On my new Health journey I have been reading up on how the things we eat directly and indirectly affect my health. Recently I have been investigating MSG - Mono Sodium Glutamate which you find in most foods but primarily in processed foods and fast food. It is added to just about everything that comes in a packet and has a range of names, things like Hydrolysed Vegetable protein and "natural flavours".
A quick search of the internet and you find an abundance of conflicting information. I partcularly note that the MSG organisation rates first on a number of searches. This site has not a single bad word to say about MSG it stresses how safe and wonderful it is. This particular point is great
"MSG does not cause asthma attacks
JECFA also stated that: "Monosodium glutamate has not been shown to provoke bronchoconstriction (narrowing of the bronchial tubes) in asthmatics."
However on another site called MSG Truth which is not sponsored by an interested (read that as $$$) party state an excerpt from the American FDA about the same symptom.
"A 1995 report from the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB), an independent body of scientists identifies two groups of people who may develop a condition the report refers to as 'MSG symptom complex.' One group is those who may be intolerant to MSG when eaten in a large quantity. The second is a group of people with severe, poorly controlled asthma. These people, in addition to being prone to MSG symptom complex, may suffer temporary worsening of asthmatic symptoms after consuming MSG. The MSG dosage that produced reactions in these people ranged from 0.5 grams to 2.5 grams... "The agency believes that the report provides the basis to require glutamate labeling. FDA will propose that foods containing significant amounts of free glutamate (not bound in protein along with other amino acids) declare glutamate on the label. This would allow consumers to distinguish between foods with insignificant free glutamate levels and those that might contribute to a reaction..."
And the best bit of this page is this line
"Unfortunately, for those with asthma, migraine, and atrial fibrillation, MSG as free glutamate remains a hidden food ingredient. This FDA labeling proposal was killed by a powerful food lobby."
Call me a cynic but I haven often thought that you can scientifically prove anything with enough money.
So I'm sticking to my no processed food and whole foods diet, it's working wonders, I feel great.
Next stop some web sites on the sweetners Aspartame and Phenylalanine bound to be some great conflicting views in that one.