MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE
MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE
Monosodium Glutamate = MSG = Chinese Salt
CAS Number: 142-47-2
EC Number: 205-538-1
E number: E621 (flavour enhancer)
Chemical formula: C5H8NO4Na
Molar mass: 169.111 g/mol (anhydrous), 187.127 g/mol (monohydrate)
Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) is used in cooking as a flavor enhancer with an umami taste that intensifies the meaty, savory flavor of food, as naturally occurring glutamate does in foods such as stews and meat soups.
Sodium glutamate has a strong umami taste of meat, and the umami taste can still be felt when MSG (monosodium glutamate) is diluted to 3000 times with water.
Monosodium Glutamate is widely used in household cooking, catering industry, food processing industry, etc.
MSG is the sodium salt of glutamic acid, an amino acid found in your body and most foods.
Monosodium Glutamate is a popular food additive because Monosodium Glutamate enhances flavor.
Monosodium glutamate (MSG), also known as sodium glutamate, is the sodium salt of glutamic acid.
MSG is found naturally in some foods including tomatoes and cheese.
MSG is used in cooking as a flavor enhancer with an umami taste that intensifies the meaty, savory flavor of food, as naturally occurring glutamate does in foods such as stews and meat soups.
MSG was first prepared in 1908 by Japanese biochemist Kikunae Ikeda, who was trying to isolate and duplicate the savory taste of kombu, an edible seaweed used as a base for many Japanese soups.
MSG balances, blends, and rounds the perception of other tastes.
MSG is commonly used and found in stock (bouillon) cubes, soups, ramen, gravy, stews, condiments, savory snacks, etc.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given MSG, Monosodium Glutamates generally recognized as safe (GRAS) designation.
Monosodium Glutamate is a popular belief that MSG can cause headaches and other feelings of discomfort, known as “Chinese restaurant syndrome”, but blinded studies show no such effects when MSG is combined with food in normal concentrations, and are inconclusive when MSG is added to broth in large concentrations.
The European Union classifies Monosodium Glutamate as a food additive permitted in certain foods and subject to quantitative limits.
MSG has the HS code 29224220 and the E number E621.
Uses of Monosodium Glutamate:
Pure MSG is reported to not have a highly pleasant taste until Monosodium Glutamate is combined with a savory aroma.
The basic sensory function of MSG is attributed to MSGs ability to enhance savory taste-active compounds when added in the proper concentration.
The optimum concentration varies by food; in clear soup, the “pleasure score” rapidly falls with the addition of more than one gram of MSG per 100 mL.
The sodium content (in mass percent) of MSG, 12%, is about one-third of that in sodium chloride (39%), due to the greater mass of the glutamate counterion.
Although other salts of glutamate have been used in low-salt soups, they are less palatable than MSG.
“MSG might even promote healthy eating, hypothesizes, by not only making kale more delicious but also letting you get away with using less salt.”
The ribonucleotide food additives disodium inosinate (E631) and disodium guanylate (E627), as well as conventional salt are usually used with monosodium glutamate-containing ingredients as they seem to have a synergistic effect.
“Super salt” is a mixture of 9 parts salt, to one part MSG and 0.1 parts disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate.
MSG is short for monosodium glutamate.
Monosodium Glutamate is a common food additive — with the e-number E621 — that is used to enhance flavor.
MSG is derived from the amino acid glutamate, or glutamic acid, which is one of the most abundant amino acids in nature.
Glutamic acid is a non-essential amino acid, meaning that your body can produce Monosodium Glutamate.
Monosodium Glutamate serves various functions in your body and is found in nearly all foods.
Chemically, MSG is a white crystalline powder that resembles table salt or sugar.
Monosodium Glutamate combines sodium and glutamic acid, known as a sodium salt.
The glutamic acid in MSG is made by fermenting starches, but there is no chemical difference between the glutamic acid in MSG and that in natural foods.
However, the glutamic acid in MSG may be easier to absorb because Monosodium Glutamate isn’t bound inside big protein molecules that your body needs to break down.
MSG enhances the savory, meaty umami flavor of foods.
Umami is the fifth basic taste, along with salty, sour, bitter and sweet.
Monosodium Glutamate is popular in Asian cooking and used in various processed foods in the West.
The average daily intake of MSG is 0.55–0.58 grams in the US and UK and 1.2–1.7 grams in Japan and Korea.
MSG, or monosodium glutamate, is a flavor-enhancing food additive used in Asian cooking, fast foods, and commercially packaged food products.
Monosodium Glutamate is a white powder derived from a natural glutamic acid found in seaweed, sugar beets, and certain vegetables.
Why is MSG used in food preparations?
When used in small quantities, MSG enhances the natural basic flavour in foods such as soups, casseroles, salads, gravies, meat, poultry, seafood, and vegetable dishes.
Monosodium Glutamate does not add any characteristic flavour of its own.
Adding excess amounts of MSG does not further improve overall flavour.
Production
MSG has been produced by three methods: hydrolysis of vegetable proteins with hydrochloric acid to disrupt peptide bonds (1909–1962); direct chemical synthesis with acrylonitrile (1962–1973), and bacterial fermentation (the current method).
Wheat gluten was originally used for hydrolysis because Monosodium Glutamate contains more than 30 g of glutamate and glutamine in 100 g of protein.
As demand for MSG increased, chemical synthesis and fermentation were studied.
The polyacrylic fiber industry began in Japan during the mid-1950s, and acrylonitrile was adopted as a base material to synthesize MSG.
Currently (2016), most MSG worldwide is produced by bacterial fermentation in a process similar to making vinegar or yogurt.
Sodium is added later, for neutralization.
During fermentation, Corynebacterium species, cultured with ammonia and carbohydrates from sugar beets, sugarcane, tapioca or molasses, excrete amino acids into a culture broth from which L-glutamate is isolated.
The Kyowa Hakko Kogyo Company developed industrial fermentation to produce L-glutamate.
The conversion yield and production rate (from sugars to glutamate) continues to improve in the industrial production of MSG, keeping up with demand.
The product, after filtration, concentration, acidification, and crystallization, is glutamate, sodium, and water.
Chemical properties
Monosodium Glutamate is usually available as the monohydrate, a white, odorless, crystalline powder.
The solid contains separate sodium cations Na+ and glutamate anions in zwitterionic form, −OOC-CH(NH+3)-(CH2)2-COO−.
In solution Monosodium Glutamate dissociates into glutamate and sodium ions.
MSG is freely soluble in water, but Monosodium Glutamate is not hygroscopic and is insoluble in common organic solvents (such as ether).
Monosodium Glutamate is generally stable under food-processing conditions.
MSG does not break down during cooking and, like other amino acids, will exhibit a Maillard reaction (browning) in the presence of sugars at very high temperatures.
What is MSG?
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is the sodium salt of the common amino acid glutamic acid.
Glutamic acid is naturally present in our bodies, and in many foods and food additives.
How is Monosodium Glutamate made?
MSG occurs naturally in many foods, such as tomatoes and cheeses.
People around the world have eaten glutamate-rich foods throughout history.
