One of my friends recently told me she doesn't eat Ranch dressing because of the MSG (monosodium glutamate). My family eats a lot of Ranch dressing! My kids eat raw veggies with it, and they will eat salads with it.

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It gives me terrible headaches.

I do my best to avoid it, but if you read labels, youll see it is in a lot of stuff - anything that has flavoring usually has msg - rice, crackers, canned goods, boxed goods, dressings (bottle & envelope) etc. Its disturbing that its in so many items.

My dh and I "think" I have an MSG allergy. Well, we googled all of my symptoms after I had one of my little "attacks" and it matches that perfectly. How do I avoid it? Well, I have only had an attack after eating certain Chinese food (only when I try something new - my tried-and-true favorites don't cause me any trouble) and once when I had cole slaw (which is strange because that was the only cole slaw that caused me problems).

Ranch dressing has never given me a problem, so I don't know about that one.

But yeah, it is everywhere - especially in certain spices. I just have to be careful if I try something new at a restaurant. We know that I will start to have an attack an hour after I eat a food that has MSG in it - - or whatever it is that I am allergic to, if it turns out not to be MSG.

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If you need to get in touch with me, my email is teach1107910@yahoo.com.

It is known to trigger migraines. We try and avoid it all costs for my DH, who suffers horrible from migraines.

For chinese food - you can ask them to make it w/o msg - they shouldnt have a problem with it.

My MIL has breathing issues when she has MSG. So she tries to avoid it at all costs. Sometimes it is very difficult to cook for her. She has found that many generics do not have it in. She can not use ranch dressing either, although Kraft cucumber ranch does not have it. So she eats that sometimes.

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~Jill~

We haven't had any problems after eating the dressing with the msg. My 4dd used to get a red ring around her mouth after she would eat it but I haven't noticed that happening in a while. We don't eat many processed foods so I don't think there are many other foods in my home with msg. I did notice the cream of mushroom soup has it. It seems those of you who do avoid msg avoid it because of adverse reactions you have experienced. I have really changed my eating habits this year and I am trying to keep my family as healthy as possible. I might try the Kraft cucumber ranch Jillypoo mentioned.

Here is an article I found on MSG.

Are you at risk from exposure to MSG?

MSG-sensitivity is a term used by people who react adversely to "monosodium glutamate" and/or any other ingredient that contains processed free glutamic acid (MSG).

As used here, an "adverse reaction" is an unpleasant reaction that can be seen or felt by the affected person or an observer. Skin rash, nausea, migraine headache, heart irregularities, seizures, and depression are examples of adverse reactions that have been reported following ingestion of MSG. Each is a visible or observable reaction. When caused by MSG, each can be traced back to recent exposure to MSG.

Gross obesity, stunted growth, reproductive disorders, learning disabilities, behavior disorders, and retinal degeneration (possibly leading to blindness) are not classified as "adverse reactions." When caused by MSG, their roots lie in the destruction of brain cells, possibly years before gross obesity, stunted growth, reproductive disorders, learning disabilities, behavior disorders, and/or retinal degeneration are first observed. Research confirming that MSG consumed by laboratory animals causes brain lesions in the area of the hypothalamus has been replicated many times. Similarly, researchers have confirmed that when MSG is consumed by infant animals, neonates, and even fetuses, the brain lesions are followed by neuroendocrine disorders such as obesity, stunted growth, and reproductive disorders. (Research that has claimed to find that MSG is "safe" has always been seriously flawed; and has always been financed, directly or indirectly, by the glutamate industry.)

A third area of concern encompasses a number of pathological conditions such as addiction, stroke, epilepsy, brain trauma, multiple sclerosis, neuropathic pain, AIDS dementia, schizophrenia, anxiety, depression, and degenerative disorders such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). All are known to be affected by free glutamic acid. Whether ingestion of processed free glutamic acid (MSG) plays a role in causing or exacerbating these conditions is not clear. Because glutamic acid is involved in all of them, this conglomeration of pathological conditions is often referred to as the glutamate cascade.

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Why can't we just have food made out of food, then non of this would happen.

I have a set of cookbooks that I bought from a garage sale. They must have come out when MSG was the new great thing because every single recipe has it listed in it. All of them would be fine with it omitted.

Wouldn't that be great.

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