A few months ago, an extremely interesting segment on MSG and food preservatives and flavourings aired in a current affairs show here that sparked wide interest in the subject and ignited the interest of yours truly, who then became even more vigilant in checking the ingredients labels of food in the supermart and grocery stalls before I purchase them.
It's not enough to try and avoid MSG and the side effects it causes these days - the devil now comes in a myriad of guises! But a rose by any other name, remains a rose, and along the same lines, a poison, by any other name, does not a non-poison make! Not that MSG in itself is a 'poison' but figuratively speaking.
Here's an awesome website you ought to visit and peruse because there's a whole lotta information in it that's very useful with regards to this subject matter :
http://www.fedupwithfoodadditives.info/factsheets/FactMSG.htmHere are a few excerpts from the site :
"In 1994, Australian food regulators approved
a new flavour enhancer called Ribonucleotides (flavour enhancer 635), a combination of disodium guanylate 627 and disodium inosinate 631. Researchers had recently discovered that
combining some of these additives with MSG could enhancer the effects of MSG up to 10-15 times. Furthermore, if natural forms of MSG such as yeast extract or hydrolysed vegetable protein were used with ribonucleotides, the label could claim NO ADDED MSG. As products containing the new MSG started to appear on supermarket shelves, the Food Intolerance Network started to receive reports of reactions. As well as the usual set of food intolerance reactions,
flavour enhancer 635 seems to be particularly associated with dramatic itchy skin rashes and sometimes swelling of the lips and tongue in children and adults who had never suffered from skin complaints. Because the reactions are often delayed by hours or even days, most consumers never realize the cause of their rash and some can suffer for years.Sooo...
"How to avoid MSG and other flavour enhancers
"Don’t expect to find ‘MSG’ on the label
"MSG or glutamates can appear in foods under a number of descriptions, see box.
MSG is considered to be natural, so the ‘3 No’s’ or any other advertising about ‘all natural, preservative-free, no artificial colours or flavours’.Flavour enhancers can appear in foods under the following description
Glutamic acid (620)
Monosodium glutamate (621)
Monopotassium glutamate (622)
Calcium glutamate (623)
Monammonium glutamate (624)
Magnesium glutamate (625)
Hydrolysed vegetable protein (HVP), other forms of hydrolysed or autolysed protein
Hydrolysed plant protein (HPP)
Natural flavourings
Flavours
Kombu extract
Yeast extract
Accent
Ajinomoto
Zest
Gourmet powder
Chinese seasoning
Ve-tsin powder
The new MSG: Flavour enhancers 627, 631, 635
Disodium guanylate 627
Disodium inosinate 631
Disodium 5Â’ribonucleotides 635, also called ribonucleotides or nucleotides
Nucleotides are possibly added to unbaked products such as chicken nuggets in ‘bakers yeast’
Soooo... do yourselves and your loved ones a huge favour by cultivating a habit of READING YOUR FOOD LABELS, if you don't already do so!
I'm quite vigilant about this and have put down many a can / pack of food right back on the shelves because it didn't pass my strict 'quality control'!
I love my food, but I'm not about to endorse having all these chemicals floating about in me, knowing goodness knows what inside!
My next thread shall be on Artificial Sweeteners - How the "Light"er versions of your food might not necessarily be your best choice!
(Provided, I have time to get online, because I STILL have not bought a (*&(*#@$!@ PC and can't come online easily!
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