Recovering from MSG poisoning
Posted by jeanne on September 9, 2007
Someone hit my blog while searching for ideas about detoxing from MSG. Wow, I thought, what a great idea. A cure. So let’s see what I can come up with.
Personally, I go to bed, drink lots of water, swallow an aspirin, and wait until it wears off. Like a hangover. But there’s got to be something that counteracts it, right?
Well, first off, MSG is a poison, not an allergen, so strictly speaking, nobody is allergic to it, they’re reacting to it as a toxin. It gets in the bloodstream and causes many toxic reactions that your body only slowly heals from. Its effects are cumulative, like mercury poisoning. Its effects may also be triggered; that is, once you get a reaction to MSG in your food, you will forever after experience a reaction to it.
The only sure way I know to avoid MSG is to cook all your own food, and cook it as little as possible to prevent forming free glutamates. The reason to cook your own food is that MSG is hidden in practically all processed and packaged foods. But this method isn’t foolproof, because there are now crop sprays consisting of MSG, and some of the ingredients in vaccines and flu shots contain MSG. Et ecetera.
As an antidote, some physicians recommend cafergot, which is a blend of ergotamine and caffeine, and acts to prevent headaches by vasoconstriction. Its side effects include coldness of the extremities and angina pectoris. Ergotamine – from the nasty fngus that grows on rye, one of the precursors of LSD. Perhaps they should rethink. It’s kind of like curing morning sickness with thalidomide.
Some sources, including Dr. Weil, advises that people who have severe reactions to MSG are deficient in vitamin B6, so you can try supplements. But that’s not the same as detoxifying.
There is a homeopathic MSG detox on the market, but I can’t vouch for its efficacy, because I have never tried it.
There are glutamate-blocking drugs out there, but since glutamate is an enzyme that acts in the brain, to block glutamate is to stop your ability to think. And other things. So that’s not good.
You might try taking Benadryl and Ibuprofin, and going to bed. That’s similar to what I do, but I wash it out with plenty of water and skip the Benadryl. Whatever works for you. But, keep in mind, nothing will work, because MSG is a poison, with no antidote, and you’re wearing your body out fighting it.
Hope this helps.
Let Them Eat (genetically engineered) Cake 
Kate O. said
If you are having a really bad reaction, it actually helps to eat more clean food. Somehow it works… lessens the concentration of the activators in your bloodstream. I don’t really know, but it does help. I would not be able to sleep while having a bad reaction to MSG, as I get these numb-tingly feelings all over my skin starting at the back of my neck to arms. It’s truly horrible.
Shirley said
When I get MSG poisoning, I have a migraine, nausea and vomiting for a day and a half to two days. I can’t keep anything down, including water, so I can’t take my migraine pills. Imitrex does come in an inhaler form, and I will get a refill in that form to have on hand. This last time I got MSG poisoning, I attended a potluck at some friends’ house where there were a lot of Japanese and Okinawan people in attendance. “Sushi casserole”, dumplings…oh, and some corned beef and cabbage, of which I had a couple of bites. It was a recipe for disaster. I had my MSG sensors off because the food was homemade, but unfortunately it’s a cultural thing among older generation Asians (Hawaiians use “Accent”) to use it. The corned beef, of course, has it in a different form. Time before this, I got sick from the dried breadcrumbs that were added to meatballs at a good restaurant in town (they were shocked to see that they had MSG in their ingredients when I called to ask) and a previous source of illness was a hulihuli chicken stand here in Hawai’i. Live and learn! I think you have less danger if you’re a vegetarian…
Sharon said
Look up excitations by Dr Blaylock. Also truthinlabeling.org. my husband is extreemely allergic to msg and its hidden forms. He drinks 1/4 tsp creme of tartar in water. He also takes taurine, magnesium and tumeric. Also he drinks water with fresh lemon in it.
Roza said
I Hate Chinese food for ever now. I am sooo sick. :( It seems to be for 2 day’s now.Thxs for the B6 tip; probably that. I will drink lots of green tea maybe that will help.
Micki said
Don’t be too quick to completley blame the chinese food you ate, my friend. MSG poisoning is simular to mercury poisoning as it is cumulative. So many food items (especially low cost food) contain MSG. Be mad at the FDA for allowing this to go on instaed of the local Hunan House. I was poisoned at a diner (I suspected the gravey on my potatos) and now have to decode every label in the cupboard. Last night MSG got me in a knock off shake and bake. It makes my face go numb with a burning sensation. It makes me feel like a zombie and then I pass out and sleep deeper than any sleep aid ever….it truly is terrible. Should not be legal.
Valarie said
I am having the worst MSG poisoning ever. I thought I was having a heart attack. My husband even took me to the ER. No, heart attack but MSG over load. It seems I’ve been ingesting MSG with out even knowing it. I’m really careful not to eat anything with MSG on label but I get tricked by the hidden names. My heart rate went up really high, I could feel every blood vessel filling and my heart beating. I have a pain under my left breast and in the left central part of my back-by shoulder blade. Also, I feel nervous. My skin even feels odd.. Has any one else felt these symptoms.
Sue-Ellen Long said
I have had this three times now and it is absolutely horrific. I feel like i have been shot in the back. Then it takes about 2 days to leave my system. It sort of works it way from my back through to my chest and I feel like I am about to have a heart attack. Is there anything I can do to avoid this MSG problem. Sue-Ellen
jeanne said
yes, but you’ll have to make all your own food, and not stew or marinate anything. even then, you have to avoid aged cheese, overripe tomatoes, and many mushrooms. good luck, and keep researching – it’s in your own best interest to know what can hurt you.
Angela said
I went to eat with a friend at an Indian Restaurant today after several days of eating healthy and just after lunch, got a horrible horrible headach. I remembered that I usually have a reaction to chinese food which contains loads of msg. I now know that I am msg poisoned. My head is hurting badly and I feel really bad. Going to bed to sleep and hoping I will wake up better. I will forever be more careful.
Emily said
I too suffer adverse reactions to MSG of varying degrees and lengths. The worst includes headaches, tingling and nerve pains, tight jaw, muscle aches and fatigue. It can last for 3 or 4 days. I’ve also found B vits to be helpful, and genrally eating really well. If i have a reaction from undetected MSG i have stir fried veg (no sauce obviously) and brown rice (has heaps of B6), and the next day, i do start to feel better. Goji juice is good too…but pricey.
Edie said
I have had 2 episodes of face and arm and leg numbness over the last year. I have had all kinds of tests and scans. I was told by a friend about Msg and aspartame poisoning. I do not use aspartame but, I am sure that I ingest alot of MSG without knowing it. Has anyone else had this sporatic numbness without any answers? Please let me know.
LAStevens said
mind numbing headache and diorientation. Will load up on Vit B. Thanks for the suggestions.
