FYI - The Surprising Ingredient Causing Weight Gain

July 31, 2009

The Surprising

Ingredient Causing Weight Gain

By Margaret Furtado,

M.S., R.D. - Posted Mon, Jul 27, 2009, 12:23 am PDT

Say it isn't so! A

recent study out of the University of Carolina

at Chapel Hill cites what animal studies have hinted

at for years: MSG (aka monosodium glutamate) could be a factor in weight gain.

The study focused on

750 Chinese men and women, ages 40-59, living in 3 rural villages in north and

south China.

Most of the study subjects prepared their meals at home without commercially

processed foods and roughly 82 percent used MSG. Those participants who used

the highest amounts of MSG had nearly 3 times the incidence of overweight as

those who did not use MSG, even when physical activity, total caloric intake, and

other possible explanations for body mass differences were accounted for. The

positive correlation between MSG and higher weight confirmed what animal

studies have been suggesting for years.

Maybe you're

wondering what monosodium glutamate is exactly, and what you can do to avoid it

in your diet. MSG is a flavor enhancer in foods—some believe it may even

provide a fifth basic taste sensation (in addition to sweet, sour, salt, and

bitter), what the Japanese call " umami " (roughly translated as

" tastiness " ). MSG is considered an " excitotoxin, " since its

action in the body is to excite neurotransmitters (important brain chemicals),

causing nerve cells to discharge and also exciting nerves related to taste.

Perhaps this ability to excite these nerves is a factor in an association

between increased MSG usage and weight gain.

How prevalent is MSG

in the U.S.

diet? Americans consumed about 1 million pounds of MSG in 1950, and today that

number has increased by a factor of 300!

The Food and Drug

Administration (FDA) describes MSG as " naturally occurring, " and has

it on the GRAS ( " generally regarded as safe " ) list. However, not only

could MSG be causing us to gain weight, but some studies also reveal that as

many as 25 to 30 percent of Americans have adverse reactions to it (e.g.,

palpitations and migraine headaches), and as many as 30 percent are extra

sensitive to it if they consume more than 5 grams at one sitting.

OK, if you're an MSG

user who could stand to lose a little weight (or know someone who is), what should

you do?

Unfortunately,

eliminating MSG from the diet is much easier said than done, since—given

the fact that food processors often change recipes—there's no list of

" safe " foods that never contain MSG. A good start is to avoid

anything with MSG anywhere in the ingredient list, but there will still be many

foods that have MSG hidden inside other ingredients. Likewise, even products

labeled " no MSG added " can still contain these hidden sources.

Best bets for

avoiding MSG

Buy organic produce

whenever possible.

Make things from

scratch, avoiding processed ingredients as much as possible.

Limit making stews or

soups in a crock pot, since slow-cooking tends to cause small amounts of

glutamic acid to be released from the protein sources (e.g., meat, chicken) in

the recipe.

. This article from Johns

Hopkins University

is provided as a service by . All materials are produced independently by Johns Hopkins University,

which is solely responsible for its content.

----------------

Illegal aliens have always been a problem in the United States.

Ask any Indian.

-- Robert Orben

July 31, 2009

I think that MSG is bad for you anyway, isn't it? I know it's not good for people with heart trouble, high blood pressure, etc.

Jo

-

Judy Goldsmith

Friday, July 31, 2009 6:15 PM

FYI - The Surprising Ingredient Causing Weight Gain

The Surprising Ingredient Causing Weight Gain

By Margaret Furtado, M.S., R.D. - Posted Mon, Jul 27, 2009, 12:23 am PDT

Say it isn't so! A recent study out of the University of Carolina at Chapel Hill cites what animal studies have hinted at for years: MSG (aka monosodium glutamate) could be a factor in weight gain.

The study focused on 750 Chinese men and women, ages 40-59, living in 3 rural villages in north and south China. Most of the study subjects prepared their meals at home without commercially processed foods and roughly 82 percent used MSG. Those participants who used the highest amounts of MSG had nearly 3 times the incidence of overweight as those who did not use MSG, even when physical activity, total caloric intake, and other possible explanations for body mass differences were accounted for. The positive correlation between MSG and higher weight confirmed what animal studies have been suggesting for years.

Maybe you're wondering what monosodium glutamate is exactly, and what you can do to avoid it in your diet. MSG is a flavor enhancer in foods—some believe it may even provide a fifth basic taste sensation (in addition to sweet, sour, salt, and bitter), what the Japanese call "umami" (roughly translated as "tastiness"). MSG is considered an "excitotoxin," since its action in the body is to excite neurotransmitters (important brain chemicals), causing nerve cells to discharge and also exciting nerves related to taste. Perhaps this ability to excite these nerves is a factor in an association between increased MSG usage and weight gain.

How prevalent is MSG in the U.S. diet? Americans consumed about 1 million pounds of MSG in 1950, and today that number has increased by a factor of 300!

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) describes MSG as "naturally occurring," and has it on the GRAS ("generally regarded as safe") list. However, not only could MSG be causing us to gain weight, but some studies also reveal that as many as 25 to 30 percent of Americans have adverse reactions to it (e.g., palpitations and migraine headaches), and as many as 30 percent are extra sensitive to it if they consume more than 5 grams at one sitting.

OK, if you're an MSG user who could stand to lose a little weight (or know someone who is), what should you do?

Unfortunately, eliminating MSG from the diet is much easier said than done, since—given the fact that food processors often change recipes—there's no list of "safe" foods that never contain MSG. A good start is to avoid anything with MSG anywhere in the ingredient list, but there will still be many foods that have MSG hidden inside other ingredients. Likewise, even products labeled "no MSG added" can still contain these hidden sources.

Best bets for avoiding MSG

Buy organic produce whenever possible.

Make things from scratch, avoiding processed ingredients as much as possible.

Limit making stews or soups in a crock pot, since slow-cooking tends to cause small amounts of glutamic acid to be released from the protein sources (e.g., meat, chicken) in the recipe.

© 2007 Johns Hopkins University. . This article from Johns Hopkins University is provided as a service by . All materials are produced independently by Johns Hopkins University, which is solely responsible for its content.

----------------

Illegal aliens have always been a problem in the United States. Ask any Indian.

-- Robert Orben