Why you should avoid glutamates (flavor-enhancing additives)

It was in 1908 when a Japanese chemist, Kikunae Ikeda, a professor at the University of Tokyo, managed to extract glutamic acid from kombu seaweed. About 40 years earlier, a German chemist had isolated glutamic acid from wheat gluten. Ikeda was so pleased with the surprising taste of his discovery that he invented a word, umami, from the combination of the Japanese terms “umai”, meaning delicious, and “my”, flavor.

Today we know umami as the fifth taste, which is added to sweet, sour, salty and bitter. The sodium salt of glutamic acid or glutamate came to be used as another seasoning in Japanese and oriental cuisine and quickly became a additive widely used by the food industry Worldwide.

Is glutamate toxic?

Glutamic acid is not bad. It is one of the 20 amino acids that are part of proteins and is found in both plant and animal foods. It is, therefore, a natural substance.

It is not an essential amino acid that we must get from food, because our body is capable of synthesizing it from other amino acids. However, it is a very important neurotransmitter and the body ensures that it is found in the brain at the appropriate levels. Too much could be very harmful.

According to current knowledge, monosodium glutamate as an ingested additive or related flavor enhancers cannot cross the blood-brain barrier and therefore cannot reach the brain either. However, the consumption of glutamic acid can have health consequences.

Where is the glutamate and what is its effect?

Flavor enhancers can have various chemical compositions. In addition to sodium glutamate, they also take the forms of monoammonium glutamate, calcium diglutamate, monomagnesium glutamate, and monopotassium glutamate. AND all come from the laboratory or are extracted and concentrated from food after fermentation. In the list of ingredients they appear with their name or with the E numbers from E620 to E325.

MSG is found naturally in plants such as ripe tomatoes, soy products, yeast, seaweed, and mushrooms, as well as in meats and dairy products such as cheese (especially Parmesan and Roquefort). In this case, one speaks of free glutamate, which, however, does not occur in the high concentrations used in the food industry.

Glutamate-based flavor enhancing additives are widely used in frying, such as chips, in sauces, pickles and all kinds of ultra-processed prepared dishes. These added glutamates produce aappetite stimulation which can lead to eating more than necessary and, consequently, to gain weight.

The best example is the bag of chips, that only a few consumers can leave unfinished. Some experts compare flavor enhancers to addictive drugs.

Glutamate Side Effects

Many consumers react with intolerance even to small amounts. Symptoms are abdominal pain, nausea, diarrhea, and headaches. In colloquial language it is called “Chinese restaurant syndrome”. You can also develop an allergy to glutamate and develop symptoms such as heart palpitations, sweating, flushed skin, or migraines.

Glutamate is suspected to act as a messenger substance or neurotransmitter that triggers migraines. Children can also react to flavor enhancers with fever and confusion. The thesis that monosodium glutamate and the like could trigger ADHD (attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder) in high doses has not been proven by studies.

Is there a substitute for glutamate?

Yes, there are alternatives. Ultimately, sodium glutamate only used in industry to make something taste good with little effort. It also allows you to market “addictive” and cheap products. You can safely use “natural and healthy flavor enhancers” in your dishes and you can look for them in commercial products:

fresh aromatic plants such as basil, oregano, parsley and chives (also frozen).dried aromatic plants such as Provencal mix or thyme and sage combination.A variety of spices and spice mixes such as paprika, nutmeg, allspice, juniper berries, curry…a bit of cayenne powder enhances the flavor of any dish.A small amount of seaweed (2-4 g) can get a great effect.