Julia said
I too have a reaction to MSG. I feel like I am having a heart attack and feel my heart beating in my neck and can’t stand my cloths to touch my stomach or chest because it blows me up to the point I can hardly breath and if I couldn’t burp I think I would die. After that I am very fatigue. The pain last for about 35-45 minutes.
c & g said
We had MSG poisoning last year after buying a supermarket ready made lasagne as a quick meal for dinner. It must have been overloaded with MSG because for the next 3 days we both felt like we were going to die. Our hears were pounding, we had migraines, vomiting, – you name it we seemed to have it. Now we avoid eating out as much as possible – occasionally when we are out to dinner for someones birthday or they have cooked a meal for us we sometimes find ourselves with the same symptoms setting in. One of the first things we seem to notice is “desert-mouth” and the dreams / nightmares you have at night seem to be a lot stranger & much more vivid. Hot sweats are another thing we experience. I can’t believe the food authorities allow POISON in our foods! They need to step in because it is out of control! And if they don’t I can’t see why they can’t have legal action taken against them for the sicknesses we have to experience for them knowing about the poision in our food, knowning the different names used for the evil substance (when the average person would not) and allowing it to pass out of the supermarkets adn restaurants and into children’s mouths every day. It is criminal, it truly is.
jeanne said
it is criminal, you’re right. but i don’t think we’ll ever get them to outlaw it. it’s ‘natural’ for one thing. they’ve gone so far in trying to make it acceptable as food that they’ve invented a whole nother taste for it – umami. also, you can produce free glutamate by many ways all by yourself. stew something, marinate or ferment some source of protein, and there you have it. i end up poisoning myself whenever i smoke a pork loin, which i love. but the connective tissue is broken down by the process of smoking, and so i’m ingesting mass quantities of home-made msg. when it’s that easy to make, you can bet that the food industry is going to take exception to the idea of banning a little added taste. and as long as it’s ‘generally recognized as safe’, you’ll never get it banned. besides, it’s dead cheap, and makes even off food taste yummy. so i’m afraid it’s going to be up to us as individuals for a long time. but, hey, revolution now, that’s what i always say.
Janine said
Actually in most of Europe it is banned….thats how I picked up on it as I was very very healthy when I holidayed there, came home and I was sick again…now with 635, its even worse as they don’t have to label it as MSG here in Australia and yet converts in the body to MSG at 15 times the amount,
izzi said
last sat i had the left overs of a chinese take away ,…. with in an hr i had drank about 3 ltrs of water i went really hot then really cold i felt like i was having a panic attack i threw up and my tongue had swelled up and my throat had too …..i ended up in the hospital and was given an antihistamine and streoids for a week , this is the first day my tongue hasnt felt dry and swollen the only thing i can put this down to is msg , as a couple of days later i had a packet of crisps for my lunch and felt very strange i took an antihistamine and i felt better is this msg posioning ……….??
jeanne said
sounds like it to me. start researching all the ways the food industry hides msg by looking here. good luck avoiding it. the more i know, the less i feel able to avoid exposure.
Maureen said
I am suffering with MSG poisoning this week. I had a Chinese meal and the next day my eye swelled so much it looked almost shut, I had a sore rash covering one side of my face which then spread to my neck. I’m having palpitations and severe fatigue and I’m been off work all week and lost my pay! I have had this with MSG years ago but was eventually able to tolerate it again.
I went to a new restaurant and this is what happened. I won’t be eating Chinese food again.
After a week of antihistamines and cream from the doctor, my eye swelling has gone down and it’s just the itchy, sore rash I still have. I just wish it would go away. I need to get back to work and it’s making me paranoid about what I eat.
Laurina said
PSORIASIS OF THE FEET & MSG
Wow, I had known for years that MSG was a trigger for my migraines, and generally avoided it like the plague. I hadn’t even thought of the constant fatigue, throat irritations, chest tightness, and shortness of breath I often had to fight.
The last 3 years I have struggled with psoriasis on the bottom of my feet. They had been somewhat troublesome for many years after becoming extremely swollen from overuse, heat, and an adverse reaction to Sulfa antibiotics. Always somewhat dry and callused, they now became hot, swollen, and cracked to the point I felt like I was walking on razor blades. Many months of rest, bathing, creaming and gradually healing, I could still only go out after taping up my feet to avoid cracking. Later, I began to notice sudden relapses, most notably one within half an hour of eating from a Chinese buffet with a group from our church. It was unmistakable. I phoned the restaurant, questioned them about MSF content, and was basically told that ALL the sauce-containing food had MSG in it, and that the Soya sauce also has small quantites in it. Theoretically, I could have had MSG=free food only if I had asked for it and not added soy sauce. Well, I rested up with lots of fresh food, water, and Benadryl antihistamines for the next few days, and got over it. But now I became aware of relapses after eating even a few chip or crackers, and have become an avid reader of labels. IT IS TOTALLY DISGUSTING – THE ONLY FOOD THAT IS HALF WAY SAFE IS THE STUFF I COOK MYSELF WITH INGREDIENTS FROM THE GARDEN MARKET. Now that I am getting older, have bad feet and would love the odd meal prepared for me, in the end I have to do it all myself.
In addition, I strongly suspect pork as another trigger.
I also have had to eliminate all rubber and latex from my environment, especially my feet, and that is no easy “feat” so to speak. Apparently some of us are allergic to the rubber, latex, products which are used to form it, and the glues used to stick our wonderful running shoes together. It is almost impossible to buy purely leather shoes anymore.
It seems one can have “rubber/fruit” allergies, which includes papaya and soya as well as many tropical fruit. It speaks well to me for the concept of the 50-mile diet. I always thought that the ordinary tree fruits like apples, pears, plums, cherries, etc. agreed with me far better than the faraway-imported products like bananas, papayas, oranges, pineapples, kiwis, etc. IT’S BACK TO BASICS FOR THIS GIRL, AND here’s hoping to keep walking for many years to come.
jeanne said
laurina, most pork is soaked in a solution of “broth” containing msg. most ordinary tree fruits are covered with pesticides and some with hormones, and there is a version of msg on the market for pesticide control in crops. they might all have something to do with it. and of course, there are all the ways they hide msg, including forcing its development within the food itself (enzymes as an ingredient). organic cook it yourself is the only way to go, and even then, if you cook it too long, the protein breaks down and you get – msg. good luck, jeanne.
OhZone said
I became sensitive to MSG about 9 years ago after having 2 of those frozen Oriental Vegetable dinners with Soy Sauce. First time ever that had such a headache.
Subsequently there was a cascade of sensitivities to anything that even naturally had Glutamate in it, like Walnuts. Then came the sensitivity to anything that even naturally contained Histamine, like Sweet Potatoes. Then came the reaction to most Vitamins & Minerals, even the Chloride in ordinary Table Salt.
The the end of year 2008 the FDA OKed the use of Citric Acid on all meats, even organic. Not bad enough that I also became sensitive to ordinary Citric Acid in Lemons, but the stuff they use on the meat contains MSG!
It does seem that if I leave it in the freezer for 6 to 9 months most of it dissipates.
And if that is not bad enough, it seems that ALL growers of Everything are using fertilizers containing a lot of Glutamate.
CLEAN food is becoming extremely hard to find. I have some wheat berries that I bought a few years ago, and I use them to make bread. I have been able to eat Blueberries (so far so good there) Grapes were OK 3 years ago, now they are not. Potatoes which have been my staple for my whole life are now a gamble….I have given away many pounds of them in the last few years…Yes, even Organic. The ones I have now are kind of Iffy.
For greens I eat the Dandelions and Purslane from my back yard…not much of them there tho. I can grow green beans & okra & did get 4 zucchini from my plants last Spring. Big deal, huh?
For me nothing mitigates the effects.
Not Benedryl, not Iboprofin…Nothing.
I expect I will die in the next few years either from Heart Failure, Stroke or Malnutrition, or any combination.
I have read that there are 25 million people who have some degree of Glutamate sensitivity.
Why will The Powers That Be not hear us?
mae said
Drinking pleanty of water, while moving slowly, walking or gentle yoga to get the fluids to pass through your body to help filter the chemicals out more quickly. Replenish nutrients with vitamins and anything that you can eat especially fruits raw vegetables and juices. Recently someone recommended 1 tablespoon each of raw local honey and raw apple cider vinegar that contains the mother starter in a glass of water, which seems to help. Raising your own food or harvesting from nature seems to be the only option for a reasonably healthy life.
