Thread by @XiranJayZhao, THREAD: why the notion that MSG is bad for you is a [...]

THREAD: why the notion that MSG is bad for you is a racist hoax and needlessly deprived us of so much deliciousness

so MSG was first isolated in 1908 by Japanese chemist Kikunae Ikeda, who also coined the term "umami" for the flavor 1/?

Ikeda was inspired to seek out the flavor when he noticed his wife's dashi stock was EXTRA DELICIOUS when she would add kombu seaweed to it. he eventually identified the chemical source as glutamate, and believed humans found it so delicious because it was associated with protein

now...MSG is not some weird, suspicious artificial flavoring! it's found in a lot of natural foods, and isolated from them too. Ikeda got it from wheat and soybeans specifically. the only danger that comes from MSG is eating too much of it...because of its sodium component 3/?

the whole panic around MSG started when a doctor wrote to the New England Journal of Medicine in 1968 like OH MAN MY HEAD HURTS AND MY LIMBS TINGLE EVERY TIME I GO TO A CHINESE RESTAURANT, I THINK IT MAY BE ALL THE MSG THEY PUT IN THE FOOD??? 4/?

mind you, this was just a letter to the editor, not a scientific study. there are conflicting sources about who this doctor really was so i'm not gonna get into it, just know that he labeled his symptoms "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome." 5/?

after the letter was published, other doctors piled on with their testimonies of OMG THAT'S TOTALLY TRUE CHINESE FOOD ABSOLUTELY WRECKS ME

BUT what the public didn't know was that many of these responses were ironic jokes and exaggerations 6/?

but since this conspiracy theory of "CHINESE RESTAURANTS ARE MAKING YOU SICK WITH THEIR MSG" totally fit into the "Chinese food is dirty and dangerous" narrative, news outlets began reporting on these ironic accounts in full seriousness, and often with racist tones 7/?

the hoax spiraled so wildly out of control that scientists started treating Chinese Restaurant Syndrome like a real thing and did studies to prove MSG caused it, such as this one from 1969

except these studies were highly flawed in that participants KNEW they were eating MSG 8/?

later on, when scientists actually did blinded tests, not telling the participants whether they were eating food that had MSG or not, they couldn't find any links to adverse symptoms, even in people who claimed they had an MSG sensitivity 9/?

so, MSG has been scientifically proven safe for literal decades, yet the hoax has persisted in the public mind because it fits racist fantasies and works to degrade Chinese food (especially Chinese American food) as dirty, cheap, and unhealthy 10/?

I still see Chinese restaurants and food products try to distance themselves from this with "NO MSG" labels, and it makes me sad because GOD I hope they didn't take out all that deliciousness for no good reason

11/?

also, fast food joints like Chick-fil-A are known to use a ton of MSG in their food, yet they were spared from the panic. coincidence? I THINK NOT.

(though do boycott them because they're homophobic, thanks)

ANYWAY, if you insist on going out to eat even now, support your local Chinese restaurants, who have been losing business due to COVID-related racism

here's my thread on why you shouldn't scoff at "inauthentic" Chinese food, also a common misconception: https://twitter.com/XiranJayZhao/status/1284285007041671169?s=20