Glutamate research

Consensus Meeting: Monosodium Glutamate - Opinions on MSG Safety Updated

In 2006, a group of experts from a range of relevant disciplines met at the University of Hohenheim to discuss the physiological effects and the safety of monosodium glutamate. Monosodium glutamate enhances and intensifies the flavour of food, while reducing the sodium content and without having a taste of its own. The experts noted that since 1997, two new scientific studies have investigated the effect of glutamate on the lungs and found there to be no adverse effects. Furthermore, it is well known that breast milk contains high amounts of glutamate, with infants consuming higher amounts of glutamate as a child than later on in life. The experts' summary and evaluation of recent knowledge is an update to the Hohenheim consensus of 1997 and has been published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The group concluded that the use of glutamate as a seasoning in food can be regarded as harmless for everyone.

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Umami compounds are a determinant of the flavor of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.)
Wayne L. Morris, Heather A. Ross, Laurence J. M. Ducreux, John E. Bradshaw, Glenn J. Bryan and Mark A. Taylor

A team of researchers at the Scottish Crop Research Institute has discovered umami compounds in potatoes, according to research published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. In the research, a taste evaluation panel was set up to carry out flavour assessments and the potato varieties with the most umami compounds (particularly glutamate and 5'-nucleotides) were preferred by the panel. Dr Mark Taylor, who led the research, believes that this discovery will enable the creation of more delicious potato varieties and will help the researchers to monitor whether taste is affected during storage.

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The receptors and cells for mammalian taste
Jayaram Chandrashekar, Mark A. Hoon, Nicholas J. P. Ryba and Charles S. Zuker

Recent advances in the understanding of the biology of taste have found that distinct cell receptors are tuned to detect each of the five basic tastes: sweet, sour, bitter, salty and umami. These receptor cells function as dedicated sensors, helping us to recognise and distinguish key dietary components.

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Umami and Food Palatability
Shizuko Yamaguchi and Kumiko Ninomiya

Professor Kikunae Ikeda from Japan in 1908 isolated glutamate from kelp and pinpointed it as the key flavor in stock made from seaweed. Professor Ikeda realized that glutamate gave foods a unique taste and named this taste "umami," the fifth basic taste after sweet, salty, sour and bitter.

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Intensification of Sensory Properties of Foods for the Elderly
Susan C Schiffman

With increasing age, most people suffer some level of sensory loss. Studies have shown that a progressive decline in the ability to taste and smell, which can begin at about 60 years of age, becomes more severe after the age of 70. Enhancing the flavor and taste of food using glutamate can improve food palatability and acceptability, compensating for chemosensory loss in older people.

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The Safety Evaluation of Monosodium Glutamate
Ronald Walker and John R Lupien

Glutamate is the most abundant amino acid in protein. We take in about 20 grams of glutamate per day in our normal diet. Since monosodium glutamate has been used widely as a seasoning, some papers have appeared which have questioned the safety of glutamate. In 1987, the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) carefully reviewed more than 200 scientific reports and evaluated glutamate as "Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) not specified." This meant that the Committee concluded that no upper intake limit was necessary, placing monosodium glutamate in the category of the safest of all food additives.

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Intestinal Glutamate Metabolism
Peter J Reeds, Douglas G Burrin, Barbara Stoll and Farook Jahoor

Glutamate is not only taken in with our food supply but is also synthesized by our bodies. From a nutritional perspective, glutamate is a non-essential amino acid. Most dietary glutamate is rapidly metabolized in the gut and is used as an energy source. This paper shows that the body produces its own glutamate for a number of essential functions.

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Does information about MSG (monosodium glutamate) content influence consumer ratings of soups with and without added MSG?
Prescott J., Young A.

This study investigates whether consumers are more influenced by the label information, such as "No added MSG" or by the taste of the product, in this case soup, itself.

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