Monosodium glutamate

[[File:Monosodium glutamate.svg|thumb|right|The Na<sup>+</sup> is the "monosodium" part.]]
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'''Monosodium glutamate''', more popularly known as "'''MSG'''" (chemical formula '''C<sub>5</sub>H<sub>8</sub>NO<sub>4</sub>Na'''), is a widely-used flavor additive known for its contribution to the fundamental flavor known as {{wpl|umami}} (savoriness). It is also the subject of [[food woo]] and [[chemophobia]] purporting it to be dangerous.

==What it is==
MSG is a sodium salt of glutamate, which in turn is the carboxylate anion of {{wpl|glutamic acid||,}} one of the twenty standard amino acids. Glutamic acid and its derivatives are essential to numerous functions in the body. As a standard amino acid, it is used to build proteins. Glutamate is a metabolic intermediate and neurotransmitter.

===Dietary sources===
MSG and similar sodium salts have been widely used in Asian cuisine for centuries; they are produced during the fermentation of such ingredients as [[soy]] sauce, and are also found in certain seaweeds. Now produced synthetically or by bacterial fermentation, MSG is one of the most common flavorings used in [[China|Chinese]], [[Japan]]ese, and Cantonese cooking. Through this, use of MSG spread into [[Europe]] and the [[United States]]. MSG is also used extensively in Native American cuisine, and in the 16th century spread to Italy and Asia, in the form of the MSG-rich 
fruit
 vegetable, the tomato. This is why if you aren't sure what to add to your recipe, you add tomatoes. [http://www.latimes.com/food/dailydish/la-dd-haagen-dazs-new-vegetable-tomato-ice-cream-japan-20140421-story.html No exceptions].

Other natural sources of glutamic acid include yeast (including that disgusting [[Fun:Marmite|Marmite]] stuff), broccoli, wheat, meat, and cheese.<ref>[http://www.foodstandards.gov.au/_srcfiles/MSG%20Technical%20Report.pdf Monosodium Glutamate, a Safety Assessment]</ref> Glutamic acid can also be liberated from vegetable protein via acid hydrolysis; hydrolyzed [[soy]] protein is widely used as a food additive to improve flavor because it's a shelf-stable source of glutamic acid.

==Health concerns==
A lot of the scare regarding MSG can be traced to a 1968 letter published in the New England Journal of Medicine by Dr. Robert Ho Man Kwok speculated about what has been causing "radiating pain in his arms, weakness and heart palpitations" after eating Chinese foods at restaurants, ruling out home-cooked Chinese food but suggesting cooking wine, excessive salt, or MSG. It became widely believed in the 1980s in the United States that MSG posed a health hazard, with a phenomenon called "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome" reportedly resulting from the additive. Evidence for harmful effects from MSG is almost entirely [[anecdotal evidence|anecdotal]] and filled with [[confirmation bias]] as well as [[racism|less than savory (pun not intended) implications]] about Chinese food being singled out as opposed to Italian food or other MSG-laden food. In response, the [[Food and Drug Administration]] reviewed the literature and studied the chemical, determining: 

{{quotebox|There is no evidence in the available information on L-glutamic acid, L-glutamic acid hydrochloride, monosodium L-glutamate, monoammonium L-glutamate, and monopotassium L-glutamate that demonstrates, or suggests reasonable grounds to suspects, a hazard to the public when they are used at levels that are now current and in the manner now practices. However, it is not possible to determine, without additional data, whether a significant increase in consumption would constitute a dietary hazard.<ref>[http://wayback.archive-it.org/7993/20171031061600/https://www.fda.gov/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/GRAS/SCOGS/ucm260455.htm Select Committee on GRAS Substances (SCOGS) Opinion: L-Glutamic acid and L-glutamates]. Archived from fda.gov.</ref>}}

Though there are no large, reputable studies that show any reaction, and multiple studies demonstrate that there is no discernible syndrome<ref>http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10736382</ref><ref>http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/027869159390012N</ref><ref>http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn23851-what-if-your-gluten-intolerance-is-all-in-your-head.html?full=true</ref> except for people taking the placebo,<ref>http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16999713</ref> public-consumption websites still note that "A small percentage of people may have short-term reactions to MSG."<ref>http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/monosodium-glutamate/AN01251</ref> While MSG is not considered dangerous by the scientific community, its use in food preparation is seen in culinary circles as "cheating", improving the flavour of substandard foods in the same way as adding a lot of common salt to fast food. From our point of view, this is just snobbish [[gatekeeping]]. An ingredient is an ingredient, and if it's important to making food taste great, then it's not a problem.

