MSG

[Guest guest]

The Discovery - MSG (Author's Story)

JoAnn Guest Sep 07, 2005 18:49 PDT

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http://www.msgmyth.com/

 

This book is written first and foremost for our

children, our good

friends, and large extended family, all of whom make

our lives worth

living. It is also for their children, friends, and

acquaintances and

all those who would benefit from an MSG free diet - in

our opinion,

that

includes all of us.

 

To explain more clearly how this simple food additive

has affected my

life, and many of those around me, I must go back a

little in time, to

the early part of 1975. My husband, Mike, and I were

living in our

first

home in Seattle, Washington, with our three young

children, Kris (four

years), Shelli (two years), and baby Michael. It was

an exciting and

happy time in my life, filled with fun and work. I had

great friends

with whom I shared tole painting and Chinese cooking

classes. I was

full

of energy, was still wearing the same size I wore when

I got married,

had a sweet and very helpful husband, and felt very

busy but happy.

Then

suddenly I started experiencing chest pains. The first

time it

happened,

the area around my heart hurt with knifelike pains and

jabs whenever I

tried to breathe in. Mike and I were terrified as I

lay on the floor

unable to get my breath. Mike was about to give me

mouth to mouth

resuscitation and call for an ambulance, when my

normal breathing began

to return. I felt so weak afterwards that I went to

bed and later

resumed life's normal demands. But a few days later,

as I ironed, the

same thing happened, and then again every three to

five days. After a

couple of weeks, I visited my doctor who gave me a

complete physical

and

then declared my heart was " very strong " and

everything else was very

normal. He asked me if my life and marriage were " OK, "

if there were

any

problems. After all, I was reminded, I'd just had a

baby and two other

children and it was likely that stress was manifesting

itself this way.

I was shocked and embarrassed to think that I wasn't

able to cope

emotionally with the rigors of my chosen lifestyle. He

suggested that I

get out more with adults, take lots of restful baths,

etc. I enrolled

in

a second Chinese cooking class with my sister and two

other friends. It

was great fun, but my symptoms continued. After a few

months, I looked

terrible. I'd lost some weight, my face was puffy,

there were bags

under

my eyes and the girl who was nicknamed, " The

roadrunner " in college,

now

walked around the house feeling like her arms and legs

were dragging 50

pound weights. Getting the kids fed and dressed became

huge chores. My

idea of a successful day was when I could manage

getting all three to

nap at the same time so that I could rest, too. All I

wanted to do was

sleep. I put on a happy face at church, because it

would have been

embarrassing if anyone knew my secret: that I was

unable to cope. I

often had terrible headaches lasting two to three

days. After a year, I

confided in a close friend and she suggested a

different doctor. Same

tests, same results: " You're as strong as a horse -

good heart. Try to

relax more. " The third doctor I saw told me, " It's all

in your head, as

far as I can tell. " I felt humiliated. Three years and

three more

doctors later, I gave up. I then became acquainted

with a nurse who

eventually treated me like a big sister. One day,

after an especially

trying week, I blurted it all out to her. I felt like

such a failure

and

hypocrite. My family and friends thought I had it " all

together " . I had

always been labeled the " capable one " , the lucky one,

the one who could

handle anything. In three years I had gone from a

confident, cheerful

mom and wife to a person I could barely understand or

like very much.

Cranky, tired, and always achy, my poor husband was at

a loss as to how

to help me. My friend listened and suggested another

physician. I

trusted her opinion and got an examination from this

kind doctor. He

told me my symptoms were very much like those of a

young patient of his

whose first attack happened on the football field

during a game. Tests

showed he had asthma and this doctor suspected the

same of me. I saw an

allergist and had the scratch tests done, which on a

scale of 1-10,

showed I was an 11, being mostly sensitive to mold,

weeds, and dust.

The

immunization shots began. After a year I did feel

somewhat better with

fewer headaches and chest pains. However, I seemed to

catch every viral

or bacterial infection to come my way. Sore throats

and bronchial

infections plagued me often and the headaches I did

get were still

severe and sometimes debilitating. I learned to accept

them and do the

best I could on my better days.

