Where’s the MSG? Hidden MSG Lurks Everywhere

Hidden MSG? Is Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) one of your migraine triggers? If you’ve tried everything to relieve migraine headaches, including cutting out MSG, then you might be surprised to find that it’s not as easy as you thought. Manufacturers who make food products containing hidden MSG are onto you, and they’re trying every trick in the book to make sure you don’t spot the MSG in sheep’s clothing…

Migraine triggers in food

Migraine headaches occur when your brain sends abnormal messages to your trigeminal nerve, prompting it to produce pain-causing chemicals that result in migraine headaches in people who are prone to migraines. Sometimes, food ingredients are the triggers that set the process in motion. Like allergies, it all depends on your sensitivity to stimuli. While a single slice of chocolate cheesecake might send you to the ER with a migraine attack, other migraine sufferers can eat dairy and chocolate with no reaction whatsoever.

Some of the most common migraine food triggers are:

MSG
Tyramine (found in red wine, cured meats, and olives)
Tannins (found in tea, grapes, and beans)
Sulfites (found in dried fruits and wine)
Dairy products, specifically choline and casein
Artificial sweeteners

For more migraine triggers in food, read Top 35 Foods and Preservatives that Trigger Migraines

What’s in a label? Not everything…

Food manufacturers are ordered by the FDA to list all product ingredients on a food label. Sort of. Actually, there are loopholes that allow them to leave out certain ingredients.

For example, if a package of oatmeal cookies with raisins contains a trace amount of sulfites, a migraine trigger, then the manufacturer is under no obligation to declare it as one of their ingredients. Also, they are not required to declare cross-contamination ingredients to which their products have been exposed.

Can I call you by your first name?

If you’re in the habit of scrutinizing food labels for any mention of MSG, then had better be prepared. Since the FDA considers MSG to be a perfectly safe substance, they have granted food manufacturers permission to use creative, alter-ego names for monosodium glutamate, lest you be swayed from buying their product.

As a result, thousands of people suffer from migraines, allergic reactions, and other health problems from eating foods that they didn’t know contained MSG or other migraine triggers.

**The following ingredients always contain MSG:**

Ajinomoto
Autolyzed yeast
Calcium caseinate
Calcium glutamate
Dry milk powder
Dry milk protein
Gelatin
Glutamate
Glutamic acid
Hydrolyzed corn gluten
Hydrolyzed protein
Hydrolyzed soy protein
Hydrolyzed wheat protein
Magnesium glutamate
Monoammonium glutamate
Monopotassium glutamate
Monosodium glutamate
Natrium glutamate
Sodium caseinate
Soy protein
Soy protein concentrate
Soy protein isolate
Textured protein
Vetsin
Whey protein
Whey protein concentrate
Whey protein isolate
Yeast extract
Yeast food
Yeast nutrient

**The following ingredients sometimes contain MSG:**

Barley malt
Bouillon
Broth
Carrageenan
Citrate
Citric acid
Corn Starch
Corn Syrup
Enzymes
Fermented food
Flavors/Flavoring
High Fructose Corn Syrup
Malt extract
Malt flavoring
Malted Barley
Maltodextrin
Natural beef flavoring
Natural chicken flavoring
Natural flavors/flavor
Natural pork flavoring
Pectin
Protease
Protein fortified food
Seasonings
Soy protein isolate
Soy protein or soy protein concentrate
Soy sauce
Soy sauce extract
Stock
Ultra-pasteurized
Whey
Whey protein
Whey protein concentrate
Whey protein isolate

The following ingredients are thought to contain enough cross-contaminated MSG to trigger migraines in people who are hypersensitive to food triggers:

Brown rice syrup
Corn starch
Corn syrup
Dextrose
Enriched foods
Lipolyzed butter fat
Milk powder
Modified food starch
Reduced fat milk
Rice syrup
Vitamin enriched foods

Please tell us…

If you know of any other ingredients that contain hidden MSG or causes migraines, please send us your comments. Also, if you have found this article helpful, or have any questions, we would love to hear from you!

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