MSG is Not Our Enemy!

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I’m pretty sure most of us know what MSG is-monosodium glutamate-and many people are still afraid of it. But before we jump into why you don’t need to fear MSG, let’s start with the basics.

Many people use MSG in cooking to create a pure umami taste. Umami is known as the fifth basic taste, alongside sweet, salty, sour, and bitter. MSG enhances flavor, much like salt, and can be used in a similar way. It doesn’t just make food taste stronger, but it makes it taste fuller and more satisfying. Umami enhances the overall flavor of a dish, adds its own savory depth, and can even reduce sourness and bitterness.

In our beloved country, Indonesia, MSG is commonly used in many everyday dishes such as mie goreng, bakso, soto, nasi goreng, etc. Street vendors or pedangang kaki lima, restaurants, and even home cooks often use MSG in small amounts to enhance flavor. Well, we’ve been enjoying these dishes for years, and often without even realizing that MSG was part of the recipe.

Now let’s talk about the science. In chemistry, glutamate is a molecule. its IUPAC name is (2S)-2-amino-5-hydroxy-5-oxopentanoate. It is the ionized form of glutamic acid, which is a naturally occurring amino acid found in many proteins. MSG is simply the sodium salt of glutamic acid. Here is the important part, glutamic acid is one of the amino acids naturally present in our body and essential for normal physiological functions. So chemically speaking, MSG contains a compound that already exists in many natural foods and in our own body.

Figure 1. Number of samples of processed food in various food categories, Tian, W., et al, 2025

The glutamate in MSG is no different from the glutamate found in beef, seaweed, parmesan cheese, eggplant, soy sauce, mushrooms, or other umami-rich foods (see Figure 1 and 2).

Figure 2. Number of samples of unprocessed food naturally containing glutamates, Tian, W., et al, 2025

The name may sound ‘chemical’ and intimidating, but that doesn’t mean it is harmful. Often, fear comes from unfamiliar scientific terms.

The more we understand food and its ingredients, the less we fear them.

A study by Nattaya Thongnak et al., published in the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) database, reported that in rats, very high doses of MSG were associated with increased blood pressure and kidney oxidative stress. Based on their findings, the researchers suggested that adult consumption should stay below approximately 6 grams per day to avoid potential risks observed in those animal studies.

However, it is important to understand the context. Six grams per day is still much higher than what most people typically consume in everyday cooking. In real-life dietary use, MSG is added in small amounts, similar to salt! And major food safety authorities continue to classify it as safe when consumed at normal levels.

So no, MSG is not your enemy. Don’t fear MSG!

Fear oftenly comes from misunderstanding. The more we understand food science, the more confident we become in making balanced, rational choices about what we eat. So, stay informed, be mindful, and enjoy your food with confidence.

Sources:

Aune, L., & Hutchins, J. (n.d.). Neurotransmitters: Glutamate. In Developing Expertise in Neuroscience. UEN Pressbooks. Retrieved February 20, 2026, from https://uen.pressbooks.pub/expertneuro/chapter/neurotransmitters-glutamate/

Tian, W., Yong, L., Miao, H., Yang, X., Wei, Q., Wei, S., Sui, H., Xiao, X., Li, J., Wang, H., Li, S., Chang, J., Ou, T., Zhang, W., Song, Y., & Liu, Z. (2025). Analysis of glutamate content in food and dietary exposure assessment to glutamate among the Chinese population. Applied Food Research, 5(1), Article 100938.

Thongsepee, N., Martviset, P., Chantree, P., Sornchuer, P., Sangpairoj, K., Prathaphan, P., Ruangtong, J., & Hiranyachattada, S. (2022). Daily consumption of monosodium glutamate pronounced hypertension and altered renal excretory function in normotensive and hypertensive rats. Heliyon, 8(10), e10972.