Page 75 - Spring2008

MSG Update

NEW PROPAGANDA ABOUT MSG
By Jack L. Samuels

It has been our observation that whenever industry reviews letters submitted to the FDA.
the safety of monosodium glutamate and the Is the glutamate industry concerned about the
many other food ingredients that include the reac- answers to my questions? Certainly the FDA is
tive component of monosodium glutamate (col- concerned since I have not yet received an answer
lectively referred to as “MSG”) is under pressure, to my letter.
the glutamate industry aggressively distributes
press releases attesting to MSG’s safety. The press APOLOGISTS FOR MSG
releases are typically slanted to give only one side At the end of 2007, the glutamate industry
of the MSG story—the industry side that praises appeared to be on one of their campaigns to
MSG’s alleged benefits. On the other hand, press convince the public that MSG is safe. Articles

releases exposing the dangers of MSG from such we know of included a small piece in Gourmet
groups as the Truth in Labeling Campaign never magazine and a January, 2008, article from a
see the light of day. In swallowing the industry dietitian at Mayo Clinic.
press releases, the media ignore the fact that for The most deceptive and misleading, how-
some people the ingestion of MSG is like taking ever, was the December 8-9, 2007 Weekend
poison. Journal section of The Wall Street Journal, which
Why then is the glutamate industry cur- contained a large article entitled “A New Taste
rently publishing articles contending that MSG Sensation” regarding MSG. The article, by staff
is safe? We don’t know for certain, but we sus- writer Katy McLaughlin, covered two columns of
pect that their product is under scrutiny now that page W1 and the entire page W8. It also appeared
pharmaceutical companies are actively introduc- on the Internet. If one were to read the Wall Street
ing effective drugs for various diseases that, as I Journal article without knowledge of the toxicity
previously reported to you, are nothing more than of MSG, one would think that MSG is the best
glutamate blockers. How can glutamate blockers thing that has come to the food industry since the
be fully effective drugs when the FDA is continu- marketing of sliced bread. Admittedly, one would
ally approving and supporting MSG-containing not object to such an article if the reporting was
ingredients in the food arena of the FDA? balanced, and the dangers of MSG were also
presented. However, that was not the case. It is
TOUGH QUESTIONS obvious that Ms. McLaughlin based her article on
I asked some tough questions regarding material from a glutamate organization or from
MSG in a recent letter to the commissioner of the a contact from one or more of these organiza-
FDA, such as how can pharmaceutical companies tions.
spend more than 100 million dollars and take 10 McLaughlin’s article was oriented toward a The media
years or more to gain approval of a pharmaceu- discussion of the claimed fifth taste, umami. For ignore the

tical that contains minute amounts of its active years we knew of four basic tastes: sweet, salty, fact that for
chemical ingredient, when Senomyx, Inc. is able sour, and bitter. However, the glutamate industry
to market a laboratory-produced chemical that is has been actively promoting the existence of a some people
used in minute amounts without FDA approval, fi fth taste, umami. the ingestion
merely because it will be used in food? Dr. Kikunae Ikeda first used the word of MSG is like
My letter to the commissioner of the FDA “umami,” which means savory or deliciousness in
is public information. We know that the glutamate Japanese, to describe his discovery of monosodi- taking poison.
SPRING 2008 Wise Traditions 75