Skepticism around MSG has been in the public consciousness for the past 50 years. But the tide has recently turned and now several prominent chefs have publicly discussed using MSG.
Likewise, at least half a dozen major media outlets have published content reexamining thoughts on MSG.
Why the shift? I think it reflects a deeper change in our cultural attitudes and values as well as a collective openness to new foods, particularly those from other cultures. Here’s a deeper look into the first and second of MSG’s food flip-flops.
The history of MSG
In the early 1900s, a Japanese chemistry professor, Professor Kikunae Ikeda, wondered what made kelp broth taste so good. He was able to identify and isolate the source of the yummy flavor in 1908. It was glutamate, an amino acid found in food and made by our bodies. When glutamate snuggles into the taste receptors on our tongue, we sense a savory flavor. He named the flavor “umami,” which translates to “pleasant savory taste.”
He extracted the glutamate from the seaweed and added sodium to crystalize it. The resulting powder was pure umami flavor, and he began to sell it as a seasoning. Years later, he later discovered it was easier to produce glutamate through the fermentation of plants, and began making it that way. MSG became a popular seasoning in Japan, and the use of it spread across Asia.
MSG was first imported into the United States in the 1920s. Hawaii was one of the first markets for MSG outside of Asia. This may have been because Hawaii had many people of Japanese descent who immigrated in the late 1800s to work as laborers on the islands’ sugar plantations. Although, print ads promoted the use of MSG to housewives of other ethnic backgrounds as well.
In the late 1930s, MSG began to be manufactured in the US, making it more available to those on the mainland. MSG began to be used extensively in the US in the late 1940s as an ingredient in canned, frozen, and other processed foods. In 1948 and 1955, the US military held scientific meetings on MSG to see if it could be used to improve the flavor of combat rations. In the 1960s and 70s, Americans were introduced to “ethnic foods” like unauthentic Asian dishes and French cream sauces, which may have contained MSG. Americanized versions of them like California rolls started to appear.
A shift in thinking
In 1968, the New England Journal of Medicine published an opinion piece – not research – on MSG that shifted our culture’s perception of it. In the letter, a physician described experiencing radiating pain in his arms, weakness, and heart palpitations after eating at Chinese restaurants. He speculated that cooking wine, MSG, or excessive salt might be to blame. This phenomenon was dubbed “Chinese Restaurant Syndrome” and, due to extensive media coverage, the public pinned it squarely on MSG. Chinese restaurants bore the brunt of the backlash against MSG although the seasoning was being widely used. This has led some to point to racist undertones in the public opinion about MSG.
What science has found about MSG
Claims about adverse effects from MSG have been investigated, and well-conducted studies indicate that a sensitivity would be rare, if even possible. Upon their review of all of the studies on MSG, the Food Standards Australia New Zealand (their equivalent of the FDA) concluded, “…when individuals with a suspected sensitivity to MSG are tested in double-blind challenges, the majority do not react to MSG under the conditions of the study (or react equally to placebo). Many individuals may therefore, incorrectly be ascribing various symptoms to MSG when in fact, some other food component may be the cause. This highlights the need for individuals with suspected MSG sensitivity to undergo appropriate clinical testing.”
Likewise, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) website says, “Over the years, FDA has received reports of symptoms such as headache and nausea after eating foods containing MSG. However, we were never able to confirm that the MSG caused the reported effects.”
Every food culture around the world has at least a handful of umami-rich ingredients central to their cuisine. Many cultures also use MSG in small amounts as a seasoning. Additionally, glutamate is naturally produced by the body. The body cannot tell whether the glutamate in a dish came from a food component or seasoning, nor can it tell the difference between glutamate made by the body or derived from outside the body. This is another reason that it is unlikely that MSG would cause an adverse reaction.
MSG’s Changing Reputation
Global flavors in the American diet have continued to expand since the 1970s. And there’s been a shift from fusion or Americanized versions of dishes to embracing more authentic fare. The American palate has increasingly gotten used to strong flavors like fish sauce or miso that were previously unfamiliar. On top of that, prominent chefs have opened up about using MSG in their dishes, normalizing it, and warming others to the idea of it. Simultaneously, more people are trying it at home as they experiment with food and cooking, and embracing cuisines from other food cultures.
These things, in concert, have facilitated the shift in consumers’ perceptions of MSG. Some skepticism around MSG remains, but the tide is turning on MSG’s reputation as people question whether previous generations erroneously discounted its value given its long history of use, the scientific research showing its safety, and the xenophobic undertones of its misalignment.