For example, a historical dish in the Asian community is a glutamate-rich seaweed broth.
In 1908, a Japanese professor named Kikunae Ikeda was able to extract glutamate from this broth and determined that glutamate provided the savory taste to the soup.
Professor Ikeda then filed a patent to produce MSG and commercial production started the following year.
Today, instead of extracting and crystallizing MSG from seaweed broth, MSG is produced by the fermentation of starch, sugar beets, sugar cane or molasses.
This fermentation process is similar to that used to make yogurt, vinegar and wine.
Is MSG safe to eat?
FDA considers the addition of MSG to foods to be “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS).
Although many people identify themselves as sensitive to MSG, in studies with such individuals given MSG or a placebo, scientists have not been able to consistently trigger reactions.
Does “glutamate” in a product mean Monosodium Glutamate contains gluten?
No—glutamate or glutamic acid have nothing to do with gluten.
A person with Celiac disease may react to the wheat that may be present in soy sauce, but not to the MSG in the product.
What’s the difference between MSG and glutamate in food?
The glutamate in MSG is chemically indistinguishable from glutamate present in food proteins.
Our bodies ultimately metabolize both sources of glutamate in the same way.
An average adult consumes approximately 13 grams of glutamate each day from the protein in food, while intake of added MSG is estimates at around 0.55 grams per day.
How can I know if there is MSG in my food?
FDA requires that foods containing added MSG list it in the ingredient panel on the packaging as monosodium glutamate.
However, MSG occurs naturally in ingredients such as hydrolyzed vegetable protein, autolyzed yeast, hydrolyzed yeast, yeast extract, soy extracts, and protein isolate, as well as in tomatoes and cheeses.
While FDA requires that these products be listed on the ingredient panel, the agency does not require the label to also specify that they naturally contain MSG.
However, foods with any ingredient that naturally contains MSG cannot claim “No MSG” or “No added MSG” on their packaging.
MSG also cannot be listed as “spices and flavoring.”
Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) is a naturally occuring salt that is found in many foods, including seaweed, green teas, cheeses and tomatoes just to name a few.
As a concentrated flavoring agent, MSG is frequently used in cooking to enhance the flavor of meat, poultry, seafood and vegetables.
MSG is sold as a white, crystalline powder, similar in appearance to table salt, in shakers or boxes.
Has FDA received any adverse event reports associated with MSG?
Over the years, FDA has received reports of symptoms such as headache and nausea after eating foods containing MSG.
However, we were never able to confirm that the MSG caused the reported effects.
These adverse event reports helped trigger FDA to ask the independent scientific group Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) to examine the safety of MSG in the 1990s.
FASEB’s report concluded that MSG is safe.
The FASEB report identified some short-term, transient, and generally mild symptoms, such as headache, numbness, flushing, tingling, palpitations, and drowsiness that may occur in some sensitive individuals who consume 3 grams or more of MSG without food.
However, a typical serving of a food with added MSG contains less than 0.5 grams of MSG.
Consuming more than 3 grams of MSG without food at one time is unlikely.
What is MSG?
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is the sodium salt of the common amino acid glutamic acid.
Glutamic acid is naturally present in our bodies, and in many foods and food additives.
How is Monosodium Glutamate made?
MSG occurs naturally in many foods, such as tomatoes and cheeses.
People around the world have eaten glutamate-rich foods throughout history.
For example, a historical dish in the Asian community is a glutamate-rich seaweed broth.
In 1908, a Japanese professor named Kikunae Ikeda was able to extract glutamate from this broth and determined that glutamate provided the savory taste to the soup.
Professor Ikeda then filed a patent to produce MSG and commercial production started the following year.
Today, instead of extracting and crystallizing MSG from seaweed broth, MSG is produced by the fermentation of starch, sugar beets, sugar cane or molasses.
This fermentation process is similar to that used to make yogurt, vinegar and wine.
Monosodium glutamate, also known as MSG, Ve-stin, or E621 is a flavour-enhancing agent, used in many kinds of food products to enhance their original flavour.
The main aim of this report is to give accurate knowledge about MSG by scrutinizing Monosodium Glutamates scientific literature.
Is MSG safe to eat?
FDA considers the addition of MSG to foods to be “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS).
Although many people identify themselves as sensitive to MSG, in studies with such individuals given MSG or a placebo, scientists have not been able to consistently trigger reactions.
Does “glutamate” in a product mean Monosodium Glutamate contains gluten?
No—glutamate or glutamic acid have nothing to do with gluten.
A person with Celiac disease may react to the wheat that may be present in soy sauce, but not to the MSG in the product.
According to one 2017 study, people have been using MSG to season their food for over 100 years.
Some people in Japanese cultures consider MSG, or umami, to be one of the five basic tastes.
Many dishes featured in Japanese, Chinese, and South Asian cuisine use MSG.
According to one 2018 study, the following food products may also contain MSG:
frozen meals and processed meats, such as:
-bacon
-pastrami
-pepperoni
-sausages
-lunch meats
-smoked meat products
-hamburgers
-cold cuts
-salami
sauces and dressings, such as:
-ketchup
-mayonnaise
-barbecue sauce
-salad dressing
-soy sauce
-mustard
-soup bases, such as bouillon cubes and granulated powders
-snacks, such as potato chips
-seasonings
-spices
-bodybuilding protein powder
fast food, such as:
-chicken nuggets
-burgers
-fried chicken
Monosodium glutamate is officially a salt, meaning Monosodium Glutamate is composed of atoms and molecules that have been ionized, or become electrically charged.
One unit of monosodium glutamate contains five carbon atoms, four oxygen atoms, eight hydrogen atoms and one sodium atom.
Everything aside from the sodium are combined into one molecule, known as glutamic acid, bonded together with covalent bonds, or electrically neutral bonds.
The ionic bond in MSG is between this molecule and sodium; sodium “donates” one electron to this molecule.
Fermentation has been used by humans for centuries as a way to preserve foods and enhance their taste.
MSG (monosodium glutamate) is made of naturally occurring substances through a modern version of that process, with the help of microbes that transform feedstocks like sugarcane into food products.
First the sugarcane is extracted as glucose and sent to a fermentation tank, to which fermentative microbes are then added.
These microbes consume the glucose, releasing glutamic acid, which though neutralization is turned into a solution that contains MSG.
This solution is then decolorized and filtered, resulting in a pure MSG solution.
This pure solution is crystallized using an evaporator and the crystals dried to produce the final product—MSG.
The entire process has a very small environmental footprint, as Monosodium Glutamates coproducts can be returned to the soil in the form of fertilizer to help grow more crops like sugarcane, forming a virtuous cycle.
SG stands for monosodium glutamate.
This is a form of glutamic acid, which is an amino acid that is present in many different natural foods.
Glutamic acid performs many functions in the body, such as forming proteins.
What’s the difference between MSG and glutamate in food?
The glutamate in MSG is chemically indistinguishable from glutamate present in food proteins.
Our bodies ultimately metabolize both sources of glutamate in the same way.
An average adult consumes approximately 13 grams of glutamate each day from the protein in food, while intake of added MSG is estimates at around 0.55 grams per day.
