MSG), the flavor-enhancing food additive that causes adverse reactions and brain damage are being replaced with references to free glutamate, the excitotoxic amino acid component of MSG that actually does the damage.
What’s the big deal?
Those who have noticed having “MSG reactions” after eating processed foods containing yeast extract, corn starch, soy protein, maltodextrin, or natural flavor, for example, and nothing listed as “MSG” on ingredient labels will understand right away. There’s a tremendous amount of manufactured free glutamate out there just waiting to do damage to unsuspecting consumers. Avoiding the one product/ingredient called MSG isn’t enough.
Take a look – www.truthinlabeling.org
Hey Washington Post, Wall Street Journal and National Public Radio, why aren’t you talking about this?
“Nowadays, the lifeline of urban population has been formed by commercial foods due to industrialization, urbanization, and rapid increase in working class. Commercial foods are time and energy saving foods but it compromising the nutritional value of foods. The term adulteration refers to the deliberate addition of compound which is usually not present in food. These compounds are known as food additives or food adulterant. Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) is one of the most common food additives. Several studies revealed that MSG has toxic effect on fetal development/fetus, children’s, adolescent, and adults. Physiological complication associated with MSG toxicity are hypertension, obesity, gastrointestinal tract troubles, and impairment of function of brain, nervous system, reproductive, and endocrine system. The effect of MSG depends upon its dose, route of administration and exposure time. Public awareness may play a major role in controlling the food adulteration by working in collaboration with National testing facilities to scrutinize each commercial food article from time to time. The aim of this review article is to highlight the deleterious impact of MSG on human health.”
–Chakraborty SP. Patho-physiological and toxicological aspects of monosodium glutamate. Toxicol Mech Methods. 2019 Jul;29(6):389-396. doi: 10.1080/15376516.2018.1528649. Epub 2019 May 6. PMID: 30273089.
MSG is a flavor-enhancing additive used in so many processed foods you probably couldn’t count them all.
No doubt you’ve read that it is perfectly “safe,” only causing transient adverse reactions in a small set of people sensitive to it.
The Truth in Labeling Campaign, independent scientists and journalists (not on the glutamate payroll) will tell you a different story, how MSG and other sources of free glutamate can trigger adverse reactions ranging from simple skin rash to migraine headache, heart irregularities, seizures and anaphylactic shock.
However, no one – even those in the glutamate industry — can say that ingestion of MSG doesn’t cause adverse reactions. Despite that, there is no restriction imposed by the FDA on use of either MSG or its toxic free glutamic acid component in foods or beverages.
But here’s the really interesting part — food scientists and neuroscientists are turning out study after study exploring the “protective effects” of various chemicals, dietary supplements and even foods to shield against monosodium glutamate-induced abnormalities. On January 30, 2022, there were 377 such studies listed by the National Library of Medicine. And all this research is going on while the FDA, along with those who profit from the manufacture and sale of MSG, claim that MSG is totally safe for use in food.
The FDA has been representing the interests of the glutamate industry since 1968 if not before. The Truth in Labeling Campaign has told that story many times. See: https://www.truthinlabeling.org/fda.html and, https://www.truthinlabeling.org/assets/manuscript2.pdf
There are laws that specify just what the FDA must do to proclaim an ingredient GRAS (generally recognized as safe), which is how it lists MSG. And in claiming that monosodium glutamate is GRAS, the FDA violates its own rules.
That little fact was revealed in a citizen petition filed by TLC co-founder Adrienne Samuels in January of 2021, requesting that monosodium glutamate and its toxic component have its GRAS status withdrawn. The FDA has yet to respond.
Adrienne also filed two other petitions related to MSG last year. Check out this page link to learn the details of them all. Even better, click on the link there that says “vote,” and leave your own comment at the FDA docket.