Micki said
Drinking plenty of water and green tea with cayene pepper tablets (to purify the blood) and sleep will help with MSG contact. People need to rise up and get this additive out of our food! It is cumulative like mercury poisoning. Don’t be so quick to blame chinese places when it’s on most common labels in your cupboard and often disguised as “natural flavors”, “spices” and “yeast”. This is a very huge problem that our FDA allows to go on!! I read every label and work in an industry where I’m familiar with the crazy terms they use for ingredience and I was still poisoned last night after a family meal. Something HAS to be DONE about MSG. Grrr!
dennis said
when i get a reaction to ” the poison” headaches, sinusitus, bronchitis and eventually pneumonia await me. i have had four bouts of this combination in the last three years. i wish i could beat the crap out of the the government officials who get their pockets lined by by the manufactures of ” the poison “. every person suffering from this insidious poisoning knows what i’m talking about. i wonder who’s minding the store?
Mjgurl said
I have horrible MSG reactions. Violent Migrane – Total Body Aches – Blood Pressure Rises – Eyes Swell Up and Ache – So Fatigued that I cannot think clear – Sometimes Dizziness – Blood Glucose Levels Rise High – Aggitation and Short Temper – Throat Swells.
In my opinion if MSG has to be put in a food product as a flavor enhancer and to get the consumer addicted to that product – Its pure Junk that even the Company producing the food product knows and has to rely on dangerous chemicals to Sell Sell Sell !!
I am so frusterated with years of sickness before becoming informed about MSG
Its not like the food industry does not know – They do and our Government allows this.
From now on each time I accidently ingest this Poision – especially if MSG is used under a different name I am writing the Company informing them of the poision and that thier product is so bad they must chemicalize it to sell. And I will NEVER purchase any of thier products and inform my friends and family of the dangers.
jeanne said
you go girl. it’s only by public outrage that anything will change.
Martin said
For many years, I was sure that Chinese food was no good for me. But it was not until recently that I started to get sicker and sicker after consuming foods that had MSG in them. I get the reported headaches and dizziness that will take about 3 days to clear up. I now avoid products with MSG in them, but it seems that sometimes I consume other foods that claim not to have MSG that also seem to be causing the same symptoms. I think other MSG substitutes are causing me to have similar symptoms.
I am almost willing to do anything that will get rid of the symptoms after I get exposed to MSG because it is so difficult to eat anything outside the home without the fear that it has MSG.
jeanne said
the almost anything you’re going to have to do is to cook everything yourself, from scratch, and avoid marinating or fermenting or stewing of any kind, as it breaks down the proteins into amino acids, one of which is glutamate. it seems that msg sensitivity is something that once triggered gets worse. and yes, the manufactures hide msg. it’s gotten so that they add enzymes (breaks down the proteins) that make msg right there in your food.
Mjgurl said
Another product to avoid. Kroger Brand Dry Roasted Sunflower Kernels.. Loaded with MSG !
Wouldn’t have dawned on me that sunflower kernels would have MSG added..Took me three days of
getting violent headaches, body aches, grumpiness and anxiety to go back and read the labels of
EVERYTHING I had recently eaten. Found the culprit!! I wish I could afford to eat totally Organic
Or have the property to grow all my own edibles!! Ok done venting ;)
jeanne said
read the labels of everything you eat. avoid processed or packaged foods like the plague. read the msg websites for more information about the latest trick to hide msg from you (for example, watch out for enzymes on ingredient labels – enzymes break proteins down into amino acids (free glutamate) and that’s something you have to know). also, many growing things (lettuce, coffee) are now being sprayed with auxigro or some other glutamate-containing growth or pesticide application for crops. you have to keep up with it. this is nothing if not your own responsibility while our governments are being run by big business. that’s another rant.
emma said
last night I ate, chinese food, im vegan so i only had vegies, i specifically asked for no MSG, as I know its effects etc, 5mins after we finished dinner, my stomach gased up, like a balloon and severly cramped, I ran to there bathroom, I went white, as if I wanted to vomit from my top an bottom at the same time, I broke out in an instant sweat as if I’d just joggged around the block several times, I was dizzy,I couldn’t stand, I almost passed out, then my palms went very itchy, every thing bar the itchy palms subsided, and was left with a tangy taste in my mouth, some how I think they put in extra MSG
Chris said
Emma ~ I have the same reaction when I eat out! It is so frustrating… My reactions are getting worse each time!
Danielle said
Just wanted to point out that people can have a delayed reaction to MSG, and I read that whatever your own “reaction time” is, it will remain the same for you (can be up to 48 hrs) every time you have MSG. It’s really pretty freakish: mine is exactly 5 hours–it comes on quick with really bad stomach cramping and nausea, then weakness in the arms, legs, and just in general, a flu-like feeling of being hot and fatigued. HAving fun with it now! 4 hours later….. we’ll see how long it takes to detox. Hubby won’t believe it’s real, though– typical! :) For me the worst culprit is soup mix–I seem to do fine with all the fake-meat products out there, but if I ignorantly eat soup that I think is all natural at a friend’s house, say… forget it! good luck everyone!
jd cerna said
Hi Danielle, Mine is ALSO EXACTLY five hours, but it’s always five hours after I go to sleep the night of the day I have ingested the MSG. Tonight my aunt, a wonderful cook, made dinner for me but made stuffing using stuffing from a box. Bam. MSG. I ate the stuffing THEN looked at the box. Im mad at myself because I am usually SO hypervigilant when it comes to MSG. I immediately took four Ibuprofen, Magnesium pills, B6, and CoQ10, and also cocoa powder and I am praying right now I have detoxed so that I can sleep tonight, for my symptoms are ALWAYS the same: 5 hours after I fall asleep I wake up, total insomnia for 90 minutes to two hours with headaches. Next day I am moody, sluggish, depressed, slow, groggy, it’s awful.
abrir said
This is a good article/discussion. I have been extremely sick with stomach issues, groggy tiredness, mood changes, headaches, cramps, confusion, weakness etc. for days and days not knowing what it was, but checking all the symptoms and foods that I ate, I now know the cause. Needless to say I will do anything to make it stop, looks like more home cooking for me. I can’t believe MSG and the like are still allowed in foods after so many people get sick.
Dezarae said
I suffered with severe chronic pain for nearly 5 years before I realized that I was highly sensitive to MSG. Even oxycontin didn’t take away the incredible amounts of pain in my body. I prayed so long for the nightmare to be over.. just to know what’s wrong. Now that I know what’s wrong, I feel empowered to do something about it, but I’m finding it very difficult not to have accidental reactions. I’m trying so hard to figure out stuff to eat, but it is VERY hard. Honestly I’m scared for the future of our planet. It’s really sad to read reports that this is being done to us purposely to weed out the population of the “weak”…. Truthfully if your body is highly sensitive to MSG, you’re not weak, you’re STRONG! Your body is great at detecting poision! I’d honestly love to believe that this is all about $$ and how to make more and more by making us crave these products. All the talk of eugenics is frankly really freaking scary.
jeanne said
good luck finding a proper msg-free diet. you’ll have to avoid breaking down proteins. when they break down, you get free amino acids, and one of them is glutamate. so even if you make all your own food, and avoid foods naturally high in msg – like aged cheese and mushrooms and overripe tomatos) you still have to avoid marinated or stewed foods as well. even tho i’m fairly scrupulous about reading labels and making all my own food, i still get msg hits.
i don’t know about the conspiracy theories about msg. it could all be down to stupid money-making profiteers, rather than a conspiracy to tenderize us so the aliens can eat us. hard to tell which theory has more meat…
Nancy said
I have searched and researched MSG and any kind of antidote. I have found that 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar (with the mother)in 8 oz of water with a tablespoon of honey works quickly for MSG poisoning. Also, glycine (AKA l-glycine) is a antagonist to glutamate and it worked very well for me. Taurine is good and it will detox the glutamate. All can be bought at your local vitamin store or health food store.