Chemistry of Glutamic Acid
The main molecule in monosodium glutamate is glutamic acid, one of the nonessential amino acids.
The full chemical formula for Monosodium Glutamate in isolation is HOOC-(CH2)2-CH(NH2)-COOH, however one of the end hydrogens is lost when the molecule combines with sodium to form the salt.
In this formula, O designates oxygen, H designates hydrogen, C carbon and N nitrogen.
While Monosodium Glutamate is one of the 20 amino acids critical for proper human cell function, Monosodium Glutamate can be generated by the body, and thus is not an “essential” part of the diet.
How can I know if there is MSG in my food?
FDA requires that foods containing added MSG list Monosodium Glutamate in the ingredient panel on the packaging as monosodium glutamate.
However, MSG occurs naturally in ingredients such as hydrolyzed vegetable protein, autolyzed yeast, hydrolyzed yeast, yeast extract, soy extracts, and protein isolate, as well as in tomatoes and cheeses.
While FDA requires that these products be listed on the ingredient panel, the agency does not require the label to also specify that they naturally contain MSG.
However, foods with any ingredient that naturally contains MSG cannot claim “No MSG” or “No added MSG” on their packaging.
MSG also cannot be listed as “spices and flavoring.”
Monosodium glutamate (MSG, also known as sodium glutamate) is the sodium salt of glutamic acid, one of the most abundant naturally-occurring non-essential amino acids.
MSG is found in tomatoes, Parmesan, potatoes, mushrooms, and other vegetables and fruits.
MSG is used in the food industry as a flavor enhancer with an umami taste that intensifies the meaty, savory flavor of food, as naturally occurring glutamate does in foods such as stews and meat soups.
This was first prepared by Japanese biochemist Kikunae Ikeda, who was seeking to isolate and duplicate the savory taste of kombu, an edible seaweed used as a base for many Japanese soups.
MSG as a flavor enhancer balances, blends, and rounds the perception of other tastes.
Monosodium Glutamate is particularly popular in Japanese and Chinese cuisine.
Has FDA received any adverse event reports associated with MSG?
Over the years, FDA has received reports of symptoms such as headache and nausea after eating foods containing MSG.
However, we were never able to confirm that the MSG caused the reported effects.
These adverse event reports helped trigger FDA to ask the independent scientific group Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) to examine the safety of MSG in the 1990s.
FASEB’s report concluded that MSG is safe.
The FASEB report identified some short-term, transient, and generally mild symptoms, such as headache, numbness, flushing, tingling, palpitations, and drowsiness that may occur in some sensitive individuals who consume 3 grams or more of MSG without food.
However, a typical serving of a food with added MSG contains less than 0.5 grams of MSG.
Consuming more than 3 grams of MSG without food at one time is unlikely.
Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) is one of the most widely used food-additives in commercial foods.
Monosodium Glutamates application has increased over time and Monosodium Glutamate is found in many different ingredients and processed foods obtainable in every market or grocery store.
MSG gives a special aroma to processed foods which is known as umami in Japanese.
This taste sensation is also called “savoury”.
In many countries MSG goes by the name “China salt”.
Monosodium glutamate (MSG), also called monosodium L-glutamate or sodium glutamate, white crystalline substance, a sodium salt of the amino acid glutamic acid, that is used to intensify the natural flavour of certain foods.
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is an important ingredient in the cuisines of China and Japan and is used commercially in broths, soups, canned and frozen vegetables, flavouring and spice blends, gravies, meats, poultry, and sauces and in other combinations.
Monosodium Glutamate is also used to enhance the taste of tobacco and has been used medically to treat hepatic coma.
Names
The following are alternative names for MSG:
Chemical names and identifiers
Monosodium glutamate or sodium glutamate
Sodium 2-aminopentanedioate
Glutamic acid, monosodium salt, monohydrate
L-Glutamic acid, monosodium salt, monohydrate
L-Monosodium glutamate monohydrate
Monosodium L-glutamate monohydrate
Properties of Glutamic Acid
Glutamic acid, or glutamate, is found naturally in a variety of proteins, in all animal products and a number of plant proteins, such as those found in tomatoes, soybeans and corn.
Monosodium Glutamate is necessary for a variety of bodily processes; for example, Monosodium Glutamate has a key role in detoxifying ammonia in the brain.
Monosodium Glutamate can be combined with other amino acids to form polypeptides and eventually proteins, and on Monosodium Glutamates own performs a variety of functions, especially in its role as an excitatory neurotransmitter.
Monosodium Glutamate Action
Because monosodium glutamate separates into its component ions — sodium and glutamic acid — almost instantly when Monosodium Glutamate comes into contact with saliva, it is the actions of these two separate compounds that affect the body.
Both compounds are naturally present in the body and indeed necessary for function.
However, due to glutamic acid’s role as an excitatory neurotransmitter, high doses could “overexcite” the brain in people more sensitive to the compound.
According to Katherine Zeratsky, a licensed and registered dietician with the Mayo Clinic, short-term reactions to MSG reported to the FDA have included headaches, nausea, heart palpitations and sweating.
The FDA thus requires MSG to be labeled if Monosodium Glutamate is present in a food.
There is little evidence for longer-term neurotoxicity or other dangers, however, and the FDA has declared MSG to be “generally recognized as safe.”
Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) consists of a sodium ion bound to the amino acid glutamic acid.
Amino acids of which there are 21 types are the building blocks of all proteins in nature, thus all food containing protein also contains Glutamate.
Tastewise we can only detect the non-protein bound form of glutamate which naturally occurs at high concentrations in many products including broccoli, mushrooms, tomatoes and some fish.
Interestingly, aging and fermentation of foods like soya sauce and parmesan cheese, which are also valued for their high savoriness, results in higher concentrations of free glutamate due to protein breakdown during aging and fermentation processes.
To purify glutamate Monosodium Glutamate needs to be crystallised (as shown in the picture above).
The monosodium form of glutamates (MSG) crystalizes most easily and is what can be found in shops and pantries across the globe.
The seaweed, Kombu, produces a high concentration of MSG and was used for Monosodium Glutamates flavor enhancing capability’s as early as 1.500 years ago in the Chinese cousin.
MSG, is used as food additive predominantly in Asian cooking and commonly found in fast food.
This unique taste sensation is called umami in Japanese (roughly “delicious”), and is ranked by many scientists as the fifth flavour (besides sweet, salt, sour and bitter).
Monosodium Glutamate was recently also shown that we carry special receptors for glutamate on our tongue which contribute to our cravings for protein-rich food.
This savory quality MSG can lend to, or boost in, foods often makes Monosodium Glutamate a versatile ingredient for any pantry.
MSG can be the key to reducing sodium content
Simple table salt, sodium chloride, is one of the biggest contributors to cardiovascular disease.
Reducing average salt intake by 30% has been adopted as a target by the World Health Organization.
The use of monosodium glutamate (MSG) can be the key to reducing sodium content without sacrificing taste.
Taste is a major driver of excess salt intake.
