Monosodium Glutamate, is it really that bad?

My parents used to call MSG "Ajinomoto", after the famous Japanese brand food enhancer. I guess it's not that accurate, but I think they just named it that way because it's easier to remember. But anyway, I don't think MSG itself is a bad thing if used in moderation, but I guess like you mentioned, some people can be a bit sensitive to the ingredient and can experience nausea, vomiting etc. MSG definitely does improve the taste and flavour of cooking, but if it makes anyone feel sick, then it is best to avoid it. Not sure if taking MSG in the long term will cause any considerable harm; more research is needed before we can draw any conclusion from it.

Too much MSG is bad for the human body system, it can be a result of various diseases such as acute renal failure, when I was younger my mom often use MSG in her cooking but now we don't because she had this renal cyst and we refrain from salts and MSG, at first it was really hard to adjust because the foods that she cook doesn't taste, but later on we got used to it... We decreased our intake of chemically processed food or the refined goods, too much is not good, especially nowadays that almost everything that we eat is unhealthy due to the fertilizers etc. we have to be aware of what we intake, because we only have one body.

My husband has worked as a chef and has studied for a degree in diet and nutrition. He's also always had a bad reaction to MSG. MSG doesn't have proteins so it's not a true allergic reaction. Instead the reactions usually classify as an intolerance. The problem is some intolerances can be just as bad as an allergic reaction. In my husbands case it means he goes down for 3 days with a migraine.The reactions some people have to MSG can include headache, sweating,heart palpitations, facial pressure or tightness, numbness around the head, neck or other areas,chest pain, nausea, and weakness to various degrees of severity. These reactions are known as MSG symptom complex, and are the main reason why the FDA (Unites States) requires that MSG be labeled when it's included in foods.There's no definitive evidence of a link but researchers do acknowledge that a small percentage of people may have short term reactions to it.For now it's on a list of foods marked as "Generally recognized as safe" until a definite link can be proven. Also, it's the concentration of MSG that matters and some people are more sensitive to it than others. Sodium is an alkali metal and any metal in too great a quantity can be a poison. Usually if it is used in a small enough quantity MSG (as well as salt and other minerals needed for us to survive) are safe for use.The rule is...all things in moderation. Some types of metals and such have such a low threshold for that rule that they can't be used at all...and others, like MSG, depend on the individuals sensitivity and tolerance to it.

Too much of everything is bad which means that MSG is good as long as you use it in moderation. I believe too much of it is bad because my friends use it to kill dogs by pouring a small sachet of it in a hamburger before giving it to a a neighbors dog which they don't like. I have not seen a dog die because of it but they claimed that it acts like poison.

hello there :) we dont use it, well i dont use it. if i am the one cooking at home, then i dont use it, but my mom and sister would always use this seasonings that also contains MSG. my grandparents told me to never use MSG and i still live with it hehe. i just believe in what she said that it always has to be natural, salt and pepper can do all the work and that MSG is going to kill us. it is a preservative and also a chemical. why would you want to put some other chemicals in your food? that is why there is always a saying that fast foods shorten life, because they always use preservatives, seasonings etc etc. but well i still eat whatever my mom and sister cook :) hehe

From what I understand, it affects some people differently than others. Some get symptoms like headaches while others do not. I luckily don't get symptoms from it. My mother cooks with it, but i don't. It does "enhance" flavor but I simply don't believe good food needs it.

Well, if I'm not mistaken it originated from Japan with the most well know brand - Ajinomoto. It initial was made for adding on to foods given to old people to increase their appetite because old people eat less than what is required. But mind you, MSG is a killer. I've once spoken to a chef who cooked for a Spanish ambassador & they're not allowed to use MSG at all. HE tells us that if you have a wok that has a black interior coating, try MSG & you'll see that coating peel off, HA! That's how potent it is

For me it is bad thing to get of it so be not use of it it is dangerous to your bones.

First I want to thank you for your topic and the information you provided. I was not aware that MSG came from seaweed. I remember as a child my mother used to keep MSG on hand and then later it sort of faded from our cupboards. I don't keep straight MSG on hand but I do use Johnny's Seasoning Salt which does contain MSG and I have to say that I use Johnny's a lot. I love it with butter on my veggies and it has been useful in getting my daughter to eat veggies she would otherwise not eat. I understand that some folks have had adverse reactions to MSG but I have never had any problems so I have no inclination to malign it or avoid it. Frankly, I believe it is actually lower in sodium than regular salt...am I right? I'm not sure. But being a seaweed derivative, it can't be too bad. I firmly believe that seaweed is good for you and even used to take kelp tablets as a part of my dietary supplements. Personally, I love MSG and love what it does for my food. I don't use near as much salt when I use MSG, too, which is a good thing.

Yeah they call it the "chinese restaurant syndrome" Experts say the chinese foods use to much msg that they induce nausea and vomiting to the person who would eat it.. I'm half chinese so i was thought by my papa(he's a very good cook) to use msg when cooking.... he said that msg(ajinomoto the famous brand here in the philippines) brings out the the savory taste of the food especially if you cook chinese food...but he also said thet we shouls use it in moderation like a pinch here and there...I also saw in a cooking show in tv that msg brings out the umami taste and that it is not harmful because our body also produces umami... I think the key in using msg is MODERATION......

well from the looks and the reviews about it, msg is bad to your health, especially when you use it too much. I've been using msg every time I cook my meals but I've stop using it due to some effects out of it like I get dizzy and feeling weak and I experienced hair loss or flaking of scalp (I hope it's not related to msg), I get to this what you called side effects if you use it too much. It improves your cooking but you're killing yourself out of using it. Natural foods with natural tastes are still the safest and the best to eat. There's nothing bad about using msg but when it is used too much, you're actually killing yourself, literally so no hurt feelings about it.