Kris said
Thank you for this discussion and the tips people are suggesting for antidotes. I am sick as a dog tonight, as I was last week as well, and I finally connected that on both days I ate some noodles containing MSG. Nausea, alternating chills and hot flashes, fatigue, extreme sinus drainage, and some retching. It seems that I have developed a sensitivity.
Martin said
Charcoal pills and ibuprofen are two things that are working for me. The charcoal pills help with detoxing the MSG and the ibuprofen helps in dealing with the headache. (The effects of MSG poisoning in my system used to last 3 to 4 days, sometimes more.). Now I just take the charcoal pills when I suspect that the food had MSG, or as soon as I feel symptoms.
Ron said
Just had my first MSG poisoning experience. I am 52 years old and generally very healthy.Didn’t even know such a thing existed. Chinese food was the culprit. Bloating, dizziness, blurred vision, tiredness within two hours…then came the severe headache, neckache, elevated heart rate, fever…and best of all…an all-over body rash. Third day with the rash. Just continuing to drink water and hoping the rash will subside. Right now it is very itchy. I very rarely take prescription medications, but was taking a sulfa-based drug for a minor issue. My doctor suggested I stop that. I also routinely take glucosamine and chondroitin and Centrum Silver. Any thoughts?
jeanne said
don’t know about the supplements; read the ingredients list. you might try an antihistamine for the itching, altho i’m not sure what the effect would be.
it’s possible that you might have become sensitized to msg, and will now react to it in even small doses. if it were me, i’d watch my diet carefully for the immediate future, read all the labels and understand what they mean, avoid eating marinated or stewed foods, and dose myself with aspirin and water after exposure.
OhZone said
Get some Homeopathic “Apis”.
Keep it on hand and use it for any histamine type reaction.
It may help.
For me it helps some, but then I also react to homeopathics.
Bobbi B. said
After my last two reactions and reading about others symptoms, its obvious to me that i am having severe msg reactions. I had heard from others about it, so when it happened the first time, i suspected msg but wasnt sure. I had come home from a buffet (not chinese) i had fajitas, probably loaded w tenderizer, my hands n feet were burning, beet red, like pins n needles. I stucj them in ice cold water. It finally subsided. Years later i had a reaction after eating @ my bros. House. Nausea, weakness, diarreah, massive stomache burning. The last two times, i seem to have most symptoms that others r describing,nausea, diarreah, weakness, hot n cold sweats,stomache burning,itching, hot rash,heart palpatations. Its horrible! Feel like ur gonna die. The last 3 attacks happened recently within a few months. The same thing crossed my mind as someone else, our bodies r strong n capable of detecting poisons! Im kinda freaked out too, im gonna start paying close attention to what i eat again. Iv been eating verry poorly lately! And this is the conrsequence! Drink lots of water,purge it out! Get it out of ur stomache then drink green tea.
Martin said
About the myth with the Chinese being the only restaurants that add msg to the food. The Latin community uses Sazon to flavor meats and just about any dish. I know this because I am Latin, through using this Goya condiment is how I used to poison myself. Sazon’s primary ingredient is MSG. Now, not all spanish restaurants use this to flavor their food, there many other natural ways to obtain the same flavor. – Salt, Peper, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Cumin – Those are the other ingredients in the Sazon. I recommend that when eating Spanish food you pick a high quality restaurant that does not use short cuts like using Sazon to prepare their food. Anyway, when I suspect poisoning I use charcoal pill, they absolve the poison, and help in preventing the major symptoms. It’s been working for me. (My symptoms always start with a headache that is nothing like the other headaches, follow by vertigo symptoms, etc.
Thanks for sharing your MSG experiences.
Giff said
I live in Australia and we have on our supermarket shelves here a snack called Burger Rings which are loaded full of MSG. The yellow stuff clings to the fingers after eating the snack. I never realised until now the connection between feeling very ill after eating these things and MSG poisoning. All day after eating them I have felt “drunk” and wobbly with a hot face and headache with stomach pains and a tight chesty feeling like the effects I had years ago when suffering from depression. As others have said yes it’s like a heart attack. I avoid chinese food with msg as I know it gives me a very upset stomach but never realised the full impact of the symptoms till reading similar people’s problems on this website.
If any food additive should be banned worldwide it should be MSG of that there is no doubt as it is this substance that causes these symptoms. Thanks to this website for information about this unneccesary additive and some of the suggested “cures” to flush this evil from my system. Water and bed rest seem the sensibles remedies.
Rusty said
The positive sign is that you are having a reaction to this poison, imagine if you didn’t and kept eating this crap like so many others (what is happening to them silently in the long term?).
It’s to bad, like myself it has taken so long to find the culprit. When I recognize what is happening I force myself to vomit and empty my stomach of the contents because digestion stops for at least 2 days, eating during this time makes it worse. I haven’t found anything that relieves the symptoms from hell, until now. I took a gravol at the end of the second day which made the symptoms a little more tolerable. I will try the charcoal next time ( i hope there is no next time). Ibroprofin doesn’t help and sometimes makes the symptoms worse.
Before I knew the cause was msg I had done a complete detox (slowly) as per Dr. Hulda Clarke (not the zapper) colon, parasite, kidney and the liver/gallbladder flush. A week after doing a nasty gallbladder flush ( you won’t believe till you see it ) I started feeling incredibly good and continued eating as normal for a year before the headaches returned and continually got worse. Had I known about msg then I would have been more careful, time for another flush and time to move to another country that doesn’t poison it’s citizens. I always found the food in Cuba to be nutritious but most tourists complained saying it was to plain and boring. I guess they miss their MSG.
Martin said
FYI: Cuban food is a lot like the food from Puerto Rico which I love to cook. I did find that in low quality restaurants they use Sazon Goya. Sazon’s primary ingredient is guess what? MSG. There are many ways to flavor Latin food without Sazon. The food will taste better and is much healthier..
Rusty said
Hi Martin, I won’t eat any restaurant food again. It’s not worth the risk. Can you recommend any resources for Latin food recipes? Right now I am trying some new recipes from Naturalnews.com but I am looking for something more Latin in flavour.
I’ve been recommended to take a Solvent Remover – glycine, l-glutamine, taurine, alpha-lipoic acid, N-Acetyl-L-Cysteine to remove the build up of msg in my system, it’s one of the most difficult things to remove as the liver does not know how to process it. That would explain people’s skin problems.
mae said
Using herbs for seasoning, which can be grown in flower pots, dried and used fresh.
Martin said
Most recently shocked to find MSG in Salted Planters Peanuts. What in the world?
Sore throat symptoms said
Sore throat symptoms…
[…]Recovering from MSG poisoning « Let Them Eat (genetically engineered) Cake[…]…
mary lou oliver said
MSG…it is literally killing me!! I get flashing bright lights in the outer parts of my vision field…followed by nausea and headache. It can last any where from five minutes to an hour. It makes me mentally foggy for days afterward. Sometimes it makes me feel weak in my legs. If i eat a roasted or boiled ham, i have such abdominal pain and diarrhea! I think people think i am nuts when i tell them all that happens to me. I see so many others who seem to have mental fogginess but they have not made the connection yet. What will it take…probably some senator to feel it first hand. I personally did not make the connection until i went and saw a neurologist, because i literally thought “i must have a brain tumor”. I would do anything to make the FDA have to label it and label it well. My dad died of crutz-felt jacob syndrome, which is a rapid deterioration of the brain..i would bet my house he had an msg allergy to!
jeanne said
it might be up to activists to get the message across. i wrote all these things wehn i was being an activist against msg, but i have moved on for the most part. why don’t you make yourself heard for awhile, taking advantage of your passion and your experience, arming yourself with the knowledge, and standing up to senators with your suggestions. one person IS enough to change the world, and you sound like there’s a piece for you to change right there.
