5 ms·

Even for non vegetarians, MSG (monosodium glutamate) is a pretty cool addition to the kitchen toolbox, just order some and start experimenting! Do some control

Even for non vegetarians, MSG (monosodium glutamate) is a pretty cool addition to the kitchen toolbox, just order some and start experimenting! Do some controlled ones, for example split a portion into two, ask a 2nd person to sprinkle some onto one of them and try both of them and guess which one has MSG on it.

close04 7y ago
I think the jury is still out on how (un)healthy extensive use of MSG is [0]. > In conclusion we would like to state that although MSG has proven its value as an enhancer of flavour, different studies have hinted at possible toxic effects related to this popular food-additive. These toxic effects include CNS disorder, obesity, disruptions in adipose tissue physiology, hepatic damage, CRS and reproductive malfunctions. These threats might have hitherto been underestimated. In the meantime, people keep using ever larger amounts of MSG unaware of the possible consequences. Further studies need to be undertaken in order to assess the connection between MSG and cardiovascular disorders, headache, and hypertension in human models. MSG is a controversial food-additive used in canned food, crackers, meat, salad dressings, frozen dinners and a myriad of other products. It is found in local supermarkets, restaurants and school cafeterias alike. While MSG probably has huge benefits to the food industry, the ubiquitous use of this food-additive could have negative consequences for public health. If more substantive evidence of MSG-toxicity would be provided, a total ban on the use of MSG as a flavour enhancer would not be unwise to consider. [0] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5938543/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5938543/
- kls 7y ago
  It is just sea weed extract, maybe they should rename it to that as everyone thinks sea weed is a health food. Sushi is full of natural MSG. Here is a good article on how MSG got a bad wrap: https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/how-msg-got-a-bad-rap-flawed-science-and-xenophobia/ https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/how-msg-got-a-bad-rap-f...
  - atom-morgan 7y ago
    That's...a huge branding error. Seriously, Organic Seaweed Salt (GF/V) would fly off the shelves at Whole Foods.
    - WorldMaker 7y ago
      Someone should tell B&G Foods, given it is way past time for them to modernize the Accent brand anyway (people see it in my spice cabinet and wonder what's with the "weird 60s salt shaker"). https://www.accentflavor.com/product/flavor-enhancer https://www.accentflavor.com/product/flavor-enhancer
  - close04 7y ago
    > It is just sea weed extract This seems unrelated to the claims I quoted/linked. Cocaine is "just a plant extract". But this statement doesn't say much about how wise it is to ingest it. [0] You might as well put this on a pack of cigarettes. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_poisonous_plants#Other_poisonous_plants https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_poisonous_plants#Other...
    - kls 7y ago
      My point is that people will hail MSG as the devil and then happily consume sushi wrapped in sea weed and have no ill effect. I have a friend she swears she is allergic to MSG but she eats sushi at least twice a week with no reaction. I don't have the heart to tell her that the very wrapping she is eating is where they get the MSG from. That being said, there are people that legitimately have a glutamate allergy and they do have reactions when they eat sea weed.
      - ceejayoz 7y ago
        I, too, think fears of MSG are silly, but so is this argument. You can extract formaldehyde and arsenic out of an apple, but that doesn’t make chugging the extract as safe as eating an apple.
- grimwall 7y ago
  interesting, there is already a review citing this article giving an opposing view: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6952072/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6952072/ edit: also a single amino acid salt being harmful really requires some solid evidence, which seems to be not there.
  - close04 7y ago
    > Further studies need to be undertaken in order to assess the connection between MSG and [...] As I said, jury is still out. I would personally not go overboard with adding it to everything I et until I know more. I'll take less flavor for now over the potential risks until more reliable data is published.
- SuoDuanDao 7y ago
  From what I've heard, it's a bit like wheat - harmless to most people, but a minority has allergic reactions of varying severity.
  - mywittyname 7y ago
    Except glutamic acid is found in nearly everything we eat and our bodies produce lots of it because we need it to function. It's unlikely anyone has an allergic reaction to it, considering it's basically impossible to avoid eating.
- jrlocke 7y ago
  Like every other study that purports to show the toxicity of MSG, this one cites wildly unrealistic dosages, dosages that would cause toxicity with salt as well. Just skimming the abstract I see an example with a dosage of 2 mg/g. Scaled up to human terms (assuming a 180 pound human like me), that's a dose of 160 grams, but personally, I'm a heavy MSG user and a 50 gram shaker of MSG lasts me for months. Also consider that my daily intake of sodium should be 3.4 grams. 160 grams of MSG has 19.2 grams of sodium alone! Almost everyone on earth eats less than 1/100th of that studied dose of MSG daily. The dose makes the poison; in my opinion this writeup is intellectually dishonest.
- ropiwqefjnpoa 7y ago
  Like most things, I'm sure the dose makes the poison. There are some who are sensitive to MSG and react poorly to even small doses. All this creates a lot of confusion in regards to whether it's healthy or not. if it gives you headaches, don't eat it. I react poorly to tomatoes, but it doesn't mean tomatoes are bad for everyone.
1MachineElf 7y ago
I can confirm that savory oatmeal is a great vegetarian way to start the day. It's counter-intuitive and surprisingly good. My favorite preparation involves mixing in cashew nut butter with a little tomato sauce.
- eclipxe 7y ago
  I’m sorry but this sounds really unappealing to me. But it’s probably tasty.
- magic_beans 7y ago
  While I don't think I'll ever get on board with savory oatmeal, I'd be perfectly happy with savory grits or savory polenta. But really — there's no reason not to have roasted veggies and brown rice for a savory breakfast.
- jacobwilliamroy 7y ago
  I only know one person who dislikes my savory oatmeal, and he says it's because he has lots of unpleasant childhood memories of being force fed savory oatmeal by his mother, back in the holler.

