Posts Tagged ‘obesity’

If you’re health consious and always try to eat well I’m sure you are well aware of what is known as MSG, and you’re most likely very aware of food labels now boasting comments such as “MSG Free!” or “No MSG Added”. But are you certain this is true? I had thought I was doing pretty well with limiting the amount of MSG in my family’s nutrition, but after meeting someone over the holidays that is greatly allergic to MSG and her briefly enlightening me in the actual extent of its usage I dug deeper into the topic.

It is very difficult to really know whether MSG (monosodium glutamate) is in your food, because it goes by so many aliases [i.e. 'Accent' - 'Aginomoto' - 'Natural Meet Tenderizer']. To avoid ingesting this toxic additive, you’re best off choosing fresh, unprocessed foods. But becoming familiar with the hidden names of MSG can also help you determine what foods to eat.

So before we go any further, just what is MSG?

Monosodium glutamate, also known as MSG, Ve-tsin or E621 is used as a flavour enhancing agent, in many kinds of food products to enhance their original flavour. Chemically speaking, MSG is approximately 78 percent free glutamic acid, 21 percent sodium, and up to 1 percent contaminants.

The origin of MSG comes from a very nutritious sea vegetable called “kombu”— Laminaria japonica. In 1908 a Japanese scientists, Dr. Kikunae Ikeda, identified what it was in the seaweed that was enhancing flavour, creating monosodium glutamate or MSG. Like many foods today monosodium glutamate is produced through fermentation, a process used in making beer, vinegar, soy sauce and yogurt. The process begins with natural products such as molasses from sugar cane or sugar beets and food starch from tapioca or cereals, which are fermented in a controlled environment.

Though it is a “natrual product” MSG is not a naturally occurring “substance”. It is man-made from glutamic acid, which is an amino acid found in all complete proteins.  These amino acids occur naturally in many plant and animal tissues. Artificially created MSG involves processes, such as fermentation, that break down and change natural bound glutamate (usually from corn, grain starches, molasses) into various free forms of glutamate. One form, d-glutamic acid is never found in nature. Free glutamates can enter the blood stream 8-10 times faster than bound or natural glutamate which is found in tomatoes, milk, and mushrooms. Commercial processes used today to manufacture MSG weren’t in use until the 1960s. There’s nothing “natural” about the MSG in wide use today.

Why is it considered bad?

The isolated “flavor enhancer” chemical MSG has no nutritional value and is not a preservative. It does nothing to food, but it does affect the person using it, some much more that others. It’s actually the glutamic acid in the MSG that is of concern for most people and in 1959 the FDA classified MSG as “generally recognized as safe.”

MSG is a neurotoxin, which is a poisonous protein complex that acts on the brain and the nervous system.  Neurons are over stimulated to the point of exhaustion and cell death. MSG goes to the brain through membranes in the mouth and throat, and it also enters the blood stream as MSG laden foods are digested. It tricks the brain into thinking that it’s getting something tasty. Very little use of MSG takes to create widely diverse and dramatic effects on the human body. Since separate parts of the brain govern different body functions. The body function that is affected will depend on the part of the brain that is attacked by the neurotoxin. If a person has a genetic weakness in a specific part of the brain or had an injury or a stroke, the damaged area will be the part that is easily affected and vulnerable to toxins.

[From Mercola.com]

Examples of physical adverse effects that have also been linked to regular consumption of MSG include:

• Obesity

• Eye damage

• Headaches

• Fatigue and disorientation

• Depression

The FDA admits that “short-term reactions” known as MSG Symptom Complex can occur in certain groups of people, namely those who have eaten “large doses” of MSG or those who have asthma.

According to the FDA, MSG Symptom Complex can involve symptoms such as:

• Numbness

• Burning sensation

• Tingling

• Facial pressure or tightness

• Chest pain or difficulty breathing

• Headache

• Nausea

• Rapid heartbeat

• Drowsiness

• Weakness

How do I know if what I’m about to eat/buy has MSG?

Food manufactures have become privy to the fact that a great number of the population does not want MSG in their foods and have gotten quite slick in labeling their products. While some have actually reduced or removed MSG from their products altogether, most have simply changed the wording on the ingredients, have used alternate names for MSG or have begun using ingredients which contain MSG. MSG is listed on the label only if it is a separate ingredient in the food.  In most cases, MSG is hidden by being included as part of other ingredients on the label. It can make up as much as 60% of these other ngredients.

