MSG Symptom Complex
For years MSG Symptom Complex has been known in the US by the misnomer Chinese Restaurant Syndrome. We do not use that term anywhere on this site, except this page. The reason is quite simple. Calling this health problem Chinese Restaurant Syndrome not only does a disservice to Chinese Restaurant owners who do not add MSG, but it also dangerously hides the fact that American processed food is now so loaded with the flavor enhancer Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) as to be the largest source of MSG in the average American diet. Most Americans, when told MSG is harmful respond with "I don't eat Chinese food, so I don't need to worry".
However, Consider this:
American Diet Syndrome
FRIED CHICKEN - What could be more American than Fried Chicken?
Chick-fil-A sandwiches have MSG added and KFC chicken actually
contains so much MSG that in one country at least, KFC exceeded the legal limit for adding
MSG to chicken.
The absolute worst offender listed on our Foods to Avoid
page is KFC. The following KFC menu items all contain MSG:
Roasted Ceasar Salad (WITHOUT dressing and croutons)
Crispy Ceasar Salad (WITHOUT dressing)
Roasted BLT Salad (WITHOUT dressing)
Crispy BLT Salad (WITHOUT dressing
Hidden Valley - The Original Fat Free Ranch Dressing
KFC Creamy Parmesan Ceasar Dressing - contains parmesan
cheese - very high in MSG naturally
KFC Garlic Parmesan Croutons Pouch - contains parmesan cheese
- very high in MSG naturally
KFC Famous Bowls - Mashed Potatoes with Gravy
Gravy
KFC Famous Bowls - Rice with Gravy
Rice
Seasoned Rice
KFC Snacker - Chicken
KFC Snacker - Honey BBQ
Honey BBQ Sandwich
Double Crunch Sandwich
Crispy Twister
Oven Roasted Twister
Oven Roasted Twister (WITHOUT sauce)
Tender Roast Sandwich
Tender Roast Sandwich(WITHOUT sauce)
Original Recipe Chicken (its in the marinade - it's
literally soaked in MSG and salt)
Extra Crispy - MSG is in both the marinade AND the breading
Colonel's Crispy Strips
Popcorn Chicken
Chicken Pot Pie
Boneless HBBQ Wings
Boneless Fiery Buffalo Wings
Sweet and Spicy Boneless Wings
Hot Wings
Green Beans (yeah, this shocked us too)
Mashed Potatoes with Gravy
Potato Wedges
The Second Worst offender is Burger King. The following menu items from
Burger King have MSG added:
Breaded Chicken Patty
Spicy Chicken Patty
Breaded Tendercrisp Chicken
Chicken Tenders
BK Chicken Fries
Garden Veggie Patty - contains hydrolyzed corn, soy and wheat
- which contains free glutamate
Sausage Patty
Ranch dipping sauce
Ken's Fat Free Ranch Dressing
Based on the way MSG is used by the American fast food industry, the following tips may be helpful for those wishing to avoid MSG when they must eat at an American restaurant:
AVOID all CHICKEN items
AVOID all SAUSAGE items
AVOID all PARMESAN products
AVOID all Ranch dressings - stick to oil and vinegar Italian
AVOID Croutons
AVOID KFC altogether - we're not kidding
AVOID Dipping Sauces
AVOID Gravy
AVOID Soups - as they often come from an MSG-containing soup
base
The following very American snacks and foods also have MSG added in large
amounts:
FLAVORED SNACK CHIPS - Most flavored potato chips and snack chips
contain MSG. Doritos, a very popular food among American teens, has at least
four
sources of free glutamate - the business end of MSG.
CANNED AND INSTANT SOUP - Lipton, Knorr, Progresso and ramen noodle, and boullion
cube manufacturers put MSG in their products. Products most Americans have
been raised on, and not a few American office workers have stashed in their desk
for those overtime evenings when a home cooked meal is out of the question,
and foods poor college students practically live on.
CANNED TUNA - Most brands of canned tuna in the US have "broth" added or
hydrolyzed vegetable protein added, which can contain up to 20% free glutamate.
Manufacturers add this to hide any off flavors.
FRESH TURKEY - Many "self-basting" fresh turkeys and chickens sold in US
supermarkets have solutions injected into them - solutions that contain free glutamate.
This is only a few of the products that have MSG added to them - products most
Americans are unaware have MSG added to them.
Difference Between Chinese and American Restaurants
Chinese food, for the most part consists of fresh vegetables quickly cooked. MSG is added at the end as a condiment. It can be NOT added at the consumers request. Most Chinese Restaurant owners also know what else on the menu contains natural MSG - soy sauce for instance is naturally loaded with free glutamate. Wait staff at a Chinese restaurant will often steer the MSG sensitive patron away from dishes containing soy sauce as well as MSG. At Asian restaurants, they know what is in the food because they put it there.
Most American restaurants today purchase their foods from large US food companies that have what are called "Food Service" divisions. In American restaurants, most wait staff and often the cooks don't know what is in the food, because the soup base probably came from a can, those cute little jalapeno poppers came from a brightly colored bag in the freezer, and very little is actually "fresh". And, unfortunately, most American food scientists use the fact that soy sauce, and hydrolyzed vegetable protein naturally contains free glutamate to give their free glutamate containing products what is called "a clean label". So even cooks and wait staff don't even know what they are reading on the labels. The people who create the foods supplied to American restaurants have absolutely no compunction about hoping you don't know that MSG is in your food when you are consciously trying to avoid it.