Although MSG is mistakenly thought of as being high in sodium, Monosodium Glutamate contains just one third the sodium of table salt (MSG contains approximately 12 percent sodium while table salt contains 39 percent sodium).
Monosodium Glutamate can enhance the perception of saltiness while preserving palatability.
With the addition of MSG, sodium level in the food can be lowered by up to 40 percent while maintaining the flavor.
Research has also shown that umami-eliciting compounds like MSG can be used to reduce sodium 11% in chicken broth and 32.5% in spicy soups.
Sodium reduction in butter, margarine and cheeses can also be achieved with MSG, and a similar approach could work in meat products.
MSG could also be used in snack foods and condiments, for example helping reduce the sodium content of Brazilian garlic and salt spice seasonings by up to 50%.
MSG has been classed as safe by the US FDA and the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives.
The use of MSG may help food scientists reduce sodium content without sacrificing taste, in addition to creating new, cost-effective, reduced-salt products and menus that will encourage consumers to make healthier choices.
MSG monohydrate
Sodium glutamate monohydrate
UNII-W81N5U6R6U
Flavour enhancer E621
Trade names
Accent, produced by B&G Foods Inc., Parsippany, New Jersey, US
Aji-No-Moto, produced by Ajinomoto, 26 countries, head office Japan
Tasting Powder
Ve-Tsin by Tien Chu Ve-Tsin
Sazón, distributed by Goya Foods, Jersey City, NJ
Origin
A controversy surrounding the safety of MSG began on 4 April 1968, when Dr. Robert Ho Man Kwok wrote a letter to the New England Journal of Medicine, coining the term “Chinese restaurant syndrome”.
In his letter, Kwok suggested several possible causes before he nominated MSG for his symptoms.
This letter was initially met with insider satirical responses, some using race as prop for humorous effect, within the medical community.
Some claimed that during the discursive uptake in media, the conversations were recontextualized as legitimate while the supposed race-based motivations of the humor were not parsed.
In January 2018, Dr. Howard Steel claimed that the letter was actually a prank submission by him under the pseudonym, Ho Man Kwok.
However, there was a Dr. Robert Ho Man Kwok who worked at the National Biomedical Research Foundation, both names Steel claimed to have invented.
Kwok’s children, his colleague at the research foundation, and the son of his boss there confirmed that Dr. Robert Ho Man Kwok, who had died in 2014, wrote this letter.
After hearing about Kwok’s family, Steel’s daughter Anna came to believe this claim itself was one of the last pranks by her late father.
IUPAC name
Sodium 2-aminopentanedioate
Generally, MSG can be used to season foods, giving them a savory boost.
Only use in very small amounts, though, as many people find too much MSG harsh and metallic tasting.
In a brine or cure, Monosodium Glutamate can be added in an amount that is about 10% of the amount of salt for an umami boost.
MSG can find Monosodium Glutamates use to reduce salt consumption which is aligned in the occurrence of high blood pressure and other cardiovascular diseases.
The aroma of low spiced (salted) food improves greatly by MSG use even by a reduction of salt by 30%.
The sodium value of MSG is about 1/3 (12%) as compared to sodium chloride ~ natural salt (39%).
Monosodium glutamate is a salt.
Much like sodium chloride—AKA table salt—it enhances the flavor of food.
Monosodium Glutamate is a controversial ingredient because many still believe Monosodium Glutamate leads to troublesome health conditions.
The origin of Monosodium Glutamates bad PR stemmed from the “Chinese restaurant syndrome” that arose in the 1960s after a certain Dr. Robert Ho Man Kwok wrote a letter to the editor of the New England Journal of Medicine speaking to the sickly side effects he experienced after eating at a Chinese restaurant: “numbness in the back of the neck, gradually radiating to both arms and the back, general weakness, and palpitation.”
History
MSG has been used for more than 100 years to season food. Consumption and manufacture of high-salt and high-glutamate foods, which contain both sodium and glutamate, stretch back far longer, with evidence of cheese manufacture as early as 5,500 BCE.
Glutamic acid was discovered and identified in 1866 by the German chemist Karl Heinrich Ritthausen, who treated wheat gluten (for which it was named) with sulfuric acid.
Kikunae Ikeda of Tokyo Imperial University isolated glutamic acid as a taste substance in 1908 from the seaweed Laminaria japonica (kombu) by aqueous extraction and crystallization, calling its taste umami (“pleasant savory taste”).
Ikeda noticed that dashi, the Japanese broth of katsuobushi and kombu, had a unique taste not yet scientifically described (not sweet, salty, sour, or bitter).
To verify that ionized glutamate was responsible for umami, he studied the taste properties of glutamate salts: calcium, potassium, ammonium, and magnesium glutamate.
All these salts elicited umami and a metallic taste due to the other minerals.
Of them, sodium glutamate was the most soluble, most palatable, and easiest to crystallize.
Ikeda called his product “monosodium glutamate”, and submitted a patent to produce MSG; the Suzuki brothers began commercial production of MSG in 1909 as Ajinomoto (“essence of taste”).
CAS Number: 142-47-2
ChemSpider: 76943
ECHA InfoCard: 100.005.035
EC Number: 205-538-1
E number: E621 (flavour enhancer)
PubChem CID: 23672308
UNII: C3C196L9FG
CompTox Dashboard (EPA): DTXSID9020906
Monosodium glutamate, or MSG, might be one of the scariest-looking words you see on ingredients lists.
Luckily, Monosodium Glutamate’s not as unnatural or harmful as Monosodium Glutamates name or reputation might lead you to believe.
But what is MSG, and why is Monosodium Glutamate added to food?
Food manufacturers and chefs add MSG to food because Monosodium Glutamate enhances flavors.
The somewhat meaty taste Monosodium Glutamate imparts to food is best described by the Japanese term umami, which means “savory” or “deliciousness.”
MSG doesn’t taste like much on Monosodium Glutamates own, achieving maximum umami only when combined with other flavor molecules.
Although Monosodium Glutamate’s a common ingredient in a variety of Asian cuisines, MSG is perhaps best known in North America for Monosodium Glutamates once-universal use in restaurant Chinese food.
Monosodium glutamate: MSG, a sodium salt of the amino acid glutamic acid that enhances the flavor of certain foods.
Originally isolated from seaweed, MSG is now made by fermenting corn, potatoes and rice.
Monosodium Glutamate does not enhance the four basic tastes (bitter, salty, sour, sweet) but Monosodium Glutamate does enhance the complex flavors of meat, poultry, seafood, and vegetables.
MSG is an important ingredient in the cuisines of China and Japan and is used commercially worldwide in many types of foods.
Monosodium Glutamate is naturally present at high levels in tomatoes and Parmesan cheese.
In China, MSG is known as wei jing, which means flavor essence.
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is a flavor enhancer commonly added to Chinese food, canned vegetables, soups and processed meats.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has classified MSG as a food ingredient that’s “generally recognized as safe,” but Monosodium Glutamates use remains controversial.
For this reason, when MSG is added to food, the FDA requires that Monosodium Glutamate be listed on the label.
Monosodium Glutamate is very common to use food additives; one of the most widely used food additive is monosodium glutamate, commonly known as MSG.