Carrie said
I have not read all the posts, but want to say this. I have been fighting this for over 20 years. Ibuprofen almost killed me. It causes ulcers!!
I was hospitalized for seven days, from perforated ulcers.
I just learned this year that I had celiac disease, as does my daughter and son.
We believe we were poisoned in Fresno, Ca from a crop spray called Auxigro.
Apparently it is another form of MSG. I. Still researching, but my doctor about 15 years ago did a few heart tests, he then said my heart looked scarred – asked me if I had rhuematic fever when I was young, he nor I knew about the AUXIGRO that was being experimented with at that time.
Still trying to figure out a way to heal.
Five said
Yes, Auxigro is bad stuff, and there are now other such products also containing the free glutamate that is being used on most all veggies. I cannot take the chance anymore on eating commercial veggies, not even Organic, as the USDA says it is “natural” therefor OK to use on Organics. Fruit so far has been OK.
This stuff is also a Fungacide, and so it seems that Potato growers treat their fields with it. I have written to a few of them whose products caused a bad reaction, and they stated that they did not spray the Potatoes. I had not asked them about treating their fields. Just didn’t think of it.
jeanne said
you really can’t escape it in this environment. if you stew your food, or marinate it, you’re also making free glutamate. best of luck.
Carrie said
Has anyone suffered from adrenal dysfunction ( caused from gluten/msg poisoning) and used I’VS for help rebuilding the body?
Kelly said
Cream of Tartar: Keep a small container of cream of tartar nearby. When mixed with water, cream of tartar will immediately neutralize MSG poisoning, relieving most symptoms. Cream of tartar creates an alkaline-forming environment when ingested, raising the blood pH and stabilizing the system. Mix 1/2 teaspoon in eight oz. of water and drink, or sprinkle some in a small bottle of water, shake and drink.
Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/036580_MSG_poisoning_remedies_symptoms.html#ixzz27sOrCf00
Five said
If alkalizing your system is the answer, then baking soda should work as well.
Unless…there is more to the cream of tarter than simple alkalizing. I’d like to hear from those who try it.
angie said
my son and husband suffer from msg sensitivity or allery…they get dizzy (walk like they are drunk) sweats, migrains, numbness…symtoms vary. I figured it out on my own …no Dr even thought of it. take out, knorr products, any chips or junk food with flavoring or cheese ex. (doritos-the worst)… hotdogs, tuna, frozen foods, flavored rice, beer ( he can only drink corona..don’t know why) Well did some research and found that if i make them lemonaid with lemons and limes and sugar blended with water and ice cubes…they come back to life. My son came home from school after having pizza for lunch, and a handful of chex mix of the cheese variety…I had to meet him at the bus stop and get him from inside the bus…he looked drunk but he wasn’t. i had to hold him all the way home and some friends had put him on the bus from school. I feel so hopeless. I can’t figure out what I can give him to take at schooll when he feels it coming on or when he knows he will sneak things in to his diet I dont allow…like pizza and junk food. he is 14 and will want to feel like everyone else. I feel so bad for both of them. I know my lemonade works…sleep works…advil and aleve help…i never tried the cream of tartar before…has anyone tried it and has it worked? please share…and how fast does it work? I am also looking into airborne the product…it sounds like it has great ingredients…but i noticed some msg in it… I gave my son lemonade today before i saw the cream of tartar thing …will give it a try…it would be useful if i could give him a bottle of dry stuff instead of giving him lemonade everyday…msg should be banned!!!
Cherie Ann said
My husband has a serious reaction to MSG – racing heart, disabling palpitations, dizziness, weakness. (He also has the same bad reaction to Sodium Erythorbate, which is added to lunch meats, ham, and soups.) I read about a research project in which they gave large doses of MSG to rats and then gave vitamin C (ascorbic acid) to one group and left the control group alone. The vitamin C group recovered and lived while many of the control group rats died. I now carry some chewable 500 mg vitamin C tabs and give my husband one whenever we eat a meal out. We try to avoid MSG, but it seems to be everywhere. Sometimes he has to drink water and take a second Vitamin C, but one at the beginning of the meal is usually enough.
If I had a child in school with MSG sensitivity, I would try giving them a vitamin C in the morning before leaving for school and see if it works. A child might need a lower dose. Schools are picky about allowing children to carry pills, so you would have to talk to the principal about allowing him to carry chewable Vitamin C.
Jane said
I have never taken alcohol, but when I had my first experienced of MSG side effects at 52years! was after a consumption of some stew with maggi cubes. I thought, “this must be how being drunk feels….Then two days later I thought I had “recovered’ and went to the salon…… I had to call my daughter to walk me home from the salon as i felt I could not walk alone .I felt so unstable, nauseated, poor spacial judgement…. a terrible feeling. I think pressing the back of my head on the salon sink aggravated the effect.
I have since become very careful to chek the ingredients of anything suspicious… but once in a while I consume it without knowing…what with the hidden names ….corn starch…hydrolysed protein…natural flavorings….. But my body always reacts. I am very sensitive.
My side effects include an achy feeling at he back of the neck, headichiness, intolerance to swift head turns, imbalance, nausea, a kind of confusion in the brainlasting a few seconds, when i turn the head quickly, that sometimes I think I am dying or I am going to pass out!
How do other sensitive people “treat”or neutralize “their” msg effects.
angie said
homemade lemonade is alkalizing+ great source of B6, iron, potassium. Rich in antioxidants and pectin. They offer dietary fiber, vitamin C, calcium, folic acid, manganese, magnesium, zinc and other nutrients.
cream of tartar…all i saw in nutrition facts is high potassium (helps regulate salt)
Don’t drink lemonade from the bottles at the store…they must have msg in them…told my husband to try it when he wasn’t well and he got worse. Homemade lemonade works!!!
shiela said
im 26 years old im so really sinsitive of msg make me crazy breathing problem shaking my 2 hands the only thing that i do drink plenty of water relax other option try to drink warm milk
Jeffrey said
Finding this site has saved me. Four-five years ago I gave up Chinese food because of the MSG headaches it would give me. A week ago today, I was MSG poisoned by an overdose amount. In a week, I had two cans of Progresso’s Light Savory Vegetable Barley soup, that states “No MSG Added”–but read the fine print on the label, and I ate a homemade navy bean soup, not knowing, containing two garlic bouillon cubes (MSG). The next day after the bean soup, I experieneced numbing in my left arm, chest discomfort and my BP shot up to 200 over 190. Like others here I felt a heart attack was near. I neutralized the MSG effects by drinking an 8 oz. bottle of water mixed with a 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar. I’m on my way to being better. I will now have to be exceptionally aware of what I eat. I have been reading labels in my kitchen and was shocked at the amount of products I had containing MSG or form of. I am all for a fight to make people, the government, the FDA, etc. aware of this problem. MSG should be banned. It’s a killer to people sensitive to MSG. At the moment I say be your own advocate for the fight and read all labels of products. My best to all here, and those suffering silently from this predicament.
georgia said
Red bull is an antidote. The taurine in red bull (or any drink containing taurine) neutralises the poisoning. I also take ibuprofen and drink lots of water.
