8 ms·

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 art

by 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.
    - kls 7y ago
      The difference is MSG has been heavily studies and the evidence suggest it does not have long term health effects. There are some people that have an allergy to it but the gap between those that truly do and those that claim they do is wide and a lot of that has to do with belief of misinformation. The difference with arsenic in apple seeds is that most people are not eating the seeds, while sea weed is regularly consumed and everyone has a reaction to arsenic whereas only a minority of people have a reaction to the consumption of sea weed.
      - ceejayoz 7y ago
        > The difference is MSG has been heavily studies and the evidence suggest it does not have long term health effects. And that's a perfectly good argument. "It comes from seaweed and you eat seaweed just fine" is not. You've singled out arsenic in your response, but I also mentioned formaldehyde, which is throughout the apple's flesh. Would you drink a bottle of it because of that?
        Spivak 7y ago
        The logic isn't "it comes from seaweed so it's not harmful" it's "you wouldn't really give a second thought as to whether seaweed salt was safe to consume if you saw it on the shelf but are naturally skeptical of MSG because it's a scary chemical name."
      - close04 7y ago
        It’s as if you’re actively trying to miss my point. The reports of MSG being called “the devil“ were greatly exaggerated. Your personal interpretation of what I said: > The jury is still out on how (un)healthy MSG is Was: > people will hail MSG as the devil The fact that it’s a seaweed extract, or that some people eat it and are ok are orthogonal to what I said. I said one should be careful about excessive use of anything that hasn’t been studied to the point where any reasonable shadow of doubt was removed. The fact that multiple published studies came up with these potential links and there’s no definitive one to contradict them at the very least warrants caution. Which is what I suggested. It’s sensible advice to not do anything excessively, even more so if you have any doubt. Some people excessively drank alcohol, smoked, ate red meat, etc. (all plant based or at least natural) all their life and were just fine. But it’s still not an argument for doing the same. And the link I gave didn’t come from personal opinion (these are strong on HN), or some random blog but nih.gov. And their advice is just as sensible: we need to study more (yeah, guess they weren’t told on HN that MSG was super extensively tested and we have the definitive results) and advised caution. That’s it.
Cthulhu_ 7y ago
Arsenic is just a seed extract, doesn't mean it'll kill you in large enough quantities.
inasio 7y ago
After seaweed the next product with the highest natural concentration of MSG is parmesan cheese...
mywittyname 7y ago
It has lots of rebranding. I often see "natural glutamates" on menus at nice restaurants, and I have a bottle of liquid aminos from Whole Foods (ironically[0]) at home that is basically a soy sauce derivative with extra MSG; it's actually really good. I kind of wish I got to taste 80s era American Chinese food in it's full MSG glory. [0] https://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/blog/whole-story/myths-and-misconceptions-msg https://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/blog/whole-story/myths-and-... > The short answer is that MSG, or monosodium glutamate, is an unacceptable ingredient at Whole Foods Market, thus not allowed in any of our products.
hnick 7y ago
Adam Ragusea also has a timely video he posted a few days ago on MSG too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-POAKKH5IM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-POAKKH5IM The takeaway I got from it was that the opposition to MSG has a racial component ('Chinese Restaurant Syndrome'), may have been started as a prank (letters to that particular publication often were - they didn't have 4chan back then), and studies showing harm used very unrealistic dosages. Allergy or sensitivity may exist but the chances of it being a poison and literally affecting every human body seems very unlikely. I also have a bag in my kitchen and came to the same conclusion regarding taste that he did. Adding more does not do much to dishes with that component already (meat, mushroom, etc). But it does change dishes that lack it.

by kls 7y ago

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.
  - kls 7y ago
    The difference is MSG has been heavily studies and the evidence suggest it does not have long term health effects. There are some people that have an allergy to it but the gap between those that truly do and those that claim they do is wide and a lot of that has to do with belief of misinformation. The difference with arsenic in apple seeds is that most people are not eating the seeds, while sea weed is regularly consumed and everyone has a reaction to arsenic whereas only a minority of people have a reaction to the consumption of sea weed.
    - ceejayoz 7y ago
      > The difference is MSG has been heavily studies and the evidence suggest it does not have long term health effects. And that's a perfectly good argument. "It comes from seaweed and you eat seaweed just fine" is not. You've singled out arsenic in your response, but I also mentioned formaldehyde, which is throughout the apple's flesh. Would you drink a bottle of it because of that?
      - Spivak 7y ago
        The logic isn't "it comes from seaweed so it's not harmful" it's "you wouldn't really give a second thought as to whether seaweed salt was safe to consume if you saw it on the shelf but are naturally skeptical of MSG because it's a scary chemical name."
    - close04 7y ago
      It’s as if you’re actively trying to miss my point. The reports of MSG being called “the devil“ were greatly exaggerated. Your personal interpretation of what I said: > The jury is still out on how (un)healthy MSG is Was: > people will hail MSG as the devil The fact that it’s a seaweed extract, or that some people eat it and are ok are orthogonal to what I said. I said one should be careful about excessive use of anything that hasn’t been studied to the point where any reasonable shadow of doubt was removed. The fact that multiple published studies came up with these potential links and there’s no definitive one to contradict them at the very least warrants caution. Which is what I suggested. It’s sensible advice to not do anything excessively, even more so if you have any doubt. Some people excessively drank alcohol, smoked, ate red meat, etc. (all plant based or at least natural) all their life and were just fine. But it’s still not an argument for doing the same. And the link I gave didn’t come from personal opinion (these are strong on HN), or some random blog but nih.gov. And their advice is just as sensible: we need to study more (yeah, guess they weren’t told on HN that MSG was super extensively tested and we have the definitive results) and advised caution. That’s it.

Cthulhu_ 7y ago

Arsenic is just a seed extract, doesn't mean it'll kill you in large enough quantities.

inasio 7y ago

After seaweed the next product with the highest natural concentration of MSG is parmesan cheese...

mywittyname 7y ago

It has lots of rebranding. I often see "natural glutamates" on menus at nice restaurants, and I have a bottle of liquid aminos from Whole Foods (ironically[0]) at home that is basically a soy sauce derivative with extra MSG; it's actually really good. I kind of wish I got to taste 80s era American Chinese food in it's full MSG glory. [0] https://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/blog/whole-story/myths-and-misconceptions-msg https://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/blog/whole-story/myths-and-... > The short answer is that MSG, or monosodium glutamate, is an unacceptable ingredient at Whole Foods Market, thus not allowed in any of our products.

hnick 7y ago

Adam Ragusea also has a timely video he posted a few days ago on MSG too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-POAKKH5IM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-POAKKH5IM The takeaway I got from it was that the opposition to MSG has a racial component ('Chinese Restaurant Syndrome'), may have been started as a prank (letters to that particular publication often were - they didn't have 4chan back then), and studies showing harm used very unrealistic dosages. Allergy or sensitivity may exist but the chances of it being a poison and literally affecting every human body seems very unlikely. I also have a bag in my kitchen and came to the same conclusion regarding taste that he did. Adding more does not do much to dishes with that component already (meat, mushroom, etc). But it does change dishes that lack it.