Monosodium Glutamate is a flavour enhancing food additive mostly used in Asian cooking.
Monosodium Glutamateis commonly found in fast foods and commercially packaged products that may also include chips.
MSG is said to be derived from an amino acid known as glutamic acid that occurs naturally in foods like mushrooms, soy sauce, tomatoes and parmesan cheese, which is why these foods tend to enhance the flavour of various dishes.
MSG, as a food additive has gained quite a controversial reputation, considering the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has received many anecdotal reports of adverse reactions to foods containing MSG.
Some of the hazards that were reported included- headache, sweating, flushing, facial pressure or tightness, numbness, chest pain, nausea, weakness and heart palpitations.
This is why; FDA requires every packaged food product containing this compound to be listed on the label.
While MSG may have quite a bad reputation, researchers have no definitive evidence of a link between MSG and these symptoms.
Here are some of the foods that may contain Monosodium glutamate or MSG-
-Packaged fried potato chips
-Protein powders
-Popcorns
-Most seasonings
-Packaged meat products
-Canned foods
-Soy sauces
-Parmesan cheese
-Dipping sauces
-Salted snacks
We don’t realize but end up consuming Monosodium Glutamate on a daily basis.
Monosodium Glutamate is often recommended to limit the consumption of such foods to avoid MSG intake.
Chemical formula: C5H8NO4Na
Molar mass: 169.111 g/mol (anhydrous), 187.127 g/mol (monohydrate)
Appearance: White crystalline powder
Melting point: 232 °C (450 °F; 505 K)
Solubility in water: 740 g/L
Glutamate in the body
Your stomach and gut lining are rich in glutamate receptors.
MSG and other forms of glutamate are absorbed through interaction with these receptors.
Once in the gut, glutamate is either broken down to act as fuel, or incorporated into other molecules.
Glutamate is also an essential neurotransmitter in the brain.
However, dietary glutamate is believed to be unable to cross the blood-brain barrierTrusted Source, suggesting that all brain glutamate is created there.
But there is evidenceTrusted Source from studies in mice that the blood-brain barrier in newborns is immature, and that some glutamate can pass into the brain.
High levels of glutamate injected into newborn mice caused significant brain damage.
A recent studyTrusted Source showed that high levels of MSG also caused severe effects in fruit flies, leading to premature death in a significant number of them.
While the levels used in these studies far exceed normal daily consumption reportedTrusted Source among humans, Monosodium Glutamate is important to point out that restaurants and food manufacturers are not required to declare the levels of MSG added to food.
sodium glutamate(1-);Monosodium glutamate;sodium acid l-glutamate;DL-monosodium glutamate;Monosodium DL-glutamate;UVZZAUIWJCQWEO-UHFFFAOYSA-N;Sodium 5-oxido-5-oxonorvaline;Monosodium glutamate USP/EP/BP;GlutaMic acid, sodiuMsalt (1:1);Glutamic acid, monosodium salt, DL-
What is MSG?
MSG stands for “Monosodium Glutamate” and is made of water, sodium and glutamate.
Glutamate is an amino acid that is used to make proteins in food and our body.
MSG doesn’t have a specific flavour of its own.
Instead, MSG is used as an ingredient to enhance the natural flavours of foods such as meat, poultry, soups, stews, casseroles, gravies, seafood, snacks and vegetable dishes.
Glutamate itself if also found naturally in foods such as corn, green peas, mushrooms and tomatoes.
Is MSG the same as salt?
No. MSG is made from water, sodium and glutamate.
Table salt is made from sodium and chloride.
Is MSG safe to eat?
Yes. According to Health Canada, MSG is not a health hazard.
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is composed of sodium and the amino acid glutamate.
Sodium is an essential mineral, and glutamate is the most abundant amino acid in the human brain and the most common neurotransmitter in the body.
MSG is a popular food additive due to stimulating savory taste receptors and giving food a “meatier” flavor.
From a purely chemical standpoint, MSG is simply degraded into sodium and glutamate during the digestive process.
The MSG food fears were born from a 1968 article in which a US doctor described “Chinese-restaurant syndrome” — numbness and weakness caused by cooking wine, the high sodium content of the foods, or the added MSG seasoning, all just speculative guesses.
Sensationalism grew when animal research showed brain damage from unrealistically high doses of MSG being fed to mice or MSG being directly injected into the brains of monkeys.
Monosodium Glutamate should be noted that glutamate cannot cross the blood-brain barrier.
Monosodium glutamate (MSG), a salt of the amino acid glutamic acid, is used as a flavor enhancer in foods.
Some individuals experience adverse reactions to this compound, but a 1995 FASEB study found no evidence that Monosodium Glutamate causes neurological damage when consumed in the small amounts typical for food usage.
MSG- E621 is the short form of Monosodium glutamate.
A typical food flavor enhancer with the e-number E621- used to boost the flavor.
Monosodium Glutamate is gleaned from the amino acids or Glumatic acid, a rare amino acid in nature.
Chemically, MSG E621 is a white crystalline powder that resembles table salt or sugars, a combination of sodium and Glumatic acid, known as a sodium salt.
Monosodium Glutamate is popular in Asian cooking and used in various processed foods in the west.
MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE
142-47-2
Sodium glutamate
Sodium L-glutamate
L-Glutamic acid, monosodium salt
Monosodium L-glutamate
L-Glutamic acid sodium salt
Glutamic acid, sodium salt
Ajinomoto
Glutacyl
Glutavene
L(+) Sodium glutamate
L-Glutamic acid Monosodium salt
Glutamate monosodium salt
Sodium hydrogen glutamate
Natriumglutaminat
Glutamate Sodium
Natrium L-hydrogenglutamat
There are two forms of glutamate one “free,” not bound to protein, or bound to other amino acids as part of proteins.
The free glutamate is the one that tastes umami and plays a role in the delectable of foods.
Monosodium Glutamate enhances the natural flavour of many foods, and in most effective when used with savoury foods.
Monosodium glutamate, otherwise known as MSG, is derived from a naturally occurring amino acid in our bodies.
Amino acids are organic compounds that are essential for bodily functions.
Monosodium Glutamate is also naturally present in most foods, such as:
-Cheese
-Tomatoes
-Mushrooms
-Seaweed
However, MSG is most commonly known as a popular food additive that has an extra savory, umami flavor.
Monosodium Glutamate is produced by fermenting starch, sugar beets, sugar cane, or molasses.
Overall, concerns center around MSG being a neurotoxin, promoting obesity, and causing allergies.
Although there is currently zero evidence that MSG causes neurological damage in humans, Monosodium Glutamate may cause headaches in some people.
However, the best-controlled human studies that successfully blind participants and administer MSG as a seasoning on food rather than as an isolated addition to drinking water show no relationship.
Another concern revolves around MSG disrupting hypothalamic signaling, promoting overeating, and causing obesity.
However, interventions adding MSG to the diet of humans show no effect on food intake or body weight, and the hypothesis of hypothalamic disruption comes from a faulty premise where MSG is injected into the brains of animals.
However, there are concerns over MSG allergies.