Who Started It?
The truth is, the country where MSG was first isolated (in 1908) and used was Japan.
A Japanese company called Ajinomoto - only recently found guilty of price-fixing
MSG on the world market, is today the prime maker of MSG. Japan is also where
taurine and CoQ10 are now used to treat heart disease, and ginger and taurine-rich sushi
are eaten alongside MSG sprinkled food. These foods have protective effects against
an MSG reaction. However, even the Japanese have found recently that MSG fed to mice
can lead to blindness. The Japanese are concerned about the health affects of MSG.
Should we not be also?
Then Why Chinese Restaurant Syndrome?
The reason MSG may have been associated with Chinese food, and not Japanese food, may be
the protective effects of raw fish and fresh ginger in Japanese cuisine mentioned above,
but also that taurine is found mostly in animal products, and that Chinese food is often
low in meat. Also, taurine is destroyed by high heat, and foods are often cooked at
high temperatures in Chinese stir frying.
It is interesting to note the joke that after eating MSG in foods at a Chinese restaurant "you are hungry an hour later", may have some merit. The glutamate in MSG acts as an insulin trigger. This will definitely give you a hunger response about an hour and a half later. This fact has not been lost on American food manufacturers. They know the value of an addictive food ingredient. If they keep you hungry for more, they have succeeded.
MSG-free Tips on Eating at Asian Restaurants
We don't want to discourage anyone from the pleasures of eating Asian cuisine. MSG
is actually easier to avoid in an Asian restaurant, than in an
American one.
 | Ask for NO MSG in your food. |
| Avoid soy sauce |
| Avoid soups, and sauces |
| Instead of a sushi roll ask for sashimi - no seaweed |
| NO SEA TANGLE, NO FISH EXTRACT, NO SEAFOOD EXTRACT -
these can make an MSG sensitive person very ill. Even Whole Foods adds
Tangle extract to their sushi. |
| Make sure no MSG or seafood extracts were added to the rice if you order Chirashi |
| Use vinegar and wasabi instead of soy sauce to dip your sashimi |
| Think fresh - ask for a quick MSG-free stir fry of fresh vegetables, water chestnuts,
bamboo shoots, unmarinated meat, plain noodles, fresh ginger,
plain sesame oil. |
| Avoid dishes that look too mixed together and marinated. |
| Avoid saki - sometimes MSG is added to warmed saki to remove the bitterness. In fact, go
easy on alcohol altogether - your liver is needed in good condition if you should have an
MSG reaction |
| Avoid those little crunchy appetizers - they often contain MSG. |
| Green tea is a good idea to drink with your meal. |
| Avoid sauces and dishes like Egg Foo Yung which consist of sauces likely to contain MSG |
| At Dim Sum restaurants, avoid the sauces they deliver
on the side, and choose foods not sauced already. |
| Most Asian restaurants serve very simple desserts which often consist of fresh fruit -
usually oranges. It is a good idea to eat this, as Vitamin C helps mitigate any MSG
reaction. |
| Korean food is interesting as there are safer dishes like those served in very hot
bowls, where rice, raw vegetables, and raw egg are added to the bowl, and it cooks right
in front of you at the table. Sauce is suppied on the side, but you don't need to
use it. |
| In Korean restaurants steer clear of the Kim Chee, the red pickled cabbage - it often
contains MSG. |
| Try Thai food - there are many soy-free choices - it has fresh bright flavors - but also
ask for NO MSG. Thai sauces which are creamy are usually made from coconut milk, an
interesting flavor. |
| Vietnamese food - vietnamese food is also interesting to try, in some dishes, star anise
gives this cuisine the exotic flavor of licorice. Again, ask for NO MSG. |
| Do not drink any aspartame diet drinks with your meal. Aspartame is just as bad
for you as MSG. Aspartame and MSG have a synergistic effect. |
| So - basic rules of thumb- Always ask for NO MSG NO TANGLE, FISH, OR SEAFOOD EXTRACT Think fresh - avoid marinaded foods No dipping sauce Eat your fruit, drink your green tea, eat fresh ginger No soy sauce, limit alcohol, avoid diet drinks- especially with aspartame |
CONCLUSION
Asian cuisine should be treasured and enjoyed for the fresh vegetables, and fresh fish it contains. MSG is considered an avoidable condiment in Asian cooking, not the main attraction. In fact, our favorite restaurants to eat at are Asian because most foods are served with sauces on the side and many restaurants now offer NO MSG in anything. So, if you skip the soy sauce and talk to the staff ahead of time about your concerns, you can usually have a wonderful, fresh meal, without getting ill. In American Restaurants often MSG is added because the other ingredients may be inferior or already processed, or out of a can, or not as fresh as you'd like. Often, if the restaurant is a chain, like McDonalds, or KFC, the food is often precooked or prepared at a different location first. (Recently, McDonalds admitted that its french fries are precooked elsewhere with a "seasoning" .) Because of this MSG Symptom Complex could just as easily be called American Diet Syndrome.
Unfortunately, Americans are not looking for MSG in the most important place they should be: American food. That is why we DON'T call MSG Symptom Complex - Chinese Restaurant Syndrome.