I made a large purchase from the Spice House last week to stock up on bulk spices. Typically, when I do this, I'll peruse some of their blend offerings and order up a few. This time was no different.

I noticed one called Ozark Fried Chicken Seasoning. Reading the description it sounded really good so I added it.

Yesterday, I got out the dutch oven, melted up some lard, and fried up a mess of chicken using this spice mix. After the first drumstick I thought, "Damn! This stuff is great!", and proceeded to eat too much fried chicken along with some macaroni salad.

About a half hour later, as I sat back rubbing my belly, I started getting flushed, developed a screaming headache, and just generally felt goofy(-er than normal). The only times I'd ever felt these symptoms before, like this, was after eating MSG, but I hadn't had any...or so I thought.

I went back to the Ozark Fried Chicken Seasoning package and looked at the ingredients and sure enough, the #2 ingredient is MSG.

I'm kicking myself for not having checked first, but I never in a million years would have expected the Spice House, an outfit with access to any and all spices from around the world, would resort to using MSG in one of their blends. To say that I'm quite disappointed in them would be an understatement. I sent an email to them this morning expressing exactly that sentiment and made a few suggestions.

Yeah, it's my fault for not checking the ingredients first, but I'd sure like them, and others, to make it really obvious when their products contain that devil powder.

Bummer that you had that reaction. Neither my wife or I have a negative reaction to MSG so we never look for it. We eat Chinese a lot, so we are exposed to it from time to time.

Hopefully you have a friend or relative you can give it to so it doesn't go to waste. It does look good so I can see why you ordered it.

Jim

I'm surprised in many ways that a spice company includes MSG in their products.

That company would be a no-go for me.

It's mot an ingredient I've seen them use before, but to be fair it's clearly listed right in the item description.

Hand-mixed from salt, monosodium glutamate, Tellicherry black pepper, paprika, garlic, thyme, sage, mustard, dill, ginger, powdered bay leaves, mace. Sodium content: 683.27 mg per teaspoon; 17.66%

They've always been a great company to do business with. I don't doubt they'll work to satisfy you if you contact them.

1. There are over 40 different ingredients that manufacturers use that all have MSG.

2. It is not just a flavor enhancing additive—it is a natural by-product of processing proteins. These MSG by-products are found in many of your favorite organic health foods.

What is MSG?

MSG, or monosodium glutamate, got its reputation as a flavor enhancer extracted from seaweeds in China. In the early 1900′s, the process was perfected in Japan and became commercially available.

In the 1960′s, the phrase “Chinese Restaurant Syndrome” was coined by the New England Journal of Medicine. Twenty minutes after eating Chinese food, some sensitive people would experience tingling, numbness, brain fog, chest pressure and pain.

In the 1970′s, researchers found that pharmaceutical MSG would kill brain cells in a laboratory. Shortly thereafter, they realized that commercially available MSG would have the same effect.

MSG is simply the addition of one (mono) sodium molecule to the amino acid glutamic acid, which is found naturally in many foods. When any amino acid builds up in the body, most people have the ability to break it down in the liver without alarm. However, some amino acids, such as glutamic acid (glutamate) and aspartic acid (aspartame or “nutra sweet”), may be more difficult to convert and flush out of the body.

Both glutamate and aspartame cause the nerves to fire, and when they are in excess, the nerves can fire excessively and cause a form of neuro-toxicity. Even bland foods will taste fantastic when high levels of glutamic acid are used as flavor enhancers.
Not Just a Flavor Enhancer

By now most of us have heard of MSG’s role as a flavor enhancer. But how does this work? Concentrated free glutamic acid or MSG act as nerve stimulants and will change how the taste buds taste food. A yucky or even a really bad tasting food will taste fantastic when high levels of glutamic acid are introduced as a “flavor enhancer.”

The insidious nature of MSG is that it may occur whenever a protein is broken down in the body.

When folks are sensitive to MSG, they are reacting to free glutamic acid in the blood. Remember, MSG is made when the free glutamic acid binds with a sodium molecule. Whenever protein is broken down in the body, glutamic acid is freed from a protein (in which it naturally occurs), and you have the potential of free glutamic acid building up in the blood and a possible toxic MSG reaction.
MSG Reactions: Whole vs. Processed Foods

While this happens naturally when ingesting protein-rich whole foods like grains, meats, dairy, and even vegetables, the glutamic acid is released in concert with many other amino acids, rather than in high concentrations on its own. As a result, unadulterated whole-food-based proteins do not cause a toxic MSG reaction in the body (7).

On the other hand, many processed foods—including organic health foods—contain processed proteins that harbor free glutamic acids.
The FDA does not require manufacturers to label these foods MSG unless the “added ingredient” is 99% pure MSG.

If MSG is produced as a result of protein hydrolysis or a byproduct of protein processing, the FDA does not require MSG to appear on the label. Moreover, a product labeled “No MSG” may still have MSG or free glutamic acid as a result of protein processing, as long as pure MSG was not added.

The truth is that protein-hydrolysis-based glutamates or MSG are found in just about every highly processed food. Even vegetable proteins are hydrolyzed to make veggies burgers and many other frozen or pre-prepared “vegan” and “health foods.”

