Everybody knows to say far far away from MSG.
The only problem is no one seems to know exactly why.
These days, us consumers want to know more
about the food we eat, but despite the
spirit of investigation some food myths
remain completely untouched, and the toxic,
poisonous, cancerous, energy-sucking,
headache – inducing, reputation of MSG, is
one of the biggest lingering food myths of all.
MSG, or monosodium glutamate is a flavor
enhancer that is responsible for cranking up
the sensational umami flavors on our tongue.
Umami can be described as a savory flavor
and was named after the Japanese word “Umai”
which means delicious.
The effects of MSG were first discovered
in 1908 by chemist Kikunae Ikeda,
who began studying seaweed, which
had been used for centuries by chefs
to improve the flavor food.
As it turned out the flavor enhancement was
coming from an amino acid called L-glutamate.
Glutamate is found in tons of common
foods that are rich in protein. Meats,
dairy products and vegetables all have glutamate.
In fact, our very own bodies produce glutamate
through the krebes cycle when metabolizing food.
So in other words, glutamate is very
abundant and a very common part of our diet. Funny
thing is MSG is a sodium salt form of glutamatic acid.
So basically the mono sodium part just
means it's easy to sprinkle on your dish.
Okay so here's the question,
if your body makes this compound and
it's so common, then how come everyone
thinks this stuff is bad for you?
It all started in a letter to The New
England Journal of Medicine in 1968,
written by a scientist to describe
the unpleasant after effects
he felt after eating Chinese food.
He dubbed his symptoms Chinese restaurant
syndrome which he broadly described as
a numbness in the back of the neck gradually
radiating to both arms in the back
and general weakness in palpitation.
This is of course after stuffing
his face the Chinese food.
The journal suggested that MSG
was the culprit based on research
in the decades that followed.
The scientific consensus seems to be that
MSG can temporarily affected select few
when consumed in huge quantities on
an empty stomach but it's perfectly safe
for the vast majority people.
And still, MSG’s bad reputation persist today.
What's really kind remarkable is that
you'll see signs and labels on foods at
Chinese restaurants that say no MSG added,
to which most people think,
“great, is safe for you, let's chow down.”
Little do they realize that when they dowse
their MSG free food with soy sauce, they’re
actually intensely loading it up with glutamate.
You honestly can't get away from
this stuff, but really not a problem.
L-glutamate acid is really one of 20 amino
acids that make up natural proteins and as
such the World Health Organization in FDA
have Christened it completely safe to
ingest as with all things in moderation.
Okay so there's one fundamental lesson in
this food myth that everyone should take away.
If someone tells you that something is bad
for you and you can’t get a definitive answer
as to why, it's your job to dig in
and find out for yourself.
This is what science is all about,
not accepting something is truth
without proper evidence.
Make sure to check down video description
for a link to an infographic about MSG
by our pals over Compound Interest, and
don't forget to spread the word and subscribe.