The nausea and migraine headache reduces significantly within about half an hour of drinking a red bull, whereas before it would be a day or two before I could even move from my bed. It doesn’t cure it, but at least I can function, and it stops me from puking.
MSG is so completely evil, and it took me years to figure out the symptoms and even longer the antidote. Nasty, nasty stuff.
jeanne said
you might be on to something. here’s corroboration – http://www.msgtruth.org/remedies.htm
tim frye said
if some one could email me i need help i have theses msg systems and stupid doc where i live are stupid thanks for any ones help
heidy said
The FDA soesn’t step in because this is their aim. Stope being so naive, folks. Anything the FDA deems as ‘safe’, stay the hell away from it.
Sarah said
sending the increase in blood supply to another part of the body(
orgasm) works great(for headaches), tried it with 2 Excedrin’s and within ten minutes, my headache was nearly gone, I still had the feeling you have after you have had a migraine, but no headache, now two hours later and still gone
John dalton said
i could almost admit to being a fatalist having very stupidly poisoned my self with msg. 4 cups of coffee every day, maybe 5. laced with the poison, (2/3 teaspoons), instead of sugar.i know what you are all thinking,serves me right for being so careless. i wasnt careless and i wasnt trying to kill myself slowly . i simply took it to be sugar and it looks like castor sugar or icing sugar. coffee was not sweet, so what the heck, maybe the milk was a bit “off”. during the following 2 weeks im “listing” to the side when walking or almost falling off my bike when cycling or on my motorcycle like i was drunk. didnt think too much at the time, maybe the tropical heat getting to me or dehydrated. anyway , im having my morning coffee as per usual and my wife decides to have some of mine also. well , she spit it out like a cobra and shouted at me “what you put in coffee”. by the way shes a hmong lady and we live in thailand.. my innocent reply “why, only sugar and milk darling”. “what sugar” says she. “why, that sugar there honey”. screeching is heard all over the village and i dont know what was being said, but it was a very excited and agitated village for the next few hours, mainly because of the language barrier. i felt like an excited young boy(66yrs old) at being the center of all this hoohaa. well says she , when she had calmed down, “that not sugar, that punchalot”. “So” says i innocently, “what does that mean” “MSG”, says she. “So what”, says i. “”you crazy foreigner” says she. ‘Whats new” say i.all the neighbours all together shout, “NO GOOD” and clucking like old hens in resignation of some impending disaster.
next phase, lots of soda water. no good.. eureka moment.check wikipedia for cure.
boy , this doesnt look good i think to myself. better go see doctor. one who speaks english.doctor,no good. “nothing i can do for you,go home and just get on with whatever you do and youll be ok” says she. in shock at my dismissal and my fears over what i had read i left and went home. after 48hrs pondering my position, i decided i wasnt happy with Doc and her non help.. back to the hospital and spoke to the office manager at admissions and voiced my opinion at the way i was treated by the Doc. i was offered the option of speaking to a neurologist , to which i agreed. now this seemed promising. “when may i see him” says i ,expecting a month or 2 wait. “straight away ” says she. “follow me this way ,please”says she. why, isnt this great im thinking and off i trot.
” goodmorning doctor” respectfully says i.
” ggod morning Mr John” says professor ,(no less)
“tell me your story” says the Prof.
“why certainly” says i. and so i proceeded with my little tale of adventure
“right. now i want you to have an MRI brain scan”says prof.
“all right doc, what year will i come back for that” says i
“why straight away” says he.
my,my, isnt it just grand this hospital. such efficiciency and courtesy. but your paying dearly for it. but heck i need to know something about why i feel and act like im drunk all the time and me not drinking alcohol.
anyway, mri done and off home i go.results may be back in a few days im thinking.
no way.telephone 1st thing next morning .” mr John would you come in to get your results of your MRI scan straight away” says she. “why certainly” says i . and off i tro to the hospital 70kms away. no problem.
“good morning, professor”. “good morning, Mr John, please sit down there.these are the pictures(hundreds of them) from the mri scan and if you. look closely you will notice a lot of little white dots scattered around your brain. noe this picture shows your hypothalmus and again look closely you will see that there are 2 distinctly different shades to this area.
“whats the HYPOTHALMUS,professor” says i innocently
” mr john, its the central nervous processor for all your brain and organ activities and muscle control system”says he
“grand “says i “and why is there 2 different shades to the HYPOTHALMUS ,professor”.
” because JOHN(this is new and sort of friendly) literally your brain cells are now 50% dead and your HYPOTHALMUS is 50% dead and you are now facing the distinct 99% likelihood of developing Parkinsons disease like symptoms within 5years and fullblown parkies disease in 7/10 yrs.”
“any medicines or cure professor”says i
“none whatsoever, john”says he
wife doesnt comprehend whats being said so i ask the doc , sorry,, professor to explain to her in her language.
“not good”,says she”no more msg for you” says she.
and off we went home.
no messing around with this professor. tell it like it is. ,
p.s. im sure theres a moral to my story,
once youve been poisoned theres no cure.
rather like a vampires bite, no way back to normal life.
if you have been patient enough to read all of my story i thank you and wishh those young enough and energetic enough to battle the bureaucracy to ban this poion from our lives, the best of luck
mandala said
does anyone else have these symptoms? shallow breathing, full/tight/tingly hands and fingers, blood almost feeling “contaminated”, insomnia, loss of appetite? i am vegan and very aware of what i put into my body yet last night i had some comfort food (tator tots in buffalo hot sauce and hummus) from my favorite junk food vegan place. no headache this time but i really feel like my blood has something in it that doesn’t belong. that’s the best way i can describe it.
jeanne said
these are common symptoms. was your heart pounding? did you have to lay down right then?
it’s not just msg. that’s a glutamate. it could be any of the amino acids, evidently. there’s tyramine, there’s histamine. so you could be showing a sensitivity to amines, and it would be up to you to investigate which one or ones.
they’re almost impossible to avoid. food is, after all, made up of amino acids. anything aged, stewed, marinated – it all breaks down the amino acids and you get free glutamate, free tyramine, etc.
you need to do the research yourself. we’re all in the beginning of this effort, so you get to be the one who helps figure it out and educate others. just keep letting everybody know what you’re going thru and what you learn.
H.Chamberlain said
Thank you for this article – the weird parts of MSG poisoning that I get I see now are actually common. Before about 6-7 years ago, MSG never bothered me. So I realize now, yes, its absolutely cumulative.
I’ve had a range of reactions from a suddenly getting a red face or nose, to itchy skin, to swollen fingers and ankles, achy joints (especially knees, wrists, and hip joints), feeling disoriented or suddenly stupid and sluggish, and the most common for me – a massive migraine-like but worse, end-of-the-world-feeling hangover’ish headache and the overall feeling like I’ve been poisoned from head to toe the next day – for which nothing except time seems to cure. (Water aids it, but seems only time to get the poision out of my body ‘works’).
Since I’ve tipped over to feeling MSG’s poisoning effects I’ve had reactions to – Indian Curry, salad bars at places like “fresh choice”, spinach salads at Italian restaurants, of course Chinese food, and (worse in many cases) – Korean food – everything from ramen to kim chee (bonchon and kim chee especially as well just about all Korea restaurant soups of any kind). Wow. Personally I really dislike eating out, anywhere. I deal with it. But if feels like such a gamble every time.
Actually eating almost anything cooked seems a gamble – :) – I’ve had relatives make home-made soups, curry, or ramen – and low and behold, msg was in one or more of the ingredients. So many pre-made, powdered or canned soup bases contain msg.
I didn’t realize before that cooking/marinating protein can result in types of msg – that explains now some of the poisoning I’ve had that I could not track specifically down to a product that had msg in it.