Hidden names for MSG and free glutamic acid:
Names of ingredients that always contain processed free glutamic acid (7):

> Glutamic Acid (E 620)2
> Glutamate (E 620)
> Monosodium Glutamate (E 621)
> Monopotassium Glutamate (E 622)
> Calcium Glutamate (E 623)
> Monoammonium Glutamate (E 624)
> Magnesium Glutamate (E 625)
> Natrium Glutamate
> Yeast Extract
> Anything “hydrolyzed”
> Any “hydrolyzed protein”
> Calcium Caseinate
> Sodium Caseinate
> Yeast Food
> Yeast Nutrient
> Autolyzed Yeast
> Gelatin
> Textured Protein
> Soy Protein
> Soy Protein Concentrate
> Soy Protein Isolate
> Whey Protein
> Whey Protein Concentrate
> Whey Protein Isolate
> Anything “…protein”
> Vetsin
> Ajinomoto

Names of ingredients that often contain or produce processed free glutamic acid (7):

> Carrageenan (E 407)
> Bouillon and broth
> Stock
> Any “flavors” or “flavoring”
> Maltodextrin
> Citric acid, Citrate (E 330)
> Anything “ultra-pasteurized”
> Barley malt
> Pectin (E 440)
> Protease
> Anything “enzyme modified”
> Anything containing “enzymes”
> Malt extract
> Soy sauce
> Soy sauce extract
> Anything “protein fortified”
> Anything “fermented”
> Seasonings

Glutamic acid found in unadulterated “whole food” protein does not cause adverse reactions. To cause adverse reactions, the glutamic acid must have been processed/manufactured or come from protein that has been fermented (1).
The following are ingredients suspected of containing or creating sufficient processed free glutamic acid to serve as MSG-reaction triggers in highly sensitive people (7):

> Corn starch
> Corn syrup
> Modified food starch
> Lipolyzed butter fat
> Dextrose
> Rice syrup
> Brown rice syrup
> Milk powder
> Reduced fat milk (skim; 1%; 2%)
> Most things labeled “Low Fat” or “No Fat”
> Anything labeled “Enriched”
> Anything labeled “Vitamin Enriched”

Unfortunately, many protein powders contain processed free glutamic acid.

(I don't feel so good...)...

Rinehart-that's interesting info and I want to share it. What is the source, please?

quote:

Originally posted by zoom6zoom:
It's mot an ingredient I've seen them use before, but to be fair it's clearly listed right in the item description.

Hand-mixed from salt, monosodium glutamate, Tellicherry black pepper, paprika, garlic, thyme, sage, mustard, dill, ginger, powdered bay leaves, mace. Sodium content: 683.27 mg per teaspoon; 17.66%

They've always been a great company to do business with. I don't doubt they'll work to satisfy you if you contact them.

Yep, as I said, this one's on me as it's clearly marked.

I just don't like being surprised (and disappointed) like that. It's not worth sending for a refund or anything as it was only $6. I'll just chalk it up to a lesson learned.

We always had a shaker of Ajinomoto on the table when I was growing up. It was just another spice to us.

anyone remember lifesavers candy ?

I started buying the "sugar free" variety .
the small bag, 25 or thirty per bag.

Lo and behold
For no good reason I was reading the label on the back and it turns out that,
"overuse may cause a laxative effect"

well, thats good to know

I love MSG. I don't have a reaction to it, and its one of those rare ingredients along side chili and cheese that can make any food in the world even better.

Sorry, I actually am not sure where this info came from. My wife is Asian and we all have lively discussions about which places use significant amounts of MSG. I had this around as reference and it's pretty accurate as far as I can tell.

(I can always pick up on MSG in food. It gives me dry mouth, slight headache, sweats, etc).

R

quote:

Originally posted by arfmel:
Rinehart-that's interesting info and I want to share it. What is the source, please?

I will try, not always successfully, to avoid blends. I'll look on the bottle of a blend and see what's in it then try to replicate it with the major incredients which are usually just some combination of normal spices. Most times it works out okay, sometimes it won't. I can control Salt and such doing this and, of course avoid some of the additives.

We need some "drug test kits" like to po-leece use for crack and meth and whatnots.

Put a little in the plastic pouch, break the ampules and shake, then see if it turns a color.

Blue for MSG, orange for gluten, red for peanut, purple for whatever, and so forth.

Bendable should be able to make this happen and he'll be rich.

Maybe send me a $5 Starbucks card or something when he's a billionaire.

quote:

Originally posted by arfmel:
Rinehart-that's interesting info and I want to share it. What is the source, please?

I was hoping for this also. :/

quote:

Originally posted by dsiets:

quote:

Originally posted by arfmel:
Rinehart-that's interesting info and I want to share it. What is the source, please?

I was hoping for this also. :/

Did a little searching and it appears most of the info is from John Douillard's "Lifespa"-

https://lifespa.com/sneaky-nam...g-check-your-labels/

I saw a large spice bottle of MSG at the grocery store the other day. It was the first time I had ever seen that.