Natural flavor. Chicken broth. Gelatin. What do these three common ingredients have in common? They all mean that the food you’re eating may contain monosodium glutamate otherwise known as MSG.
A common additive in baby formula, soups, broths, processed and fast food, MSG adds more than just flavor. It can add inches to your waistline. It actually causes you to eat more. In fact, when scientists needed fat rats to use for diabetes studies, they fed MSG to the rats to make them obese.

So about MSG is making people fat? It’s an excitotoxin – which means it stimulates nerves to fire more frequently. This action stimulates your pancreas to secrete more insulin, causing you to feel hungry even after eating. So, you eat more.

More importantly than its effect on your weight, MSG’s excitotoxin properties damage your entire vital nervous system. It can excite nerves to the point of death – leading to conditions such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Lou Gherig’s disease.

Children are particularly susceptible to MSG damage because of their rapidly developing nervous systems. Eating packaged foods and infant formulas laden with MSG is thought to contribute to conditions like ADHD, ADD, and other behavioral issues. Read more at http://www.feingold.org/adhd-infoall.html

With such a naughty reputation, food companies have figured out ways to hide MSG under quite a few aliases. It’s up to you to be vigilant. Read labels to find out if your food contains MSG.
Avoid the following at all costs. They ALWAYS indicate that MSG is present: Autolyzed Yeast, Calcium Caseinate, Gelatin, Glutamate, Monopotassium Glutamate, Textured Protein, Yeast Nutrient, Glutamic Acid, Monosodium Glutamate, Yeast Extract, Hydrolyzed Protein, Sodium Caseinate, Yeast Food.

The following ingredients often contain MSG or create MSG during processing: Flavors and Flavorings, Seasonings, Natural Flavors and Flavorings, Natural Pork Flavoring, Natural Chicken Flavoring Stock, Anything Enzyme Modified, Protease, Soy sauce, Broth, Carrageenan, Corn Starch, Anything Ultra-Pasteurized, Soy Protein Isolate, Malt Extract, Maltodextrin, Citric Acid, Soy Protein, Malt Flavoring, Pectin, Powdered Milk, Natural Beef Flavoring, Bouillon, Barley Malt, Enzymes, Anything Protein Fortified.

If you’re not prepared to scrap processed food or infant formula entirely and prepare your own, hopefully from fresh, local products, contact the manufacturers to find out if MSG is present in your favorite products. To learn more about the questions you’ll need to ask in order to get a straight answer visit http://www.truthinlabeling.org/nomsg.html. And if you still have questions, be sure to ask Dr. Katy about alternatives to MSG.