Weekly Wellness News

March 03, 2008

Feature: A Dash of Unnecessary Flavor

There are many cooking additives in wide use around the world, but often I have found that they take away from the food more than they enhance it. I enjoy simply-prepared dishes, like steamed vegetables, fried meat with a dash of soy sauce or curry, or yogurt and fruit. Whatever the French might say about the complex blending of flavors, I've found the natural flavors inherent in the foods I eat to be just as appreciable if I take the time to enjoy them. I don't need a complex sauce with three kinds of cream, a simple curry or pico de gallo will do.

So it annoys me that some cultures still insist on putting MSG in everything. MSG, or monosodium glutamate, has the effect of 'bringing out' the flavors inherent in the food you eat. Glutamate is a simple additive to create, and dates back hundreds of years in Asian food. I understand why it is used, but it annoys me.

I am one of the small percentage of the population for whom MSG is a problem. I can eat almost anything and have no negative effects, but MSG wipes me out about half the time when it is in something I eat. I get extremely painful headaches and nausea, and nothing short of going to bed and sleeping it off seems to help.

My issue is not that MSG is a problem for me, don't get me wrong. It has nothing to do with the question 'Why can't I eat it?'. It has, instead, everything to do with the question 'Why is it deemed necessary?'. Why is it put into so many things?

And it is put into a lot of things. In America, it can be found in everything from soup stock to snack foods, from fast food to cheese. In some cases it occurs naturally, in others it is added. If it occurs naturally, I can accept that. It is when it is added, however, that I don't like it: while I can taste the difference, I don't see that the taste is better, just different. Why add something to food that has enough flavor on it's own?

The answer lies in part with custom ('we've always had MSG in our potato chips, we will continue to use MSG in the future'), partly with competition ('we can't compete on taste tests if we don't add MSG'), and partly on ego ('why should we take out MSG for the five percent who have trouble with it'). If I were a shareholder in any of those companies, I would have to agree in practice. But in principle I would still feel that MSG was not needed to make a delicious product.

The real trouble lies with the fact that the vast majority of consumers, at least in the western world, expect every bit of flavor enhancement they can get. If it tastes this good now, imagine how it would be if it tasted just a little better! That line of thinking, while unnecessary, is exactly what the mass population comes up with on it's own. And since foods are prepared to cater to the masses, MSG will not be going away any time soon.

It interests me that MSG is, for the vast majority of people, apparently safe. It's safe the way salt is safe, in that (like most things) some is fine, more is OK, a lot is dangerous. I wish I were one of those people. It also interests me just how vehemently the anti-MSG crowd touts the dangers of MSG, as if eating it will bring about the end of the world. Unfortunately for them, I have to agree that for the most part, MSG isn't going to do you much harm.

I just wish it weren't in so many restaurant and packaged foods. And I wish it weren't added to just about everything here in Korea. It tastes good, sure, but most of these foods would be just as good without it, in my opinion.

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• Childhood cigarette cessation : Child nicotine patches approved [news.bbc.co.uk]

From the editor

What food additives are you opposed to? What ingredients do you work to avoid in your shopping and dining out? Let me know! If I get enough feedback, I'll post the results in an issue soon.

It's been a while since I've asked, so I'll throw the request out there: please let your friends and family know about Weekly Wellness News. I'd like to reach as many people as I can, and I depend on you, my readers, to spread the word. If you know someone who could benefit from one of the articles I've written, let them know about it!

It's small gestures by everyday people like yourselves that make a difference in a world full of so much noise. If you like what you read, let others know so they can appreciate it as well.

Healthy thoughts,
Jeff

Copyright 2008, Jeffrey Eliasen.
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