On 25th July, AJINOMOTO Foods Nigeria Limited, makers of AJI-NO-MOTO® MSG, a popular flavor enhancer in Nigeria, celebrated its annual Umami Seasoning Day.
The company confirmed that AJI-NO-MOTO food seasoning is safe and has been approved by experts and global authorities for promoting low salt intake, improving the taste of food, and supporting a healthy lifestyle. However, some people may be more sensitive to MSG than others, experiencing weakness, flushing, dizziness, headache, numbness, muscle tightness, difficulty breathing, and loss of consciousness.
“Umami” was named in 1908 by a Japanese scientist Ikeda Kikunae to describe the savory taste produced by amino acid glutamate. MSG tastes similar to Umami, one of the most prevalent amino acids in nature, naturally present in foods like tomatoes, seafood, vegetables, cheese, and milk.
MSG is typically made by fermenting carb sources like sugar beet, sugar cane, and molasses. Its flavor-enhancing effects are due to its umami taste, which induces salivary secretion that improves the taste of food. Although the flavor enhancer is seen by many as harmful, studies show that replacing some salt with MSG can reduce people’s sodium intake by approximately 3% without sacrificing flavor.
While researches show MSG is associated with an increased risk of metabolic disorders, primarily due to animal studies that have linked the additive to insulin resistance, high blood sugar levels, and diabetes. Food health bodies have affirmed that as long as only a little dosage is used in cooking, MSG is safe for consumption.
Currently, health authorities like FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the European Food Safety Association (EFSA) consider MSG to be generally recognized as safe (GRAS). They determined that the acceptable daily intake (ADI) of MSG is 14 mg per pound (30 mg per kilogram) of body weight per day, which is far more than the amount we will typically consume in a normal diet.