 

Several years later, something new began to happen to

me. I called them

my stomach episodes. About five years ago, whenever

Mike and I ate out,

my stomach would feel full less than half way through

the meal. Within

half to one hour later, I'd be belching uncontrollably

and racing to

the

nearest bathroom, suffering explosive and burning

diarrhea. Following

that, I'd have a terrible thirst and throbbing

headache. For two or

three days my stomach felt as though a tank had run

over it. My mouth

and tongue felt terribly dry and I'd be very thirsty.

The whole time

I'd

be weak, headachy, and light headed, feeling chills or

flushes and

sometimes my fingers or toes felt numb. Another

symptom appeared. The

bones in my feet or hands would hurt if squeezed at

all. My knees would

sometimes ache. I wondered if it was arthritis. Also,

I suffered from

frequent urination, getting up two to four times at

night. The episodes

continued and often happened after I ate at home also.

Mike bought me

some electrolyte powder to help replace some of the

minerals and

liquids

I often lost. Soon I was developing hemorrhoids due to

the painful

diarrhea. My doctor told me it was colitis or

irritable bowel syndrome

and suggested hemorrhoid surgery in the near future.

Meanwhile, after

suffering pain from a uterine fibroid tumor and heavy

bleeding, I had a

complete hysterectomy. While recuperating, I again

developed terrible

diarrhea. Mike kept trying to pump up my strength with

canned chicken

soup and lots of orange juice. It was a very slow

recovery and I was

convinced that I was a real wimp and poor health was

my fate. A couple

of months later, I developed a urinary tract

infection. Resting at

home,

I faithfully took my prescribed medication, but only

got worse. Again I

suffered terrible burning diarrhea, and headaches that

were worse than

ever. After three days on the medicine, my husband

took one look at me

when he got home from work and said, " You look worse,

not better " and

ordered me to call the doctor's office. Fortunately, a

nurse was put on

the line. I told her of the problem. She told me to

quit taking the

medication immediately because I was obviously

allergic to sulfa drugs.

She herself was also, and consequently was the first

person to give me

insight into part of the cause of my health problems.

She told me I was

probably allergic to sulfites too. What were sulfites?

She explained

that a lot of processed foods contained sulfites, as

preservatives, and

that I should go to a health food store for resource

books on food

additives. This I did and was shocked at how many

foods I often ate

that

contained sulfites, ie., dried apricots, fruit juice,

fruit syrups,

sauerkraut, soda pop, bottled lemon juice, dehydrated

and french fried

potatoes. Sulfites are even used to clean and

disinfect commercial

cooking equipment and storage bins. It was also

sprayed on salad bars

to

keep the fruits, vegetables, and salads fresh

appearing, although that

practice is now prohibited. I cleaned out my cupboards

and refrigerator

of as much of the culprit as I could and noticed fewer

stomach

episodes,

cramping, and headaches. I continued to read and send

for more

information from various sources. Then came the

holiday season of 1994.

I was trying to be so careful to avoid sulfites as I

prepared all the

family favorites during Thanksgiving, Christmas, and

New Year's Eve.

But

my symptoms got worse and I became depressed. I told

myself that

perhaps

it wasn't sulfites after all. Maybe IBS (Irritable

Bowel Syndrome)

would

continue to plague me forever. But I didn't give up. I

tried even

harder

after the holidays to eat healthy foods, read labels

and memorize the

various names of sulfite compounds on labels. Then my

20 year old son

called from Miami where he was serving a church

mission. He was

suffering horrendous migraines. He was weak and

getting outpatient

treatment for a bronchial infection he couldn't shake.

He had a battery

of tests including an MRI and allergy tests. Since

nothing organic

could

be found, the doctors felt he was just suffering from

stress and

allergies to the grasses that grew there. He suffered

dizziness, an

inability to concentrate or recall well, and after his

bout with

bronchitis, was sent home to see if he could

recuperate here. What had

happened to my usually strong, happy and healthy

child? When we picked

him up at the airport, I saw a different young man

from the one that

had

left a year earlier. Something pricked my memory. I

noticed the bags

under his eyes, the tired look and the puffy face. It

was like a mirror

of me when I first started having health problems

while in my twenties.