[From Mercola.com]

Here is a list of ingredients thatALWAYS contain MSG:

These ingredients OFTEN contain MSG or create MSG during processing:

Below is an excerpt from “Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills” by Russell Blaylock, M.D. which lists possible sources of MSG:

Additives that always contain MSG:

- Monosodium Glutamate

- Potassium Glutamate

- Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein (HVP)*

- Hydrolyzed Protein*

- Hydrolyzed Plant Protein*

- Hydrolyzed [Anything else]*

- Plant Protein Extract

- Sodium Caseinate

- Calcium Caseinate

- Yeast Extract

- Textured Protein

- Autolyzed Yeast

- Hydrolyzed Oat Flour

Additives that frequently contain MSG:

- Malt extract

- Malt Flavoring

- Bouillon

- Broth

- Stock

- Flavoring

- Natural Flavoring

- Natural Beef or Chicken Flavoring

- Seasoning

- Spices

[From MSGtruth.org]

Free glutamate content of foods (mg per 100g)

roquefort cheese 1280
parmesan cheese 1200
soy sauce 1090
walnuts 658
fresh tomato juice 260
grape juice 258
peas 200
mushrooms 180
broccoli 176
tomatoes 140
mushrooms 140
oysters 137
corn 130
potatoes 102
chicken 44
mackerel 36
beef 33
eggs 23
human milk 22

So if you do eat processed foods, please remember to be on the lookout for these many hidden names for MSG.

Go into your kitchen, check the cupboards and the fridge. MSG is likely in everything: Campbell’s soups, Hostess Doritos, Lays flavoured potato chips, Top Ramen, Betty Crocker Hamburger Helper, Heinz canned gravy, Swanson frozen prepared meals, Kraft salad dressings, especially the ‘healthy low fat’ ones. [Luckily none of these foods are ever in my kitchen-but they are in the average household in America.]

Again, be careful for even items that are not listed with MSG as an ingredient on the product label may have ”Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein”, which is just another name for Monosodium Glutamate.

If you really want a shocker, when you go out to eat ask for an ingredient list from a manager and check for the above. Nearly any food chain you can think of [fast food and sit down alike] uses MSG in massive amounts.

Is this all hub-bub?

With all the uproar against MSG from organic eaters and those not wanting additives in their food, there are others that argue this is all hog-wash, exaggeration, false information.

While I agree there are very strong arguments that MSG is fine [one of my faves and you'll understand why at the end: http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2005/jul/10/foodanddrink.features3]

I myself will continue to avoid MSG as much as possible due to I wish to eat pure food without tricking my brain into thinking it tastes fantastic and that I need to eat more of it. My wish is that you educate yourself and make your own decision and if you feel the concern over MSG is “hog-wash” I ask that you at least try to minimize your intake.

Best wishes!

Additional Reading & Sources:

Dr. Russell Blaylock:  “Excitotoxins: The Taste that Kills.”

John Erb: “The Slow Poisoning Of America”

National Library of Medicine, at http://www.pubmed.com. Type in the words “MSG Obese”

http://www.truthinlabeling.org/Dang.html

http://www.holisticmed.com/msg/msg-mark.txt

http://journalofhealthyliving.com/why-is-msg-bad-for-you.htm

http://www.yelp.com/topic/washington-food-detectives-makes-an-interesting-statement-about-msg

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2005/jul/10/foodanddrink.features3

http://www.msgtruth.org

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/04/21/MSG-Is-This-Silent-Killer-Lurking-in-Your-Kitchen-Cabinets.aspx

How I removed the poisons from my home.

A quick review…removing toxins from your life as much as possible will make a huge impact on your health.  Common everyday toxins can cause such problems as:

• Neurological disorders (Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, depression, attention deficit disorder, schizophrenia, etc.)
• Cancer
• Nutritional deficiencies
• Hormonal imbalances
• Enzyme dysfunction
• Altered metabolism
• Reproductive disorders
• Fatigue
• Headaches
• Obesity
• Muscle and vision problems
• Immune system depression
• Allergies/Asthma
• Endocrine disorders
• Chronic viral infections
• Less ability to tolerate/handle stress

We are bombarded everyday with numerous toxins that our body’s normal healing functions can’t keep up with.  When my husband and I decided to make the change and remove as many toxins from our lifestyle as possible, I admit I was overwhelmed with the information.  I didn’t know where to start first.  It was my Chiropractor and his wellness team that assisted my husband and me in getting started.

Step 1.  We started with our foods.

Although we ate pretty “healthy”; no fast foods, no sodas, no fried foods, used olive oil, tons of veggies…we weren’t eating and thinking green/organic.  We immediately changed our produce to organic.  Found it to be much cheaper to buy directly from the farmers at the farmer’s market than by shopping at the grocers or by ordering in bulk online.  Luckily Savannah has two farmer’s markets; one on Saturdays and one on Wednesdays.  It makes it very convenient to always have “farm fresh” produce.

