4 ms·
I think much of the fear surrounding monosodium glutamate (MSG) simply comes down to its common name being a chemical. Imagine saying "pass the sodium chloride"
by gryson 7y ago
I think much of the fear surrounding monosodium glutamate (MSG) simply comes down to its common name being a chemical. Imagine saying "pass the sodium chloride" at the dinner table.
Meanwhile, in Japan, MSG is commonly referred to by the brand name "Aji-no-moto", which means "essence of taste." It can be found in most households.
- Cthulhu_ 7y agoThere's a similar fear of "E-Numbers" on European products, because some genius decided to encode colorants, flavorants and preservatives into unrecognizable numbers. But then I guess E106 is less scary to some than riboflavin-5-sodium phosphate, E120 less gross than "bits of squashed bugs".
- mercer 7y agoWell, wait until you've researched DHMO! https://www.dhmo.org/facts.html https://www.dhmo.org/facts.html > Should I be concerned about Dihydrogen Monoxide? > Yes, you should be concerned about DHMO! Although the U.S. Government and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) do not classify Dihydrogen Monoxide as a toxic or carcinogenic substance (as it does with better known chemicals such as hydrochloric acid and benzene), DHMO is a constituent of many known toxic substances, diseases and disease-causing agents, environmental hazards and can even be lethal to humans in quantities as small as a thimbleful.
- antoniuschan99 7y agohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dihydrogen_monoxide_parody https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dihydrogen_monoxide_parody :P
- mercer 7y agoshhh ;).
- dylan604 7y agoBack in the 80s (maybe early 90s), there was a big anti-MSG movement/campaign in the US. I was too young to know/care what it was, but it was definitely centered around Asian cuisine. My family did not eat much Asian food at all when I was a kid, so it didn't really affect me. I just remember it being in the news, and other adults around me talking about it.
- ska 7y agoIt can be found in almost all household in the US too - it's just in the processed foods.
- ska 7y agoTo the contrary I think much of the fear surrounding MSG is still based on a racist campaign against it in the 70s-80s. The rhetoric remains after the sources are mostly forgotten. In fact specifically labeling it by its chemical name rather than any brand/whatever names was I think an intentional technique.