I don’t want to sound 100% grim about eating now – in general if I eat things I’ve found are ‘safe’, and stick to known places and known ok foods at those places, I’m fine.
OhZone said
My contention is that MSG sensitivity and food allergies are the cause of those conditions called “Chronic Fatigue Syndrome” and “Fibomyalgia”.
There may be others Like MS and Parkinson’s.
Research the symptoms. The joint pain goes with Fibromyalgia. Doctors of course are clueless. They of all people should be able to put 2+2 together and realize that it is all these chemicals in our food that are causing these problems.
In my case it was a massive dose of MSG in Soy Sauce that led to a cascade of sensitivity to other chemicals.
Laura said
According to Dr. Baylock, magnesium blocks the receptors that MSG would fill. It has helped me greatly to supplement with magnesium, taking migraine down to “just” a headache. Figuring out the MSG trigger has helped much more, of course, but it is good to take the magnesium because it is so difficult to avoid the MSG. You DO NOT want magnesium oxide or aspartate. Try magmesium citrate, taurate, or chloride.
mary said
I’ve been trying to find a reason for all my symptoms for that long i thought i was going crazy. I went to my GP and said i thought i was allergic to something and she tested me for wheat allergy. It was fine so i was sent away with a pat on the head and no further investigations. Still the problems persisted. Over the last 6 months or so i have been doing some work for a Chinese restaurant and have been eating in there several times a week. I had asked one of the staff about ingredients etc in my favourite dishes and MSG kept coming up. I started to study it and was stunned to discover that all these awful symptoms were in front of me on the screen being suffered by other people. I am convinced i am sensitive to MSG. Why on earth is so little known about this !! I really want to change my diet and keep it MSG free but to be honest i don’t even know where to start. Can anyone recommend any books or sites that i can educate myself on the subject and find some cooking ideas. In fact any advice at all would be fantastic !!
OhZone said
mary, go to http://www.truthinlabeling.org
It has the most comprehensive information on MSG that I have ever found.
Barb Moore, MH, RHN said
AVOID AVOID AVOID but you might also take taurine, as MSG blocks the manufacture of taurine in your body. This is why MSG can interfere with anti-seizure drugs. Also take magnesium. MSG (any free glutamate) is an exitotoxin, while magnesium is just the opposite. Magnesium calms the nerves and strengthens them. Vitamin B6 is necessary for balancing brain chemistry, as MSG causes the nerves to use up resources (seratonin, dopamine, melatonin, etc.). Flaxseed, chia seeds, avacodos, eggs, walnuts should be eaten in large amounts as they contain healthy omega 3 fatty acids. Avoid fried foods and meats for 48 hours after ingestion of MSG, to keep the ratio of Omega 6 to Omega 3 fats low.
Olatunde Aroloye said
MSG/Aspartame Poisoning nearly killed me in 2005. This cheap new Orange drink came to town, and I basically swilled the stuff!
A few months later, I began getting blinding migraine headaches! I really thought that I was about to die.
I don’t use painkillers, and I thought back, to what could have changed in my environment, or my diet, to have prompted this.
Then I remembered a Talk Show (Billy Goodman and William Cooper) where it was said (by Mr. Goodman,) that certain people had MSG so saturating their bodies, that “just the minimum amount more would kill them!”
I shrugged that off, at the time, as Certainly Not Applicable To ME, as I had taken MSG all my life, and if MSG Poisoning could possibly kill anyone, it would be me!
Then I remember reading (UNCENSORED Magazine #05) that the combination of Aspartame and MSG had been shown to cause Brain Lesions in Mice. I never cared about THAT because I only used Sugar.
Until now!
I immediately stopped taking the drink, and had no more headaches, until I went back to work, and ate in our canteen.
I immediately had another headache!
I realized, that if I ate anything with MSG in it, it would trigger another headache- until Aspartame was out of my system.
I had to eat in our canteen, and asked the cook to just put oil from the stew on my rice, but none of the aqueous ingredients, so that I could still eat it. This went well, until she let a drop of the MSG-laced stew get on the rice, from time-to-time, and I would get a headache before I got back to the office.
It was eight months before I dared risk taking MSG-laced food again (it was at a ceremony I had to attend, and eat something,) nothing happened for several ours, so I knew it was all right again.
After that, I made sure to moderate my use of MSG. If I were cooking two or more packs of noodles, I would use all the chilli pepper, but only one of the MSG spice packs. If I used the Big Size, I would pour some of the MSG away.
We have had news stories of whole families turning up dead, after eating this popular brand of MSG-Spiced Noodles.
I have not been able to follow the stories up myself, but someone who did, said that the company has been exonerated, every time.
I recently underwent a 28-Day and Night Fast- drinking two or more litres of fresh water every day.
i am confident that this has purged most of any such dangerous toxic substances, bonded to my body fat.
Michael Dejesus said
Thanks for your information. I unfortunately am allergic to msg because I am allergic to seaweed, which is what msg is made from. The reactions I get are immediate, and cause my muscles to shake to the point of pain. Its feels like im being shocked with electricity throughout my body. Its very painful to say the least. I also lose memory and concentration. I wish there was more info about what can a person eat to avoid all forms of msg.
Laura said
You’ll need to cook from scratch , read labels of everything. Even a bag of frozen chicken has ingredients other than chicken. Most of them have “broth”, and what do you think is in that?You can find lists of hidden sources of MSG. Avoiding those forces you to eat healthy and mostly from scratch.
H.Chamberlain said
Hello! Also maybe watch over time if marinading meat in general affects you. It seems to me. I have friends who home cook, home-marinate their own grass fed beef (no broth or anything added) with just lime or kiwi and I will get an msg headache from it, every time – especially if the meat marinades for long enough that they comment that, “wow it was already almost falling apart from the marinade.” I’ll get the same reaction from lime or marinaded organic/free range chicken – just the reaction tends to be less. I do not react to lime or kiwi if I eat them in anything other than marinaded meat. Personally i now avoid all marinaded meat, just to be cautious.
OhZone said
Keep in mind that meat breaks down over time and frees the Glutamate to which you have these bad reactions. Thus the time used to marinate it is long enough – especially over nite.
When I buy meat it must be within 2 days of its “sell by” date. And when I get it home it immediately goes into the freezer unless I’m planning on using it that evening. Also I carry a cooler with Freeze Packs when I go to the store.
OhZone said
For more info you need to go to:
http://www.truthinlabeling.org
This will tell you the many things that may contain free glutamate. This is the part of MSG that is causing all the problems with so many people.
savethephotos said
Hey there, I ended up finding this page while feeling terribly sick yesterday. My hubby marinated some steak in Montreal Steak Seasoning, which says its MSG free. There is “Natural Flavoring” on the list of ingredients. I eat pretty healthy these days, juicing with greens, organic meats, veggies, brown rice. So this totally threw me for a loop. I was wary of the Steak Seasoning after he made some earlier in the week, He put it on the bbqed veggies also which I usually only do butter, garlic and salt. Well I ate some friday night, couldnt finish it all. My body wouldnt let me, like I got full fast. I told him it had too much seasoning for my liking and I felt like heartburn indigestion all eve, tightness around my mouth and the inside of my mouth felt strange. I didnt put it together till Sunday when we finished the rest of the steak which had been marinating in a bag since friday. We just cut up some pieces and put them in with a salad.