While the effects are rare, some people may react with hives and allergic rhinitis.
While some people may also react with asthma, the only controlled trials have reported no difference between a MSG challenge and placebo.
In people who believe themselves to react adversely to MSG, they may experience symptoms above and beyond the nocebo effect only when MSG is given in large doses without food.
On the flip-side of these controversies, MSG may help people reduce sodium intake without negatively impacting the taste of a foods like soups, stocks, seasonings, noodles, meat, and nuts.
Additionally, although MSG doesn’t promote overeating in general, there may be a small appetite-enhancing effect in older adults who would benefit from eating more due to anorexia of aging.
However, not all studies support this.
Monosodium glutamate, or MSG, is a widely used flavor enhancer.
Monosodium Glutamate is said to add a 5th flavor to foods, a savoury taste, adding onto the four basic tastes (salt, sweet, sour and bitter).
Monosodium Glutamate has many names, ranging from accent and vetsin to ajinomoto.
What is so curious about MSG is that Monosodium Glutamate does not act by adding a specific taste of Monosodium Glutamates own (as does salt or sugar), but instead Monosodium Glutamate seems to serve as a stimulant which increases the sensitivity of taste receptors thus “multiplying” the taste of foods.
But some people may have a sensitivity to MSG.
Monosodium Glutamate is the glutamate part of MSG that can produce symptoms such as:
-Blurred vision
-Tingling and/or burning sensation
-Chills and shakes
-Feeling of pressure on the face
-Headache
-Increased heartbeat
-Nausea and vomiting
-Pain in the face, back, neck or chest
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is the sodium salt of glutamic acid, one of the most abundant naturally occurring non-essential amino acids.
Monosodium glutamate is found naturally in tomatoes, cheese and other foods.
MSG is used in the food industry as a flavor enhancer with an umami taste that intensifies the meaty, savory flavor of food, as naturally occurring glutamate does in foods such as stews and meat soups.
MSG as a flavor enhancer balances, blends, and rounds the perception of other tastes.
Monosodioglutammato
Glutammato monosodico
L-Glutamic Acid Monosodium
Vetsin
Zest
Sodium (S)-2-amino-4-carboxybutanoate
Chinese seasoning
UNII-C3C196L9FG
sodium (2S)-2-amino-4-carboxybutanoate
Ancoma
Glutamic acid, monosodium salt
MSG
Accent (food additive)
Glutamat sodny [Czech]
Glutamat sodny
Sodium glutamate (VAN)
Natriumglutaminat [German]
C3C196L9FG
MSG is a sodium salt of commonly known amino acid, that is, glutamic acid.
MSG has only a bit of flavor and is mainly used to enhance the flavor of savory foods.
Monosodium Glutamate is also used in meats, condiments, pickles, soups, candy, and baked goods to increase flavor.
Formerly, the flavor-enhancing property of MSG was achieved by using seaweed broth.
In a more recent approach, MSG is produced by fermentation process using starch, sugar beets, sugar cane, or molasses.
The adverse effects of MSG include headaches, serious allergic reactions, nausea, chest pains with heart attack–like symptoms, brain edema, weakness, and so forth.
Use of MSG increases the chances of reproductive dysfunction in both females and males.
Hydrolyzed proteins, or protein hydrolysates contain a form of MSG. Such proteins are acid- treated or enzymatically treated proteins.
They contain salts of free amino acids, such as glutamate, at levels of 5 to 20 percent.
Hydrolyzed proteins are used in the same manner as MSG in many foods, such as canned vegetables, soups, and processed meats.
Hammer Soy and sustained energy contain soy protein isolates and are essentially MSGfree.
Monosodium Glutamate [MSG] is not used as an ingredient, processing aid, or additive formulated from the soy protein isolates in either Hammer Soy or Sustained Energy.
MSG, measured, as free form glutamic acid is negative at the sensitivity to test methodology at the rate of 0.05% in the soy protein isolates used in the Hammer Nutrition product line.
We have no reports on record from an athlete who has determined negative reaction or sensitivity to the soy protein isolates formulated in either Sustained Energy or Soy.
Speaking very direct, all of Hammer products are MSG-free from formulation, processing, or as additives.
These common symptoms of MSG sensitivity are generally temporary and can appear about 20 minutes after eating MSG and last for about two hours.
The symptoms seem to happen faster and are more severe if you eat MSG-containing foods on an empty stomach or drink alcohol at the same time.
MSG stands for monosodium glutamate (also known as sodium glutamate), a common food ingredient that is a pure form of glutamate, the most common amino acid in our diets.
Amino acids are the building blocks of protein.
The tongue has taste receptors for glutamate, just as Monosodium Glutamate does for sweet, sour, salty and bitter tastes.
Glutamate is the purest taste of umami.
When MSG is added to foods, Monosodium Glutamate enhances and enriches their savory (umami) and rich flavors.
Our goal is to provide you with accurate and up-to-date information about glutamate, monosodium glutamate (MSG), and umami.
Here you will find information about the discovery and taste of glutamate and the role it plays in our food and our bodies.
Also learn about the nutritional benefits of umami and MSG related to appetite, sodium reduction, and overall health.
Sodium L-glutamate (VAN)
16177-21-2
Monosodioglutammato [Italian]
FEMA No. 2756
CCRIS 3625
HSDB 580
Glutammato monosodico [Italian]
l-Monosodium glutamate
Glutamic acid, L-, sodium salt
RL-50
Glutamate Sodium [JAN]
EINECS 205-538-1
L-Glutamic acid, sodium salt (VAN)
NSC 135529
Monosodium glutamate anhydrous
AI3-18393
EINECS 240-313-1
Glutamic acid, monosodium salt, L-
Note: Do not automatically assume that you have a sensitivity to MSG if you experience any of these symptoms.
Check with your doctor to make sure that you do not have another condition or allergy that might be causing these symptoms.
Discovery
MSG was first discovered at the turn of the 20th century in Japan.
In 1907, Professor Kikunae Ikeda (photo, right) of the Tokyo Imperial University first studied the brown crystals left behind after evaporating large amounts of kombu broth (an edible kelp), and identified these as glutamic acid.
Upon tasting these crystals, he noticed they reminded him of the taste of many foods, especially seaweed.
As a result he named the crystals unami (savoury).
The Ajinomoto (“essence of taste”) company was formed to manufacture and market MSG in Japan, and Monosodium Glutamate was introduced to the United States in 1947 as Ac’cent flavour enhancer.
MSG as a flavour enhancer
As meat ages, the proteins Monosodium Glutamate contains decompose to form a number of other substances, among them MSG and a breakdown product of ATP called inosine monophosphate (IMF).
These two compounds together have a very pronounced meaty flavour, and are the principal components responsible for the taste of meat.
Different meats contain MSG and IMF in different amounts, and so have different flavours.
For example, the ratio of beef has two times as much MSG as pork (but about the same amount of IMF).
Since MSG is much cheaper and more readily available than IMF, Monosodium Glutamate is often added by food manufacturers to bring out the flavour of meat.
Surprisingly, mushrooms also contain a large number of proteins which are composed of glutamic acid.