close04 7y ago

I think the jury is still out on how (un)healthy extensive use of MSG is [0]. > In conclusion we would like to state that although MSG has proven its value as an enhancer of flavour, different studies have hinted at possible toxic effects related to this popular food-additive. These toxic effects include CNS disorder, obesity, disruptions in adipose tissue physiology, hepatic damage, CRS and reproductive malfunctions. These threats might have hitherto been underestimated. In the meantime, people keep using ever larger amounts of MSG unaware of the possible consequences. Further studies need to be undertaken in order to assess the connection between MSG and cardiovascular disorders, headache, and hypertension in human models. MSG is a controversial food-additive used in canned food, crackers, meat, salad dressings, frozen dinners and a myriad of other products. It is found in local supermarkets, restaurants and school cafeterias alike. While MSG probably has huge benefits to the food industry, the ubiquitous use of this food-additive could have negative consequences for public health. If more substantive evidence of MSG-toxicity would be provided, a total ban on the use of MSG as a flavour enhancer would not be unwise to consider. [0] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5938543/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5938543/

kls 7y ago
It is just sea weed extract, maybe they should rename it to that as everyone thinks sea weed is a health food. Sushi is full of natural MSG. Here is a good article on how MSG got a bad wrap: https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/how-msg-got-a-bad-rap-flawed-science-and-xenophobia/ https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/how-msg-got-a-bad-rap-f...
- atom-morgan 7y ago
  That's...a huge branding error. Seriously, Organic Seaweed Salt (GF/V) would fly off the shelves at Whole Foods.
  - WorldMaker 7y ago
    Someone should tell B&G Foods, given it is way past time for them to modernize the Accent brand anyway (people see it in my spice cabinet and wonder what's with the "weird 60s salt shaker"). https://www.accentflavor.com/product/flavor-enhancer https://www.accentflavor.com/product/flavor-enhancer
- close04 7y ago
  > It is just sea weed extract This seems unrelated to the claims I quoted/linked. Cocaine is "just a plant extract". But this statement doesn't say much about how wise it is to ingest it. [0] You might as well put this on a pack of cigarettes. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_poisonous_plants#Other_poisonous_plants https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_poisonous_plants#Other...
  - kls 7y ago
    My point is that people will hail MSG as the devil and then happily consume sushi wrapped in sea weed and have no ill effect. I have a friend she swears she is allergic to MSG but she eats sushi at least twice a week with no reaction. I don't have the heart to tell her that the very wrapping she is eating is where they get the MSG from. That being said, there are people that legitimately have a glutamate allergy and they do have reactions when they eat sea weed.
    - ceejayoz 7y ago
      I, too, think fears of MSG are silly, but so is this argument. You can extract formaldehyde and arsenic out of an apple, but that doesn’t make chugging the extract as safe as eating an apple.
grimwall 7y ago
interesting, there is already a review citing this article giving an opposing view: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6952072/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6952072/ edit: also a single amino acid salt being harmful really requires some solid evidence, which seems to be not there.
- close04 7y ago
  > Further studies need to be undertaken in order to assess the connection between MSG and [...] As I said, jury is still out. I would personally not go overboard with adding it to everything I et until I know more. I'll take less flavor for now over the potential risks until more reliable data is published.
SuoDuanDao 7y ago
From what I've heard, it's a bit like wheat - harmless to most people, but a minority has allergic reactions of varying severity.
- mywittyname 7y ago
  Except glutamic acid is found in nearly everything we eat and our bodies produce lots of it because we need it to function. It's unlikely anyone has an allergic reaction to it, considering it's basically impossible to avoid eating.
jrlocke 7y ago
Like every other study that purports to show the toxicity of MSG, this one cites wildly unrealistic dosages, dosages that would cause toxicity with salt as well. Just skimming the abstract I see an example with a dosage of 2 mg/g. Scaled up to human terms (assuming a 180 pound human like me), that's a dose of 160 grams, but personally, I'm a heavy MSG user and a 50 gram shaker of MSG lasts me for months. Also consider that my daily intake of sodium should be 3.4 grams. 160 grams of MSG has 19.2 grams of sodium alone! Almost everyone on earth eats less than 1/100th of that studied dose of MSG daily. The dose makes the poison; in my opinion this writeup is intellectually dishonest.
ropiwqefjnpoa 7y ago
Like most things, I'm sure the dose makes the poison. There are some who are sensitive to MSG and react poorly to even small doses. All this creates a lot of confusion in regards to whether it's healthy or not. if it gives you headaches, don't eat it. I react poorly to tomatoes, but it doesn't mean tomatoes are bad for everyone.

1MachineElf 7y ago

I can confirm that savory oatmeal is a great vegetarian way to start the day. It's counter-intuitive and surprisingly good. My favorite preparation involves mixing in cashew nut butter with a little tomato sauce.

eclipxe 7y ago
I’m sorry but this sounds really unappealing to me. But it’s probably tasty.
magic_beans 7y ago
While I don't think I'll ever get on board with savory oatmeal, I'd be perfectly happy with savory grits or savory polenta. But really — there's no reason not to have roasted veggies and brown rice for a savory breakfast.
jacobwilliamroy 7y ago
I only know one person who dislikes my savory oatmeal, and he says it's because he has lots of unpleasant childhood memories of being force fed savory oatmeal by his mother, back in the holler.