We then started researching grass-fed beef and free range poultry.  It was very difficult to find these items locally and when we did there was very little variety and supply, and it was very expensive.  My husband followed a suggestion from our Chiropractor and looked into ordering our meats online.  There we found excellent suppliers of what we needed and then some!  We always try to find suppliers that are as close to GA as possible and we have found that by buying in bulk (thankfully we have a storage freezer) we save so much more money than if we were buying similar items from the few grocers in town.

You can research places to purchase organic foods from the “List” here.

Now this does not mean that we never eat out anymore.  Luckily we do have a handful of organic restaurants in our town and when possible we go to them, but they are pricey.  We do however like to go out with friends and we do not force our views on them-we’ll eat nearly anywhere in town, but we are very selective about what we eat.  Once you get the hang of eating organic, farm fresh foods, you learn what you can get by on in while eating out with friends.

Step 2.  We cleaned up our water.

We had been drinking bottled water in the home for ages using tap water only for cooking.  We found out about cleaning your drinking water with reverse osmosis or using carbon filters and even by distilling it (very acidic-eventually removes the minerals from your body, you need to neutralize it after distilling it or take a mineral supplement) you can have “healthy water” at home.

Once we figured out what to do with our drinking water, we turned to our bathroom shower head.  We ordered a new shower head with replaceable carbon filters for our main bathroom. Why?  Remember that our skin is our body’s largest organ.  Anything that touches the skin will be absorbed.  Think about how much time we spend in the shower or bath in our lifetime.  That is a ton of chemicals being absorbed.   I am amazed with the difference in the quality of our shower water.  I’ve always had difficulty with dry skin, my husband as well in the cooler months, and our skin has become baby soft.  No more flaking, no more super sensitivity.  The change was really made clear to us recently.  We broke the shower head in the bath we use most often.  We quickly ordered a new one but it was on back order and we went nearly three weeks on a standard shower head.  Within a few days (less than a week) we both had dry skin, constant itchiness and I had developed dandruff for the first time.  We now have a filtered system in both bathrooms.

You can research filters from the “Lists” here.

Step 3.  We removed all toxic health and beauty and cleaning products from the home.

This took a little longer than the previous steps.  Cosmetics and bath and body products are expensive in general, there was no way I could empty out the house and replace everything in one day.

To begin my research on cleaning out my cosmetics and our bath and body items I turned to the Environmental Workers Group, also known as the EWG.  They are an amazing resource and even have a cosmetic database called SkinDeep where you can get a toxin rating on most cosmetic and bath and body products.

With their help I started researching companies that I could buy from worry free and found a few I am very happy with so far.  Two in particular are:
Beautorium.comand   Lavera

You can find them and more on the “Lists” here.

There are also numerous sites that give you information on cleaning products.  You can start your search from the “Lists” here.

I stared finding products that were recommended by Debra Lynn Dadd in the book “Home Safe Home”.  You can find her website in the “Lists” or here.

I am now experimenting with natural cleaning homemade recipes from various online sources.  I haven’t posted that information yet, I’m still testing them out.  Once I have a stronger opinion on the results I’ll be happy to share the information with you.

Step 4.  Clean out the body by pulling out the toxins.

We started a detoxification system (recommended by our doctor) called NeuroCleanse .  It was simple and easy to use and we felt wonderful on it.  For approximately two months we followed the plan (not everyone needs to use it for so long) and we sincerely recommend it to anyone interested.  This was not one of those celebrity fad detox systems.  This was a true cellular detoxification product.  We ate healthy, didn’t starve ourselves, nor did we pump our bodies full of other chemicals to ‘detox’.

Step 5.  Removed our amalgams.

Actually my husband had his removed a little over a year earlier.  Neither of us are on any type of medication so luckily that was not an issue for us, but some time ago, a relative gave us research material on the dangers of mercury used in dentistry and we dove into the subject more.  I, at the time, did not have insurance that would cover such treatments as amalgam removal, so as soon as we could (by the end of month two and right in the middle of our detoxification program) I had everything worked out and I had my amalgams properly removed.  So, again…people ask why.  Metal fillings are a major source of mercury. Be sure to have the removal done by a qualified biological dentist. Although nearly any dentist is technically qualified to replace your amalgam fillings, very few have any clue on how to do it properly so your risk of mercury exposure is minimized. Do it right the first time and save yourself the expense and grief. If you don’t personally know a qualified biological dentist, many people find one by contacting several of the health food stores in their area and asking the employees who they know. This is typically an excellent resource as they are usually networked quite well in the local health community.  You can also use the Dental Wellness Institute website to try and find an appropriate dentist in your area.

So that’s how we did it in my home.  I hope this information was insightful and useful.  You can also go to Dr. Mercola’s site for more information on this topic and much more.