I once again stopped, took my digestive enzymes and some apple cider vinegar also as I wasnt feeling right and the indigestion feeling came along. Well within an hour or two I had a migraine, couldnt think straight, felt so bad I was crying, tightness on my face mostly around the mouth, I felt hot, physically weak. I was looking for info online during all this because I felt awful and I knew something was wrong. I have heard just because it says NO MSG on the label that doesnt matter, It just says “Natural Flavors”
I was a wreck last night. I couldnt manage to eat anything the rest of the day, I made some lemon water after reading some comments about the alkaline in your body, and I have a lemon tree, I think that truly helped, its all I did through the eve was down lemon water and I took some magnesium also.
Its the next morning, the headache feel is light still, and my face still has that strange, like its chapped/sunburn feel, but I feel more normal, thank goodness, dont want to move much, have never experienced anything like this.
Laura said
So sorry you had to go through that twice in a row, but now you know. You are right about “natural flavors”. They could certainly be MSG or anything else. It is a mystery, but I just avoid ingredients I wouldn’t have in my kitchen.
savethephotos said
Found my post from March. I pretty much forgot about this, until the other night, we went out to eat. I had Soup and Salad. A meal I usually have at this place, maybe once a month. Got home and did some drops of oil of oregano(which i do for immune system boost) and a swig of cherry juice to kill the flavor. I got sick within an hour or so of getting home from dinner. Liquid Diarrhea and horrible stomach cramps. I thought food poisoning? But wasnt that pretty fast? I thought maybe the oregano oil? I looked up everything. I ended up having severe cramps all night long about every 30 min. I could not lay down or even sit back, my stomach felt super bloated and hard. I got the chills and had to put on a sweatshirt and pants(normally shorts and a ceiling fan on all night here) Tried Pepto, no help. I was crying between the cramping, it was severe to where Id hunch over, similar to having contractions. This went on all night long, The diarrhea stopped around 1am, I had nothing left to go! I googled everything, thinking I had food poisoning, kidney stone? Do I need to go to the hospital?? I remember Apple Cider Vinegar, was afraid to take in anything because of the cramps but I was desperate by that point. GUESS WHAT STOPPED THE CRAMPS! Apple Cider Vinegar, just a teaspoon. Im still recovering. A friend mentioned “Did you eat anything with preservatives in it?” And I thought back about my meal, and recall we went there a month prior, I had the same soup and salad, but with a margarita, I got a migraine, really bad on the ride home and ended up in bed for the night and no good for anything else. I thought maybe the drink did it. Ive always handled margaritas well? So I havent had any alcohol since then as I thought that caused it. Now im wondering if its that meal, their soup? or something in the salad has msg added? Second day my body felt super drained and weak and I had a slight temperature and if I did much moving around I got hot quickly. Still recovering, feel twinges of the cramp, but nothing compared to that first night! I just get out the Apple Cider Vinegar, also drinking water with lemon added. Did do charcoal pills the following day also. Almost feeling back to normal. I guess how does one tell the difference between Food Poisoning or MSG Poisoning, and also could they really be the same thing for many that have no clue its the MSG?
Laura said
The soup and salad dressing are certainly suspects in this mystery. You could ask the manager to let you see the ingredient list, as they probably do not make any of it from scratch. I would bet money they do not make their broth from bones. If the soup had broth in it, pretty sure it had MSG. In the future you could try ordering a salad with no dressing and bringing your own. Put apple cider vinegar in it. :o) I would stay away from the soup though. Not worth it!
joe said
ive been eating msg in my mums home made soups because i was trying to give up sugar and i thought some homemade soups would get me through it, i also had been having roast dinners with home made gravy and also these nice sausages from Germany all of this crap has hydrolyzed vegetable protein in it, ive just sat and read all these comments i feel the same just dizzy and horrible my worst symptoms are really weak feeling arms and sometimes legs and also a slight headache not a migraine though! i feel zapped all over the symptoms last for up to four days! i hate msg and we need to do something to stop it . the main problem for me is going insane thinking whats wrong with me why am i so ill for no reason am i dying and all the time its these scumbags poisoning us i haven’t had any msg for 2 whole days im just about feeling slightly better but i had been having it allot for like three weeks felt like i was going to die! the worst i felt was after the sausages which have loads of different types of msg in them, i was depressed and also when i was lying in bed it felt like there was a horrible electric weakness running through my arms and legs i awoke feeling like i had ran a race and its hard not to panic when you feel like this! AVOID AVOID AVOID FROM NOW ON good luck people you are not alone! (stock powder that made my soup and gravy and stupid bratwursts from aldi)
Daena said
Good Christmas Eve everyone,
Last night my husband and I had Pizza from a common pizza place, not an hour later my husband felt ill. We thought it was just heartburn knowing it affects us both. We also know he gets violently ill from MSG, not something we thought was in pizza until today. He worked early this morning, he is a chef, and was trying to contain the vomitting and diarrhea (poor guy) by taking pepto pills until he arrived home. He mentions to me that it feels the same as the last time we had Chinese food and he had a MSG reaction so I phone the pizza place to find out that the pepperoni has MSG. Poor guy is in the bathroom and I am vigorously researching home remedies to make him feel better. I found the 1/4 tsp cream of tarter in water and gave him that and we now wait to see if it help. I really dont want him sick for Christmas!!! I will let you all know our results and if anyone else has something that works please let me know. Oh and I contacted head office to let them know my displease.
Daena
Savethephotos said
Deana, was it pizza hut? That one makes me sick
Missy Hildebrandt said
CREAM OF TARTAR is amazing.
My husband gets debilitating migraines from MSG. Once we found out what his headaches were from, he started taking 1/2 tsp CREAM OF TARTAR in a glass of water after any suspicious meal (especially restaurant food). His headaches are either avoided completely or just minimal…as long as he remembers.
It truly works, just try it.
judith narron said
Read the article on ,Cream of Tartar. .clears up MSG poisoning. .I’m gonna try it..
Lance said
I was just reading a scientific report on the toxicity of MSG (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2802046/) on mice which should be noted are not wholly representative of humans. An oral dose of 3mg was predicted to cause a clinically significant concentration in the brain. It also noted that vitamin c helped prevent the toxic effects. Its important to understand the study to asses the results and discussion.
Connie said
Three days before Christmas 2016 I was getting ready for work. I usually sip on water first thing in the morning to hydrate. As I drank I started to feel sick in my stomach, my heart started to race, my hands started to shake and I was getting out of breath. I got downstairs as quick as I could and asked my husband to get me to the hospital fast, I thought I was having a heart attack. They quickly got me into the emergency room; my blood pressure was unbelievably high. I was given meds that helped to reduce the pressure but it was unstable.
After 3 days of extensive and expensive scans and tests no issues with my heart or brain were found. The conclusion is that I may have had an inner ear infection of which I felt was not the case. With my blood pressure normalized and feeling much better I was discharged from the hospital on Christmas Eve. Christmas Day we went to our favorite restaurant since we did not want to travel too far from home. I did not have much of an appetite so I just nibbled on some cooked vegetables and cooked eel sushi – I am not into raw fish. The next morning I started having the same symptoms and took blood pressure pills that were prescribed; and they helped. It was the food, most likely the smoked/ processed eel sushi at the restaurant. I then did some searching on the internet and found other accounts of similar afflictions from MSG. After a lot of reading I did try a half teaspoon of cream of tartar in a cup of water after another attack and it worked fast (about 15 minutes for me) to bring my blood pressure down. It has a lot of potassium in it so it has to be used sparingly. I do watch what I eat but every now and then over the past year (2017) I had a couple of reactions so I have a few small containers of the tartar for home, work and travel.
Tipman said
Next time try ginger to counteract MSG… Ginger ale or any product with it…
rozalin said
rozalin
Recovering from MSG poisoning « Let Them Eat (genetically engineered) Cake