Can monosodium glutamate damage the brain and contribute to dementia?
Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is a flavor additive commonly used in many processed foods and is also often used in the restaurant industry. In the book “In Bad Taste: The MSG Syndrome,” Dr. George R. Schwartz has theorized that the prevalence of MSG in foods (either as MSG or as hydrolyzed protein additives) may be related to the rising incidence of Alzheimer’s disease. Glutamate at normal physiological levels is fine, and necessary even, because glutamate is one of the brain’s most prevalent excitatory neurotransmitters (i.e., a chemical messenger for brain cells). Dr. Schwartz’s theory is based on the fact that glutamate, in excessive levels, is an excitotoxin. Basically, this means that when neurons (brain cells) are exposed to very high levels of glutamate, they can become over-stimulated and can be damaged or even die. Dr. Schwartz therefore believes that the chronic, long-term exposure to MSG may lead to neuronal cell damage or death, and that this cell death may contribute to the d