Had he inherited my constitution? I never once

believed he was

suffering

from stress. I knew my son. This was a kid to whom

everything came

easily. He'd even had his own lawn care business at

age 16. Handsome,

confident, athletic, intelligent, I could not shake

the belief that

there had to be something else going on here. I

watched him closely.

During his headaches, he'd hole himself up in a

darkened room with a

blanket covering him, chilled and in terrible pain,

the strain showing

in his hurting eyes. He said his arms would feel heavy

and numb. He'd

complain that he couldn't remember anything or speak

clearly during and

shortly after the episodes. He was becoming depressed

and anxious about

his future, which included college and a medical

profession. How could

he study with such debilitating headaches? He felt

like a failure at

20.

We took him to local doctors. He had a brain wave

test, CAT scans and

an

MRI, visited a neurologist, allergist, and two other

specialists. All

said he was very healthy. One doctor, a psychologist

(after all, it had

to be in his mind since the tests were all negative)

gave him a book

about coping with stress. Even some relatives chose to

believe it was

his inability to handle a lot of demands or

responsibility. This again

was all too familiar with my own earlier experience.

As for my

condition, I was becoming very tired of unexplained

headaches and

sporadic diarrhea. I'd had all the unpleasant tests,

including

ultrasound and upper and lower gastro intestinal

series and all were

negative. I noticed my vision blurring, especially

during and after

headaches. I had learned all that I could about

sulfites, was avoiding

all the specified foods containing them and still I

was not free of all

the symptoms. I'd also gained 16 pounds in nine

months, often had

" blue "

days when I felt a little black cloud hovered over

only me and found my

energy level fading. The word " depression " wasn't in

my vocabulary.

That

happened to other people, not me.

 

Then one morning in February 1995, I woke up with a

massive headache

and

felt the familiar nausea, accompanied by belching and

some chest pains

too. It had happened so many times in the last five

years, but the

memory of that particular morning is crystal clear in

my mind. I was

totally whipped and though people know me as an upbeat

optimist, I

finally felt beaten. For the first time I cried - for

my son, and for

myself. I'd often counted all my blessings to get me

through hard

times,

but this morning, my Dad's words of " If you don't have

your health, you

don't have anything, " ran through my mind. I slid from

the bed to my

knees and sought help and comfort from a higher

source. Desperately

pouring out my heart, I told God that I couldn't

handle it anymore. I

told Him that I would rather die than feel this rotten

all the time and

that I wanted to be able to enjoy my children and

grandchildren and not

be a burden. In essence, I turned it over to Him.

Gradually calming

down, I remained for several minutes at my bed side.

Then soft, warm

peace flowed over me. I felt a strong prompting to go

over all my notes

and information sent to me about sulfites one more

time. I had done it

several times before, but this time I had such a

feeling of confidence

and anticipation. I rushed to get my file and leafed

through all the

pages, pausing for a moment on a bulletin sent by the

MSG Sensitivity

Institute, about MSG. I'd never read it, believing

sulfites to be the

sole cause for my health problems. After reviewing

everything I had,

and

flipping again through the pages, the article on MSG

seemed to pop out

at me, so I began to read it. Suddenly, I could feel

an excitement

growing inside of me. The article was describing all

the symptoms that

Mike and I had been experiencing, often using the

exact same words that

we often used to describe them! I immediately called

my husband at work

and told him I knew without a doubt what the culprit

was and had been

for years: Monosodium Glutamate. I, like most people,

had assumed that

MSG was found only in Chinese food. Little did I know

it was in our

cereal, catsup, crackers, mayonnaise, tuna, yogurt,

diet food, soft

drinks, salad dressings, poultry, most fast foods, and

frozen snacks

and

meals, seasonings, canned soups and entrees, and even

most ice creams.

