Have you heard of MSG (monosodium glutamate)? 

Probably so.  You probably know of Chinese restaraunts that proudly proclaim that they don’t use MSG.  You may have heard that lots of people have alergic reactions to MSG.  Maybe you have also heard that MSG is an excitotoxin that kills brain cells.

Have you heard that MSG is a HUGE factor in weight gain though?

Have you heard that rats are often fattened up to obese levels by adding MSG into their diet.  This is how obese rats are created in the first place in order to do experiments on obesity.

With that in mind, don’t you think you should avoid MSG and all other glutamates if you are trying to lose weight?

There is a problem though.  Word is partially out that MSG and other glutamates are bad for you.  So, the food industry tries to hide the fact that their food products contain MSG or other glutamates.  They use all kinds of weird names.

I was fooled recently and even recommended a product here on this blog.  That product was Spike…. a seemingly all natural herbal seasoning mix.  However, the incredient list includes “hydrolyzed vegetable protein.”   That’s one of the ways glutamates are hidden in incredient lists.  Just seeing “soy protein” or “vegetatable protein” should also alert you to the probability that glutamates are included in the product… and the manufacturer wants to hide that fact from you.

What other “code words” are used to hide glutamates?  There are literally dozens.  Let me cover some here.

These ALWAYS contain MSG:

Glutamate Textured protein
Monosodium glutamate Hydrolyzed protein
Monopotassium glutamate (any protein that is hydrolyzed)
Glutamic acid Yeast extract
Calcium caseinate Yeast food
Sodium caseinate Autolyzed yeast
Gelatin Yeast nutrient

These often contain MSG:

Malt extract Flavors(s) & Flavoring(s)
Malt flavoring Natural flavor(s) & flavoring(s)
Barley malt Natural pork flavoring
Bouillon Natural beef flavoring
Stock Natural chicken flavoring
Broth Seasonings (the word “seasonings”)
Carrageenan Soy sauce
Maltodextrin Soy sauce extract
Whey protein Soy protein
Whey protein isolate Soy protein isolate
Whey protein concentrate Soy protein concentrate
Pectin anything Protein fortified
anything Enzyme modified

Do you see how insidious the code words for MSG can become?  Consider “natural beef flavoring?”   Doesn’t that sound natural?  It is probably a way of masking that MSG is being added.

In fact, even the term “natural flavors” can be used to describe MSG and other glutamates!

Here are some other names taken from the Carbohydrate Addicts book by Dr. Heller:

enzyme modified,
anything fermented,
anything protein fortified,
anything ultra pasteurized,
autolyzed yeast,
barley malt,
broth,
bouillon,
calcium caseinate,
carrageen,
flavoring,
natural flavoring,
gelatin,
hydrolyzed oat flour,
hydrhydrolyzed vegetable,
olyzed protein,
malt extract maltodextrin,natural flavors,
pectin,
plant protein extract,
potassium glutamate,
sodium caseinate,
soy protein,
soy sauce,
stock,
textured protein,
whey protein,
yeast extract,
yeast food.

If MSG and glutamates are so safe… then why do food manufacturers come up with so many different ways to hide the fact that MSG is in their ingredient list?

That’s an interesting question; isn’t it?

According to SixWise.com, you can find MSG or free glutamates in the following foods:

The Following McDonald’s Items:

Grilled Chicken Filet

Hot and Spicy Chicken Patty

Grilled Chicken Ceasar Salad

Grilled Chicken California Cobb Salad

Seasoned Beef

Sausage Scrambled Egg Mix, Sausage, and Sausage Patty

Doritos®

Pringles® (the flavored varieties)

KFC® fried chicken and most of their other products

Boar’s Head® cold cuts and most of their hotdogs

Progresso® Soups

Lipton® Noodles and Sauce

Lipton® Instant soup mix

Gravy Master®

Cup-a-soup® or Cup-o-Noodles®

Planters® salted nuts (most of them)

Accent® (this “seasoning” is nearly pure MSG)

Sausages (most supermarkets add MSG to theirs)

Processed cheese spread

Supermarket poultry or turkeys that are injected or “self-basting”

Restaurant gravy from food service cans

Flavored ramen noodles

Boullion

Instant soup mixes

Many salad dressings

Most salty, powdered dry food mixes

Flavored potato chips

Gelatin

Canned tuna

Hot dogs

Soy sauce

Worcestershire sauce

Kombu extract

Dry milk

Dough conditioners

Body builder drink powders containing protein

Medications in gelcaps (contain free glutamic acid in the gelatin)

Fresh produce that has been sprayed with Auxigro, a plant growth enhancer that contains hydrolyzed protein(s) and MSG (some of these crops may be used in baby foods)

Wow!  That’s quite a list.

Some scientists have actually blamed MSG as the primary culprit of the weight gain problem in the U.S.

I do know from personal experience that I did well on a low-carb diet that consisted of actual meat and veggies cooked at home… whereas when I switched to a low carb diet that consisted of using prepared foods (and even fast food like burgers with the buns removed), that I gained weight.  Was MSG the culprit?  I don’t know.

What do you think about removing as many glutamates from your diet as possible while you are trying to lose weight?

-James D. Brausch

P.S.  Here are some references:

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