Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is the sodium salt of the non-essential amino acid, glutamic acid. Glutamic acid is a very common amino acid and exists freely in nature both as the free acid or as the sodium salt. In most cases, glutamate is bound to other amino acids which make up proteins.
Being an abundant acid, it makes up anywhere from 10-20% of animal protein and some plants are made up of more than 40% glutamate. Sodium glutamate is also a very common substance in all types of foods. High concentrations of this chemical are found in fresh vegetables like tomatoes, peas, mushrooms and many types of cheese.
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is a very common food flavoring agent widely used all over the world in all types of cooking and frequently used in processed food. In most cases the MSG is added as the purified salt but in some cases, it is combined with a mixture of proteins (hydrolyzed vegetable protein). Since the awareness of MSG, it has been discovered that many other food flavoring agents such as sodium caseinate and flavoring agents contain significant amounts of MSG.
The controversy about MSG in foods has been going on for at least the past 4 decades. In the 60s -80s, there were many reports of individuals developing a range of adverse reactions when they had eaten foods containing MSG. Many athletes will rather take illegal anabolic steroids and growth hormone but shun away from MSG. MSG inspires a revulsion as if it is worse than herpes. Four decades after the first reported case of MSG, the controversy still rages on. IS MSG THAT BAD?
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