I thought I would post this because it's bound to help someone out there...

Taurine

Some MSG sensitive individuals report relief from some MSG symptoms by taking taurine in powder form free of additives or fillers. The rationale behind this approach is that glutamate competes with the amino acid cysteine for uptake in the body. An excess of glutamate will interfere with the body's ability to convert cysteine into taurine, the other free form amino acid which acts as the body's heartbeat regulator. Taurine is the body's water soluble anti-oxidant, and inhibitory neurotransmitter. The body also uses taurine to make bile, which aids in the digestion of fats.

The idea of taking taurine for accidental MSG ingestion is that since MSG may inhibit taurine formation, those with irregular heartbeat, digestive problems, epilepsy, vision disturbance, and panic attacks from MSG, may benefit from ingesting taurine instead of waiting for the body to make it.

Unfortunately, most food scientists are not taught about taurine because adults are assumed to be able to make it and shouldn't need to eat it. It isn't even listed in most tables of the amino acids. However, taurine is so important in the body, that since 1986 it has been added to baby formula because it is essential for proper growth and development in humans. Also, studies of people with epilepsy have shown that taurine levels in the brain after a seizure are unusually low. Taurine is now being considered as treatment for diabetes as well as epilepsy.

Foods high in taurine include fresh fish and meat. It is not found in significant amounts in foods of non-meat origin. Heat for long periods of time destroys it. It is interesting that the Japanese use much MSG, but also eat diets high in fish, and raw fish at that. A Japanese meal of sushi contains much taurine, as well as MSG. Chinese food, which often is cooked at high heat and also contains mushrooms, another source of free glutamate, and often mostly vegetables, would contain less protective taurine.

Curcumin also has a strong effect on blocking glutamate. I've been taking it for 3 months, and to my astonishment, NO MORE MIGRAINES. And I've been suffering from severe ones for decades. Curcumin has other effects such as thinning the blood (I had thick blood) and it probably helped them in that respect too. But when I heard it could help migraines I really was not expecting them to *entirely* go away.

No doubt it helped that I had done some mercury detox first, a few months of NCD, which had helped decrease my migraines to about 6 a month, which was still costing around $150 a months since migraine meds are 25 bucks apiece. GAH.

I'm sure now that I've had an MSG sensitivity I wasn't aware of. After I found a list of all the things in food that MSG is hidden as, I was definitely eating it every day. Even as someone who does 90% of my own cooking from scratch!

Here's part of an interview about excitotoxins with Russell Blaylock that mentions Curcumin:

http://www.newstarget.com/020550.html

Mike: Here's a practical question that's actually been burning in my head for about eight years: Is there anything that a person can take to block the absorption of MSG or glutamate as a defensive supplement?

Dr. Blaylock: Well, not necessarily to block it. You have other amino acids that can't compete for glutamic acid absorption. So that may be one way to help reduce the rate at which it would be absorbed.

Mike: Which aminos would those be?

Dr. Blaylock: Those would include leucine, isoleucine and lysine. They would compete for the same carrier system, so that would slow down absorption. There are a lot of things that act as glutamate blockers. You know, like silimarin, curcumin and ginkgo biloba. These things are known to directly block glutamate receptors and reduce excitotoxicity. Curcumin is very potent. Most of your flavonoids.

Magnesium is particularly important, because magnesium can block the MNDA glutamate type receptor. That's its natural function, so it significantly reduces toxicity. Vitamin E succinate is powerful at inhibiting excitotoxicity, as are all of your antioxidants. They found combinations of B vitamins also block excitotoxicity.

All the above information is so useful. Thanks for posting those <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Also remember that glutamtic acid is high in wheat and nuts. Allthough bound, it might upset sensitive people. No wonder vegetarians seem poorly with soy being the worst culprit!! They also tend to eat more wheat and nut products....very high in glutamic acid.

Both magnesium and zinc function in stabilizing the receptor in the brain that glutamate hits on (NMDA).

I've read that taking branched chain amino acids (often available as a bodybuilding supplement) can increase the rate at which glutamate is metabolized to something else.

Finally, alcohol will blunt the response to an excess of glutamate from a meal. This, however, is not a long-term solution, because the brain will adjust for this effect.