prompter: What is disodium guanylate and what is it used for?

assistant: Disodium guanylate is a type of sodium salt that is commonly used as a flavor enhancer in food and beverage products. It is often used in combination with other ingredients, such as monosodium glutamate (MSG), to enhance the savory taste of processed foods. Disodium guanylate is considered safe for consumption, but some people may experience sensitivity to it and its use is regulated in some countries.

assistant: Disodium guanylate is a food additive. It is a natural sodium salt of the flavor enhancing nucleotide guanosine monophosphate (GMP). It is commonly used in conjunction with glutamic acid.

Disodium guanylate is produced from dried seaweed and is often added to instant noodles, potato chips and other snacks, savory rice, tinned vegetables, cured meats, and packaged soup.

prompter: Is it considered dangerous if consumed in large quantities?

assistant: It is considered safe at low quantities, but no sufficient studies have been conducted concerning higher quantities. For more information, have a look at the statements by the US FDA:
[https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?fr=172.530&SearchTerm=disodium%20guanylate](https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?fr=172.530&SearchTerm=disodium%20guanylate)

There are studies that hint towards toxic effects nevertheless, see for example:
[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5938543/](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5938543/)

assistant: Both the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) consider disodium glutamate safe. However, people who are sensitive to MSG may want to avoid disodium glutamate, as these additives are often paired together. Read this article to learn more: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/disodium-guanylate#safety

assistant: It's like MSG for your MSG (monosodium glutamate - a flavor enhancer).

It's used to make your flavors more flavory. Probably :)

prompter: How does it enhance the flavor?

assistant: It works by activating the taste receptors on the tongue that respond to the savory taste known as umami.

MSG is the sodium salt of the amino acid glutamic acid and is naturally found in many foods, including cheese, mushrooms, and tomatoes. When added to food, it enhances the existing flavors, making it taste richer, saltier, and more savory.

When MSG is consumed, it is broken down into free glutamate, which can then bind to the taste receptors on the tongue. This stimulates the nerve endings responsible for the perception of flavor, making the food taste more savory.

While the exact mechanisms of how MSG works are not fully understood, it is generally considered safe for consumption by the majority of people. However, some people may experience an adverse reaction to consuming large amounts of MSG, such as headaches or a feeling of facial pressure and tightness, known as the "Chinese restaurant syndrome."

assistant: Sure, here is how MSG acts: The tongue has five kinds of basic taste-sensing receptors: sweet, sour, bitter, salty and the most recently discovered one, umami. Table salt (NaCl) activates—no surprise here—the salty sensors. MSG, the sodium salt of a naturally-occurring amino acid, hits up the umami sensors.

This taste is most often described as brothy, savory, or meaty. Glutamates are found in some fruits and vegetables (like tomatoes and mushrooms), but most often in fermented foods, like soy sauce or hard cheeses, and give them an added flavor boost. Hydrolyzed proteins and yeasts also yield glutamates.

When used in small amounts (much less than table salt), MSG adds this additional dimension to the food’s flavor profile. Overuse of MSG, often as a substitute for more expensive ingredients, can result in flavors that many people find unpleasant.

Though an extremely small portion of the population (probably less than 1%) exhibit an intolerance to MSG as individuals can to any food, it is a safe food ingredient in use for more than a century.

I hope that clears the mechanism of action of MSG.

assistant: By making it more flavory. duh!

prompter: Could you provide me with a scientific explanations of why some things taste more flavory?