This might account for their slightly meaty flavour and the fact that mushrooms are usually served with meat dishes.
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) and certain other amino acids, especially when paired with the nucleotide 5′ inosine monophosphate or 5′ guanine monophosphate, elicit a taste termed umami, now recognized as a fifth taste quality independent of sweet, sour, salty, or bitter.
The human detection threshold for MSG is 0.7–3 mmol−1.
Umami is a preferred taste, and MSG is a common food additive for animal and human consumption.
MSG occurs naturally in many foods and is particularly abundant in protein-rich foods, notably cheeses and meats.
There are multiple molecular receptor mechanisms for detecting sodium glutamate which will be described below.
Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) is a flavour enhancer that is added to food to bring out the savoury taste.
Monosodium Glutamate is a food additive used commonly in many foods and has been always associated with some or the other controversies.
What exactly is MSG?
MSG is the sodium salt of glutamate which is an amino acid made in the body.
Glutamate is also a neurotransmitter in the nervous system.
Glutamate is found naturally in some protein-containing foods like meat, peas, yeast extracts, soy sauce, mushrooms and cheese.
Monosodium Glutamate is made commercially through fermentation of molasses from sugar beet or sugar cane and starch.
Which foods contain MSG?
Glutamates occur naturally in protein foods such as meat, fish, poultry and vegetables.
Free glutamates are found in foods like tomatoes, tomato paste, cheese and mushrooms.
So, many natural foods which we add to dishes to make them tasty are high in free glutamate.
Glutamates are added to food to enhance its flavour.
They are added in the form of MSG in hydrolysed vegetable protein, yeast extracts, flavours and fermented soy products such as soy sauce.
Common foods that can contain added MSG include savoury foods such as stocks, seasonings, soup, sauces and savoury snacks/meals.
Why is MSG added to some food?
MSG does not have a distinct flavour on Monosodium Glutamates own, but Monosodium Glutamate helps to intensify the natural savoury flavour of foods.
The taste gained from naturally occurring or added MSG in foods is described as ‘ Umami’ – the fifth basic taste after sweet, sour, bitter and salty.
Umami is the savoury taste that people enjoy in foods.
One of the other reasons that MSG is added to food is to help reduce the sodium content.
MSG is lower in sodium than table salt.
Therefore the sodium content of processed foods can be lowered by using MSG to replace some of the salt.
L-Glutamic acid, sodiumsalt (1:1)
H-Glu-OH.Na
sodium;(2S)-2-amino-5-hydroxy-5-oxopentanoate
L-Glutamic acid, sodium salt (1:1)
6106-04-3
EC 205-538-1
SCHEMBL16336
DTXSID9020906
AKOS027257231
sodium 2-amino-5-hydroxy-5-oxopentanoate
G0188
J-007661
Is MSG safe?
Over the past 40 years or so, there have been reports of adverse reactions to MSG, notably the so called “Chinese restaurant syndrome”.
However there is no scientific evidence to suggest that MSG has any adverse effects in general population in the amounts normally consumed as part of the diet.
If you believe that you have experienced problems you may want to limit your intake of foods high in glutamates either as an additive or naturally occurring glutamates.
Advice from your medical practitioner can help establish if you have food intolerance or sensitivity and if you need to change your diet you may benefit from advice from an accredited practicing dietitian.
What does added MSG mean?
Many products and restaurants claim “no added MSG” due to the consumer demand for products without MSG.
This claim means that the manufacturer has not added MSG into the food.
Monosodium Glutamate is important to remember that there may be naturally occurring glutamates in the food even if Monosodium Glutamate has a “no added MSG” claim.
MSG is a flavor enhancer commonly associated with Chinese takeout food, but Monosodium Glutamate’s also found in some canned goods and processed meats.
Once thought to cause adverse side effects like headache and nausea, MSG has become a controversial additive.
But, the science says Monosodium Glutamate’s not all that bad.
Origin of Mono Sodium Glutamate (E621)
To begin with, the answer to the existence of MSN Mono Sodium Glutamate, chemical name Monosodium L-Glutamate Monohydrate also called E621.
To know about this flavor-enhancing agent, we need to go back to Japan a century back.
Umami seasoning (component monosodium L-glutamate) universally known as the flavor enhancer in many houses in Japan, was discovered by later prof.
Kikunae Ikeda, professor at the Department of Chemistry of Tokyo Imperial University (now the University of Tokyo).
While professor Ikeda was researching various themes related to basic chemistry, he was keen on practical research.
Since childhood, Kyoto-born professor was interested in seaweed broth.
To find out the components of broth, he started research on the seaweed broth, which is used for the dish yudofu (boiled tofu).
Starting with a tremendous quantity of kelp soup stock Ikeda succeeded in extracting crystals of glutamic acid, a building block of proteins.
100 gram of kelp contains 1gm of glutamate and the real identity of Umami.
The discovery turned the professor’s ‘Eureka!’ movement.
Kombu led him to the development that will make his fortune change and change the nature of 20th-century food.
Monosodium Glutamate is a flavor enhancer.
Monosodium Glutamate is a substance that has no striking flavor and that increases the taste and/or smell of a food product, without changing the taste.
This substance by strengthening the taste of the ingredients present in the food acts as excitement on the taste buds and especially on the brain.
Glutamate works like any other drug on the brain.
In the opinion of experts, appetite enhancers would act on neurons, preventing the proper functioning of the appetite inhibiting mechanisms.
Commonly called glutamate, Monosodium Glutamate is one of the food additives (code E 621) most used in the food industry and in Asian cuisine.
Chemically, MSG (monosodium glutamate) is the sodium salt of glutamic acid (one of the 20 non-essential natural amino acids that make up proteins).
This explains the name of “MSG (monosodium glutamate)”.
Monosodium Glutamate is a white powder composed of small crystals that dissolve quickly in water or saliva.
Once dissolved, this substance separates into sodium and glutamate.
Glutamate is made by fermenting starch and sugar (sugar cane, molasses).
Glutamic acid was isolated primarily from gluten (wheat) and was discovered as the essence of the delicious tastes of good soups prepared in Japan.
Originally, Monosodium Glutamate was used in Asian cuisine, and particularly Chinese.
Monosodium Glutamate is now present in many products, including those that leave a smoky taste or “meat juice” like flavored chips, biscuits or broths.
For more than 50 years, industrially produced sodium glutamate has been used in the food industry as a flavor enhancer.
Monosodium Glutamate is added to a food product to complement or enhance (in the sense of strengthening) Monosodium Glutamates original taste or aroma, without changing the taste of this food product. Another term often used to refer to substances similar to MSG (monosodium glutamate) is “flavor potentiator”.
For food manufacturers, Monosodium Glutamates use has become a commercial necessity because Monosodium Glutamate makes consumers dependent on foods that contain them.
Consumers choose their products over competitors and eat more than if MSG (monosodium glutamate) was not added.
Other Common Names
Monosodium glutamate
Sodium 2-aminopentanedioate
Glutamic acid, monosodium salt, monohydrate
L-Glutamic acid, monosodium salt, monohydrate
L-Monosodium glutamate monohydrate
Monosodium L-glutamate monohydrate
MSG monohydrate
Sodium glutamate monohydrate
Is there a link between MSG and migraine headaches? What about asthma?
