MSG, healthy or not?

does MSG cause memory loss? cause i been having my 8th or 10th packet of MSG (instant noodles MSG) this week and if it cause memory loss, i would have to find other thing to eat..and is there any big problem with it?

Original Post by weightconsious:

...and is there any big problem with it?

yes, it's a chemical they make in a lab, not food.

You might want to find something less junky to eat.  MSG can cause headaches and nausea in some people.  Also, the noodles are deep-fried and contain high levels of sodium, and lots of saturated and trans fats.

Poor MSG... it gets beat up all the time...

It was believed back in the 70's and 80's that MSG caused Chinese Restaurant Syndrome which came with a host of issues that individuals usually associated with getting after eating at a chinese food restaurant.

To date (after 40 years of reasearch) there is no conclusive data regarding MSG and physical ailments...

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16999713?o rdinalpos=2&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.P ubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultRepor tPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19389112?o rdinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.P ubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultRepor tPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

MSG is a salt of the amino acid glutamate... it is often used in asian cooking to enhance flavours (especially to promote the umami of food).

Eating a lot of noodles probably isn't good for you because of the fats and but it is not going to kill you.

I'd stay away from noodle packages anyway. Make your own at home and they will be much tastier, satisfying, and certainly healthier!

MSG is a chemical, it's completely unnatural, and it's not exactly great for you either. It used to give me headaches and strange stomach feelings so I've completely cut it out, along with all other processed foods.

Original Post by weightconsious:

does MSG cause memory loss? cause i been having my 8th or 10th packet of MSG (instant noodles MSG) this week and if it cause memory loss, i would have to find other thing to eat..and is there any big problem with it?

MSG is the least of the problems with those noodles lol.

UD

o-kay...I'm NOT sure if i understand it..

rosieblue - ya,i got headaches too..not much though..hardly notice it..

umneydurak - what does that mean?

Original Post by weightconsious:

o-kay...I'm NOT sure if i understand it..

rosieblue - ya,i got headaches too..not much though..hardly notice it..

umneydurak - what does that mean?

Instant noodles (at least ones I have seen sold here), are high in saturated fats, sodium and in general have no nutritional value.

UD

MSG is a miracle product that makes everything delicious!

In my travels, I've not come across any reliable sources that MSG causes health issues (other than the standard warning that everything should be consumed in moderation).

I love my MSG. <3<3<3<3 I have noticed that Asian restaurants in my area that brag "We don't use MSG!!" on their signs tend to taste like crapola and always go out of business faster than the delightfully MSG-rich restaurants.

Speaking as someone who is very allergic to MSG, I have to avoid it at all costs. It is in everything as a flavor enhancer.  I used to eat prepackaged foods a lot, now I don't due to all the MSG.  I did not know how sick I was getting from MSG until I totally avoided it, now any small amount of it makes me severely sick.

I have some written information of the "evils" of MSG, but I guess if it doesn't make you sick, it's just a personal choice.

Japanese cooks for the past 1000 years have known that certain foods tastes better when prepared with a soup stock made from a type of seaweed — Laminaria japonica. But it was only in 1908 that Japanese scientists identified what it was in the seaweed that was enhancing flavour, creating monosodium glutamate or MSG. Like many foods today monosodium glutamate is produced through fermentation, a process used in making beer, vinegar, soy sauce and yogurt. The process begins with natural products such as molasses from sugar cane or sugar beets and food starch from tapioca or cereals, which are fermented in a controlled environment.

This is from this website http://www.foodauthority.nsw.gov.au/consumers /other-food-topics/msg/ .  Sure MSG is a chemical, but everything is made of chemicals!  Sugar is a chemical, right?  There are lots of everyday products, like bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) that are chemicals, produced in labs, and we don't flinch.

Lots of food additives are derived from natural plant sources -- this doesn't neccessarily make them healthy, but we shouldn't freak out just because the name has more than 4 syllables in it.

Edited to add - despite this, instant noodles are not healthy!  They contain so much salt. I noticed once that a normal sized noodle bowl had about the same nutritional value as a bag of chips (calories, fat, sodium).  I would never eat a bag of chips for lunch. 

o..to flybee..

the noodles i ate was not those yellow noodles..its sort of, ok..very translucent and only cause 200 cals per pack..not sure about sodium content though..but i add mushroom and egg white in the soup..and i also split the soup in half..half for now,half for the next noodles..

Ok, so if the only thing that is bothering you about the noodles you like is the MSG, I would say don't worry about it.  A lot of things can give you headaches, and you probably eat MSG all the time without even knowing about it. 

thanks flybee and to everyone else..

Original Post by weightconsious:

o..to flybee..

the noodles i ate was not those yellow noodles..its sort of, ok..very translucent and only cause 200 cals per pack..not sure about sodium content though..but i add mushroom and egg white in the soup..and i also split the soup in half..half for now,half for the next noodles..

It sounds like your talking about rice noodles. They get a C grade here on this site for an ~200 cal serving of 2 oz dry. I tend to avoid MSG because the products high in them are usually high in sodium as well.

Original Post by weightconsious:

o..to flybee..

the noodles i ate was not those yellow noodles..its sort of, ok..very translucent and only cause 200 cals per pack..not sure about sodium content though..but i add mushroom and egg white in the soup..and i also split the soup in half..half for now,half for the next noodles..

It sounds like your talking about rice noodles. They get a C grade here on this site for an ~200 cal serving of 2 oz dry. I tend to avoid MSG because the products high in them are usually high in sodium as well.

Original Post by yummy_kitty:

MSG is a miracle product that makes everything delicious!

In my travels, I've not come across any reliable sources that MSG causes health issues (other than the standard warning that everything should be consumed in moderation).

I love my MSG. <3<3<3<3 I have noticed that Asian restaurants in my area that brag "We don't use MSG!!" on their signs tend to taste like crapola and always go out of business faster than the delightfully MSG-rich restaurants.

 

Wow you are so american.

Original Post by floggingsully:

yes, it's a chemical they make in a lab, not food.

 

"chemicals they make in a lab" and food are not mutually exclusive.

"Sugar" is not a chemical.

MSG is something my husband has a severe reaction to in the form of migraines, and we have confirmed it is MSG and nothing else.  As as a result, I make my own broths, find replacemetns for broth, and eat very little that is pre-packaged.

Plus, those noodles don't really have any nutritional value whatsoever.

Original Post by fluffydragon:

"Sugar" is not a chemical.

Sugar is technically a chemical.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sucrose

MSG is monosodium glutamate. It's a salt, and it's used in nearly EVERY sort of packaged food as a preservative. Lots of people associate it with Asian food, and it seems to me the folks who say they're "allergic" to it or whatever are just channeling their prejudices about Asian food. While lots of people claim to have a sensitivity to MSG, controlled studies with placebo don't show that it causes any adverse effects. 

It's not really a great idea to live on food loaded with sodium as a rule, but I've got to say that there's nothing really worse about it than there is about the myriad other foods that are also loaded with sodium. Lots of folks don't realize that just as much salt goes into "homemade" food. Just watch your intake -- recommended is less than 2,400 mg a day -- and drink water and eat vegetables, and you should be all right. :)