And many restaurants load their foods with this

so-called safe flavor

enhancer, often unaware of its hidden sources and

names.

 

I sent for information from NOMSG (National

Organization Mobilized to

Stop Glutamate) and some other suggested resources in

the article. Then

I ordered two books through our local bookstore. I

cleaned out half my

cupboards and refrigerator. Using the information, I

ate meals without

MSG for the first time in years. Incredibly, all my

symptoms

disappeared, reappearing only after eating MSG by

mistake usually at a

restaurant or at parties. Unbelievably my post nasal

drip, something

I've endured since childhood, also disappeared.

 

I called my son the same day that I read the MSG

article and sent him

the information. He also improved. Away at college he

finds it a

struggle to avoid MSG since fast foods are mainstays

of busy college

students. Last semester I sent him boxes of homemade

and bottled

catsup,

spaghetti sauce, and salsa. Incidentally, both of my

daughters are now

suffering early symptoms. Both are in their twenties

like I was when

mine began. My sister, who is four years younger, is

noticing symptoms.

 

It has been a few years since our discovery. But in

that time I've been

able to share the information that I've gleaned with

many friends and

relatives. One of my acquaintances has Parkinson's

Disease. She has

fewer symptoms as long as she avoids MSG and other

toxic additives. My

next door neighbor, Patsy Merriman, confided in me

about her health

problems. I gave her the information. In a couple of

days she came over

to ask for MSG free recipes and said she had thought

she was dying but

now knows her stomach problems and sometimes fuzzy

memory are caused by

MSG. Her mother had Alzheimer's. Dr. Russell L.

Blaylock, the author of

Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills, believes that MSG,

and other

neurotoxins such as aspartame and L-Cysteine cause or

exascerbate many

neurodegenerative diseases. My husband's father is so

sensitive to MSG,

his throat closes off if he eats it and he must induce

vomiting. His

mother had Alzheimer's disease for several years

before she passed

away.

The author also shows a link to attention deficit

disorder, anxiety

attacks, chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple sclerosis,

glaucoma,

depression, and asthma. Incidentally, after giving my

findings to my

own

doctor, he suggested stopping my allergy shots to see

if MSG was the

cause for my asthma attacks and headaches. It was.

After 20 years of

injections, I no longer need them. I never did.

 

The FDA may call MSG safe, but independent researchers

estimate at

least

30% to 40% or more of the population may be MSG

sensitive in varying

degrees. Many are unaware of the reasons for their

symptoms and are

being misdiagnosed, mistreated, and are suffering

needlessly. Some of

those people are my friends, relatives, and my

children. Man is slow to

learn and change when it concerns food and money.

Well-paid lobby

groups

funded by the multi-billion dollar food industry are

constantly working

to make MSG appear safe to the public. They send

pamphlets to schools

and health professionals and post websites to

" educate " us about MSG's

virtues (The International Food Information Council,

Glutamate

Association, International Glutamate Technical

Committee). I believe

change will eventually come, but until then, fellow

sufferers, and the

health conscious, this book is for you. I hope it will

enlighten and

help answer the question I hear most, " What can I eat,

now? " .

 

This book is dedicated to Mike, my supportive husband

and " editor " ; to

Krista, Richelle, Michael, and Craig, our incredible

children; to our

sweet grandchildren; to supportive family and friends;

to my late

father

and his sister, whose last years we believe, were

filled with needless

suffering; and to the Lord above for His help and

guidance. It was

truly

a miracle that led us to the answers we were seeking.

 

Update 2005

 

We've received lots of inquiries about our son whose

terrible health

problems prompted our search for answers in 1995. Mike

is doing very

well, as long as he avoids MSG. He is a chiropractor

now, is married

and

is a very strong, active, and healthy father.

_________________

 

JoAnn Guest

mrsjo-

www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest/Diets

 

 

 

 

AIM Barleygreen

" Wisdom of the Past, Food of the Future "

 

http://www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest/Diets.html