One of the most common claims made by [[woo]]-peddlers is that MSG will give you seizures or cause brain damage or [[autism]] in some way because of the glutamate it contains. This is based on the fact that high levels of glutamate can cause excitotoxicity in the [[brain]]. This is true, but the problem with this claim is that glutamate does not cross the blood-brain barrier in healthy humans (though it is a possibility for those with some disease that weakens the barrier).<ref>Hawkins, RA. [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19571220 The blood-brain barrier and glutamate.] Am J Clin Nutr. 2009 Sep;90(3):867S-874S. Epub 2009 Jul 1.</ref> Thus, unless you inject it past the blood-brain barrier directly into the brain, it will have no effect on brain activity. 

Despite a widespread belief that MSG can elicit migraine headaches, there is no consistent clinical data to support this claim, nor is there evidence that some individuals are more sensitive to MSG than others. <ref>Jinap S., Hajeb P. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20470841 Glutamate. Its applications in food and contribution to health.] Appetite. 2010 Aug;55(1):1-10. Epub 2010 May 12.</ref><ref>Williams AN, Woessner KM. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19389112 Monosodium glutamate 'allergy': menace or myth?] Clin Exp Allergy. 2009 May;39(5):640-6. Epub 2009 Apr 6.</ref><ref>Freeman M. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16999713 Reconsidering the effects of monosodium glutamate: a literature review.] J Am Acad Nurse Pract. 2006 Oct;18(10):482-6.</ref><ref>Geha RS, Beiser A, Ren C, Patterson R, Greenberger PA, Grammer LC, Ditto AM, Harris KE, Shaughnessy MA, Yarnold PR, Corren J, Saxon A. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10736382 Review of alleged reaction to monosodium glutamate and outcome of a multicenter double-blind placebo-controlled study.] J Nutr. 2000 Apr;130(4S Suppl):1058S-62S.</ref> It is more likely that migraines and the other alleged symptoms of "Chinese Food Syndrome" are caused by the high levels of salt, carbohydrates and oils.<ref>Skeptical Raptor [http://www.skepticalraptor.com/skepticalraptorblog.php/msg-myth-versus-science/ MSG-myth versus science]</ref> The term "Chinese Food Syndrome" was coined by Robert Ho Man Kwok in 1968.<ref>[https://news.colgate.edu/magazine/2019/02/06/the-strange-case-of-dr-ho-man-kwok/ The Strange Case of Dr. Ho Man Kwok] by Howard Steele, Colgate Magazine</ref> The term, and the pathologic aversion of MSG associated with it, is considered to be linked with [[xenophobia]] and anti-Asian [[racism]].<ref>[https://rightasrain.uwmedicine.org/body/food/msg-isnt-unhealthy Is MSG Unhealthy?] by McKenna Princing, Right as Rain by UW Medicine</ref><ref>[https://www.menshealth.com/health/a37808983/msg-racism-chinese-restaurant-syndrome/ We Can't Talk About MSG Without Talking About Racism] by Frankie Huang, Men's Health</ref>

MSG — like any food additive — is forbidden in baby and infant food in the [[EU]].<ref>EU Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 [https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2008/1333 Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on food additives (Text with EEA relevance)] Article 16, EU Publications. 2023-10-29</ref>

==See also==
*[[Gluten-free]]
*[[Food allergy]]

==External links==
*[http://www.buzzfeed.com/johnmahoney/the-notorious-msgs-unlikely-formula-for-success The Notorious MSG’s Unlikely Formula For Success] (sadly, not about the Chinese-American [[hip-hop]] group "Notorious MSG")
*[http://www.skepticalraptor.com/skepticalraptorblog.php/msg-myth-versus-science/ Skeptical Raptor's Blog: MSG-myth versus science]

==References==
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[[Category:Autism woo]]
[[Category:Chemicals]]
[[Category:Moral panics]]
[[Category:Racism]]
[[Category:Toxins]]

Categories: Autism woo, Chemicals, Moral panics, Racism, Toxins