MSG
MSG
I am a new member and joined because I wanted to share the information about my experience with MSG. I have been a lifetime sufferer of RLS and a worldwide traveler in my occupation so it has been miserable on planes for up to 18 hours at a time with no where to get relief aside from walking the aisles. My wife wanted to try to find something to give me relief before there was anyone really recognizing that RLS was a real medical problem and she began eliminating things in my diet until she stopped everything with MSG and that stopped my RLS. I won't say it will work for anyone else, but if helps someone this posting is worth it.
W. Arnold Taylor
Momo wrote:i feel dumb asking but.... what is MSG?
The only dumb question is the one you dont ask.
MSG,
http://www.healthbrands.com.au/topics/h ... is+msg.htm
Chinese food is(was) famous for MSG.
snowbound
A man generally has two reasons for doing a thing. One that sounds good, and a real one. ~ J. Pierpoint Morgan
I have had a sneaking suspicion that MSG drives my legs crazy, but I have never done the elimination diet. I first noticed it after eating some rice crackers that had MSG on them as a snack before I went to brunch. By the time I went the restaurant my legs were completely out of control.
Could have just been coincidence, but who knows.
Could have just been coincidence, but who knows.
Ill get to this later
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It's usually added to more processed foods; I rarely see it in organic, natural, foods. Because of DH's celiac, we're unable to buy many processed foods, we have gotten used to shopping the outside perimeter of the grocery store and I never see MSG in any of the foods we tend to buy.
Maybe powdered soups or boullions, some packaged meat snacks. It's a salty taste, so it's likely to be in things with that need flavor cheaply.
I imagine that how you tend to eat - either lots of prepared foods vs lots of food you prepare from individual ingredients - would influence how likely you'd be to see it in your foods.
Maybe powdered soups or boullions, some packaged meat snacks. It's a salty taste, so it's likely to be in things with that need flavor cheaply.
I imagine that how you tend to eat - either lots of prepared foods vs lots of food you prepare from individual ingredients - would influence how likely you'd be to see it in your foods.
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest
Managing Your RLS
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.
Managing Your RLS
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.
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- Moderator
- Posts: 16607
- Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 6:37 am
- Location: Los Angeles
A couple of sources, found quickly with a search (not so quick to weed through the hyped sites that make you think you can die just by looking at it! just being facetious)
http://www.msgfacts.com/lookatfacts.html
http://www.ific.org/publications/brochures/msgbroch.cfm
Neither of these are exhaustive, but they give an idea of how common naturally occurring glutamates are (all beef, chicken, fish, many veggies, etc.)
Added a few minutes later
As to whether they are metabolized exactly the same....it all depends on which site you read
I certainly wouldn't have a clue, but I do have a friend who definitely reacted to Chinese food at one restaurant and not another. The difference was added MSG. She also did not have any reaction to pizza with added Parmesan. We'll never be sure if it was the MSG or not, but something in that food caused her to have a problem and it was really the only difference we could find. Much research says that glutamates and MSG are metabolized the same way, but if so, why don't foods high in glutamates occurring naturally invoke the same response in people like my friend?
This seems like many things with RLS...if it works for you, stick with it. If it doesn't, keep trying. If it stops working in the future, then hope you find something else that does. We'll likely never know why, one way or the other.
http://www.msgfacts.com/lookatfacts.html
http://www.ific.org/publications/brochures/msgbroch.cfm
Neither of these are exhaustive, but they give an idea of how common naturally occurring glutamates are (all beef, chicken, fish, many veggies, etc.)
Added a few minutes later
As to whether they are metabolized exactly the same....it all depends on which site you read
I certainly wouldn't have a clue, but I do have a friend who definitely reacted to Chinese food at one restaurant and not another. The difference was added MSG. She also did not have any reaction to pizza with added Parmesan. We'll never be sure if it was the MSG or not, but something in that food caused her to have a problem and it was really the only difference we could find. Much research says that glutamates and MSG are metabolized the same way, but if so, why don't foods high in glutamates occurring naturally invoke the same response in people like my friend?
This seems like many things with RLS...if it works for you, stick with it. If it doesn't, keep trying. If it stops working in the future, then hope you find something else that does. We'll likely never know why, one way or the other.
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest
Managing Your RLS
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.
Managing Your RLS
Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.