There is not enough research to prove whether MSG triggers migraine headaches.
If you find that you tend to get a migraine after eating MSG, the best advice is to avoid eating MSG-containing foods.
Some people say they feel symptoms of asthma after eating MSG.
These symptoms may occur one to two hours after eating MSG or even up to 12 hours after eating Monosodium Glutamate.
If you frequently experience migraines or symptoms of asthma, talk to your doctor.
Some of the products that may contain MSG as an additive include:
-Cured meats
-Seasoning blends and bouillon cubes
-Frozen meals
-Cookies and crackers
-Salad dressings
-Mayonnaise
“It really can be in any packaged or processed food,” says Katherine Zeratsky, RD, LD, a registered and licensed dietitian at Mayo Clinic.
The FDA labels all products with the additive MSG, but does not label products that have naturally occurring MSG.
The Different Names of MSG (Sodium Glutamate)
MSG (Monosodium glutamate) is a kind of “chameleon poison” that can be hiding under different names according to food manufacturers.
-MSG (Monosodium glutamate)(food additive No. E621), commonly known as glutamate or GMS is used primarily as a flavor enhancer in the diet.
Monosodium Glutamate is a salt of glutamic acid.
-potassium glutamate,
-calcium glutamate,
-ammonium glutamate,
-magnesium glutamate.
Other names for MSG (monosodium glutamate): natrum glutamate, gelatin, hydrogenated vegetable proteins or oils, some corn oils, yeast extract, seasoning (when not defined), natural flavor, natural meat tenderizer.
Monosodium glutamate is made up of nutritionally indispensable amino acids and used as flavour enhancer worldwide.
Monosodium glutamate is believed to be associated with different health problems.
This study is aimed to shed light on the available literature from last 25 years about different clinical trials which had been carried out on animal and human models regarding possible effects of monosodium glutamate.
Google scholar, NCBI, PUBMED, EMBASE, Wangfang databases, and Web of Science databases were used to retrieve the available studies.
Literature showed that monosodium glutamate was associated with adverse side-effects particularly in animals including induction of obesity, diabetes, hepatotoxic, neurotoxic and genotoxic effects.
Different reports revealed increased hunger, food intake, and obesity in human subjects.
Limited studies have been carried out on humans to check possible hepatotoxic, neurotoxic, and genotoxic effects of monosodium glutamate.
Available literature showed that increased consumption of monosodium glutamate may be associated with harmful health effects.
So, Monosodium Glutamate is recommended to use common salt instead of Monosodium Glutamate.
Furthermore, intensive research is required to explore monosodium glutamate–related molecular and metabolic mechanisms.
Short-term symptoms of MSG include: numbness, tingling, burning sensation, chest pain, difficulty breathing, headaches, nausea, rapid heartbeat, drowsiness or weakness.
When reading labels, the following contain MSG: glutamate, glutamic acid, monosodium glutamate, monopotassium glutamate, calcium caseinate, sodium caseinate, autolysed yeast, textured protein, yeast nutrient, , yeast extract, gelatin, hydrolyzed protein, yeast food or natural flavor.
MSG is a challenging additive to avoid and takes effort to read labels, plan and prepare foods, but eating foods that are MSG-free will help to decrease your total body burden of toxins and allow your body to function better.
Choosing fresh, whole foods will help you avoid MSG.
Research has shown that the body uses glutamates as nerve impulse transmitters in the brain, and that every major human organ contains glutamate receptors.
They are also linked to memory retrieval.
The main worry with glutamates however is that they are absorbed at a very fast rate into blood by the alimentary canal.
This can lead to glutamate levels in the blood rising very quickly in a short period of time, and some scientists worry that this may cause irreversable damage to some parts of the human brain, due to overstimulation.
Monosodium Glutamate has been shown that high blood glutamate levels have caused neurotoxicity in rodents, however there is a firm debate over whether Monosodium Glutamate has the same effect on humans.
MSG is now produced by the large-scale fermentation of starch and is found in many household foods.
Most snack foods and canned foods will usually contain some concentration of MSG.
Monosodium Glutamate is also closely linked to Chinese restaurants, and it was once thought that these employed large amounts of MSG in their cooking.
The link was so strong that the “symptoms” of MSG consumption were referred to as “chinese restaurant symdrome”.
Whilst Monosodium Glutamate may have once had a bad reputation and was considered as a potentially dangerous chemical, this incorrect perception of MSG no longer exists, as research tests have obtained results to show otherwise, leading to chinese restaurants taking down their MSG-free food signs.
Basbaum: MSG stands for monosodium glutamate.
Monosodium Glutamate is a food additive or flavor enhancer that comes in a crystallized form like salt, and we use it during cooking.
The basis of MSG is a protein or amino acid called glutamate, which occurs naturally in some foods like:
-Tomatoes
-Mushrooms
-Parmesan cheese
-Seaweed
-Nuts
-Legumes
In the 1900s, a Japanese scientist isolated glutamate from seaweed and manufactured Monosodium Glutamate into a chemical to capture that savory flavor profile.
Monosodium Glutamate could then be added to other foods.
The scientist named the flavor umami, which became the fifth taste, in addition to salty, sweet, bitter and sour.
Large amounts of scientific experiments have been aimed at finding out whether or not MSG is a dangerous chemical, but there has been no significant finding stating that it has harmful effects.
However, there are several minor symptoms thought to be associated with MSG, the most common being headaches, nausea and drowsiness.
These symptoms are always mild and rarely require medical attention.
In actual fact, MSG is more of a solution than a problem.
Monosodium glutamate represents the sodium salt of glutamic acid.
MSG is used in many processed foods in today’s grocery market.
Glutamate also known as glutamic acid, is a naturally-occurring nonessential amino acid in the body, which serves as the primary excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain.
This is to say – glutamate “turns things on.”
As a component of MSG, this means that Glutamate triggers the firing of nerve cells in the brain and body.
Consuming MSG can stimulate the firing of these nerve cells.
Overstimulation and over firing of these nerve cells can lead to negative health implications.
Using MSG, Monosodium Glutamate is possible to greatly reduce sodium levels in foods (40% less when table salt is replaced with MSG) while at the same time still enjoying the taste.
The graph on the right shows that with a small addition of MSG, the pleasantness of a food can be greatly increased.
The study evaluated people’s responses to different versions of a clear soup, with and without MSG and with different levels of salt.
The horizontal line shows the threshold level below which the participants found the soup to be unpalatable.
Without the addition of MSG, the soup did not become palatable until the salt concentration reached 0.75%.
With MSG, however, the soup was palatable with a salt concentration of only 0.4%.
MSG, or monosodium glutamate, is a seasoning that was discovered in Japan in 1908 and is the manufactured form of glutamate.
Glutamate is one of the most abundant amino acids in our diets, and Monosodium Glutamate occurs naturally in foods.
The human body can’t tell the difference between glutamate in MSG and glutamate found naturally in foods.