“The idea that MSG is uniquely harmful rests on a single letter and a lot of iffy science.”
–Self, February 23, 2026
Excerpts from this article:
“Despite the rampant fearmongering around MSG that dominated my childhood, modern science doesn’t really support the belief that it’s somehow worse than other food additives.“
“While you can buy MSG on its own—as an ‘odorless white powder that can be sprinkled into your food like table salt,’ according to Harvard Health—you’re more likely to eat it in the form of foods that were modified to contain it during the manufacturing process.”
“’You could put a little bit of it [into your food] and still get a lot of savoriness and saltiness,’ [Washington State University School of Food Science Director] Dr. [Soo-Yeun] Lee says. Compared to sodium chloride (a.k.a. table salt), which has a more transient impact, ‘MSG has a prolonged sensation that’s long-lasting and lingering.’ When Dr. Lee’s students try MSG during demonstrations in class, she reports they are often reminded of ramen or chicken broth.”
“Ultimately, no compelling research has emerged to bear out the idea that MSG is inherently bad. Even the chemical makeup supports this verdict, according to Dr. Lee: Since both components of MSG, sodium (an essential mineral) and glutamate (an amino acid, which is a protein building block), are necessary for your body to function, ‘the hype about how it is not good for you isn’t totally grounded in science,’ she says. ‘I do believe…it’s benign to eat based on typical consumption level.’”
“In other words, routinely overloading on MSG (or feeling abnormally sick afterward) isn’t a viable concern for most people. Yes, ‘it could theoretically be done,’ Dr. [Jamie] Alan [of Michigan State University’s Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology] says. Realistically, however? You’re not likely to run into that problem, freeing you up to eat lo mein and General Tso’s chicken without fear.”
Related Reading:
