MSG, Disease and You

OK, now I'm really pissed! I just found out that we (North-Americans) are eating 95,000 metric tons of MSG! Haven't we got the message? We've known for 30 years that there's a problem with this stuff. It's what's known as an exitotoxin. It excites our nervous system too much.

Now I know you think that you don't eat MSG because you either don't eat at Chinese restaurants or you make sure to always ask if your favorite Chinese restaurant uses MSG. Well it's the American food industry that using the 95,000 tons of this toxin--not the Chinese restaurants!

Look at your food labels and see if you see Glutamic Acid or Hydrolyzed Protein--that's MSG. Even if you don't see it, it may still be there because companies don't have to show all the ingredients.

There's evidence connecting MSG to fibromyalgia, diabetes, Alzheimers and many other diseases that have been increasing lately. Don't expect the FDA to protect you from a chemical that is selling as well as MSG. The MSG industry will make sure that it stays on the store shelves and in your favorite American restaurants.

Here's just a few studies about the effects of MSG to give you an idea; there's plenty more where these came from:

THE ROLE OF GLUTAMATE IN CHRONIC INFLAMMATORY PAIN AND PAINFUL PERIPHERAL NEUROPATHIES
Gary J. Bennett, Ph.D., Allegheny University of the Health Sciences

MANIPULATING GLUTAMATERGIC NEUROTRANSMISSION FOR THERAPEUTIC GAIN: THE EXAMPLE OF BRAIN ISCHEMIA
Dennis W. Choi, M.D., Ph.D., Washington University School of Medicine

GLUTAMATERGIC MECHANISMS IN THE CAUSE AND TREATMENT OF PARKINSON'S DISEASE
J. Timothy Greenamyre, M.D., Ph.D., Emory University

ROLE OF GLUTAMATE RECEPTOR MATURATION IN PERINATAL BRAIN INJURY
Frances E. Jensen, M.D., Children's Hospital (Boston) and Harvard Medical School

EFFECT OF GLUTAMATE BLOCKERS ON HUMAN PAIN
Mitchell B. Max, M.D., National Institute of Dental Research, National Institutes of Health

GLUTAMATE RECEPTOR PLASTICITY IN THE HIPPOCAMPUS: IMPLICATIONS FOR AGING
John H. Morrison, Ph.D., Fishberg Research Center for Neurobiology, Mount Sinai School of Medicine

GLUTAMATE NEUROTRANSMISSION IN EPILEPSY: NEW TREATMENT STRATEGIES
Michael A. Rogawski, M.D., Ph.D., National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health

SCHIZOPHRENIA: A GLUTAMATERGIC PERSPECTIVE
Stephen R. Zukin, M.D., National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health

Folks, please avoid MSG. Eat natural foods, not processed.

Take a deep breath,

Dr. Ron