Phillip pushes away the empty carton of Chinese food with a groan. “What’s wrong, honey?” his wife Tammy asks.
“I think I’ve overdone the MSG again,” Phillip says, grimacing. “I feel nauseous and I’ve got a horrible migraine.”
MSG is a dirty acronym. It’s been blamed for almost every ailment including asthma, obesity and even pimples.
Phillip was eating prawn and chicken chow mein; both contain ingredients blamed for dodgy tummies. The dish was also washed down with a few beers while watching the tube. All that sounds like the recipe for a headache.

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is about a century old. One evening in Tokyo, Professor Ikeda, a biochemistry specialist, comes home to his wife who has prepared his favourite dish. Ravenous, he slurps down the broth. He so enjoys the soup that he asks his wife what her secret ingredient is. She shows him strips of dried seaweed called kombu and explains that she soaks the kelp in hot water, in order to obtain dashi—the stock base of Japanese broths.

A light bulb appears over the professor’s head. It was early in the 20th century, and four primary taste receptors had been identified—sweet, sour, bitter and salty. Professor Ikeda realises one is missing. It is the taste in his wife’s broth, and also in foods like cheese, tomatoes and meat. It is a ‘savoury deliciousness’, and he calls this fifth taste umami.
Fast-forward through many laborious attempts at concocting a formula, and Professor Ikeda becomes a wealthy man with his ‘magic’ flavour enhancer he calls Ajinomoto. The properties of this substance are the same as those of an amino acid produced by the human body. It is also found in foods such as Parmesan, meat and asparagus. It’s even found in a human mother’s breast milk. Broken down and isolated, the protein becomes glutamate.

The healthy way to enjoy the flavour of MSG is by eating it in its natural form—in meats, fruits and vegetables that are naturally high in MSG.
You can also make up your own glutamate naturally by boiling seaweed, sprinkling some bonito flakes (dried fish flakes) over your food, or using fermented soy sauce.
If bought commercially, you’ll find MSG in the form of a white powder, sometimes called ‘gourmet powder’, which has been stabilised with salt.

Some nutritionists have demonised MSG in the media. Their advice may be based more on opinion and educated guesswork rather than hard fact. Certainly there have been reported cases of MSG sensitivities, and many health websites will warn you against it. It’s your choice what you believe. The simple truth is that MSG is a natural product and there has been no conclusive scientific evidence that it is bad for you.

Consider, too, that due to the food additive scares of the eighties, food companies renamed MSG instead of actually removing it from products. Look out for, among many others, terms such as ‘natural flavouring’ or yeast extract. Yes that’s right, yeast extract, the main ingredient in everyone’s favourite spread, Marmite.
The controversy surrounding MSG isn’t only about whether or not it’s bad for our health. It’s about what we’re fed by the media and if we swallow it or not.

By Any Other Name
If you believe you are sensitive to MSG, look out for these names on the list of product ingredients: Monopotassium glutamate, glutavene, glutacyl, glutamic acid, autolyzed yeast extract, calcium caseinate, sodium caseinate, E621 (E620-E625 are all glutamates), Ajinomoto, Ac’cent and gourmet powder.