Are there risks in using MSG?<\/p>\n
By Tri Hafiningsih and Bruce Emond<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): It takes only a matter of minutes for "Shelly"
\nto know that something she has eaten contains monosodium
\nglutamate (MSG).<\/p>\n
The 40-something Australian expatriate will suddenly develop a
\nsplitting headache, which often lasts for hours, and feel her
\nheart racing.<\/p>\n
She displays the classic symptoms of Chinese restaurant
\nsyndrome, so named because of the habit of Chinese restaurants in
\nthe United States and Europe to dose their food with MSG.<\/p>\n
When she buys fried rice or noodles, she is careful to inform
\nstreet vendors to not use MSG, but she believes they sometimes
\nput it in anyway because they believe it is an essential flavor
\nenhancer.<\/p>\n
While controversy over whether monosodium glutamate is halal
\n(in compliance with Islamic dietary laws) may be over with the
\nban on Ajinomoto for using pork products, the debate on MSG's
\neffects on health will remain.<\/p>\n
Like the vendors, many Indonesians believe that using MSG
\nimproves the taste of food. They have been won over by major
\nadvertising campaigns using celebrity spokespeople.<\/p>\n
The ads invariably end showing the satisfied smiles of diners
\nafter adding a "pinch" of Ajinomoto or other brands to their
\nfood.<\/p>\n
But how much is safe?<\/p>\n
An authority on food technology, FG Winarno, said that MSG was
\nsafe for human consumption, but pathologist Iwan T Budiarso
\ndisagreed.<\/p>\n
Iwan said MSG would damage human health because there was no
\nstrict control over its use, and people of all ages, including
\ninfants, in the country consumed food containing the additive.<\/p>\n
Glutamate acid, the main substance of MSG, is akin to the
\nnatural proteins in beans, meat, milk and fish. The isolated
\nglutamate acid in the seasoning powder is believed to be the key
\nto what many cooks and diners contend is the enhanced taste of
\nfood containing MSG.<\/p>\n
Research indicates the consumption of more than 12 grams of
\nglutamate acid per day could cause stomach disturbances, insomnia
\nand nausea. MSG can also cause allergies such as skin itching,
\nnausea and fever for those who are sensitive to MSG extracts from
\nwheat or molasses. The symptoms appear as quickly as five minutes
\nafter eating the food or up to 35 minutes later.<\/p>\n
The most severely affected, like Shelly, suffer from Chinese
\nrestaurant syndrome.<\/p>\n
Iwan believed consumption of MSG could also lead to
\nhypertension, asthma, diabetes and even paralysis.<\/p>\n
But the proponents claim that MSG is a safe food additive.
\nThey argue the damage to the liver, kidneys, pancreas and brain
\nfound in the research only occurred in laboratory animals, which
\nwere given very high doses of MSG.<\/p>\n
Ye there is no denying that the MSG and food industries grew
\nbigger and stronger in the last decade as they sold consumers on
\nthe need to use their products.<\/p>\n
So who would have believed then that the biggest MSG company
\nin the world, which invested US$6.5 million in its 10 factories
\nin the country and produced over 220,000 tons of MSG powder for
\nworldwide consumption, might be doing something wrong?<\/p>\n
Safe<\/p>\n
At the moment it's a case of make your own standard on what is
\nsafe -- and everybody's doing it.<\/p>\n
"We use MSG in our dishes because it makes the food tastier,"
\nsaid "Ahmad", a supervisor at a Chinese restaurant in a major
\nhotel in Central Jakarta. "Nearly all Chinese and Japanese
\nrestaurants do.<\/p>\n
"Sometimes we have customers who asks us not to use it, and
\nthen we don't."<\/p>\n
Most street vendors also consider packets of the flavor
\nenhancers as an essential part of their cooking.<\/p>\n
"Without micin (MSG), I won't have a tasty broth for my bakso
\n(meatballs) and noodles," said Ahmad, a bakso hawker in Cipinang,
\nEast Jakarta.<\/p>\n
He uses at least half a teaspoon in each bowl of his meatball
\nsoup.<\/p>\n
Chicken porridge vendor Masdi and housewife Ibu Jayadi also
\nlike to use the food additive. Masdi, who has been selling
\nporridge for 10 years, adds one teaspoonful of MSG into the
\nporridge he cooks, plus another half a teaspoon each into every
\n30 to 40 bowls of porridge he sells each day.<\/p>\n
Jayadi said she used the tip of a teaspoon of the powder in
\nevery dish she cooks for her family of eight.<\/p>\n
And the controversy about Ajinomoto has not been a wakeup call
\nto them to think about other possible health effects from MSG.<\/p>\n
All three said they would simply switch to other brands now
\nthat Ajinomoto is off the market.<\/p>\n
"Now that I know it's not halal, I won't use Ajinomoto," said
\nMasdi.<\/p>\n
Ahmad, Masdi and Jayadi have their own arguments to keep using
\nMSG. But Andanti, a general practitioner, has decided to clear
\nMSG from her kitchen.<\/p>\n
"You don't know the long-term results of such a habit of
\nconsuming food with the taste enhancer within the next 10 or 20
\nyears," she said.<\/p>\n
She believed consumption of the food seasoning would be
\nhazardous to health over time.<\/p>\n
"No matter how little you consume every day, its negative
\neffects may appear in years to come," she said.<\/p>\n
Andanti uses as many natural taste enhancers as possible in
\nher daily cooking. She makes things easy by preparing the beef or
\nchicken broth on a weekly basis and storing it in the
\nrefrigerator.<\/p>\n
She has made her kitchen a MSG-free zone, although she
\nacknowledged many processed foods available in stores and
\nsidewalk kiosks contain the additive.<\/p>\n
"There are the frozen foods, children's crackers and many
\nother kinds of food using MSG. I cannot control what my children
\nhave as their snacks outside my home, but I have to start
\nsomewhere," she said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/are-there-risks-in-using-msg-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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