There was a time when I weighed 40 lbs more than I do today. Back in those days I would drive-thru Jack In The Box several times a week, get two tacos a Jumbo Jack and a big ol’ soda. Sometimes I would switch it up and get some Chicken Strips with BBQ sauce and Bacon and Cheddar Potato Wedges. Looking back at that time, I was destined for disaster. I wasn’t aware of MSG at the time nor was I too concerned with my health or my weight. Times have changed.

Most of my web traffic comes from search engines. Usually from people that are asking the most popular question: “Does Jack In The Box have MSG?” The answer: Yes.

Jack In The Box has been kind enough to give a PDF of their current food ingredients list on their website. You can check it out for yourself, but I’ve done most of the work for you.

The Tacos have MSG

Menu items that contain MSG (in various forms):

• Bacon Ranch Dressing
• Barbecue Dipping Sauce
• Beef Regular Taco
• Buttermilk House Dipping Sauce
• Chicken Fajita Patty
• Grilled Chicken Fillet
• Homestyle Chicken Fillet/Mini Homestyle Fillet
• Chicken Patty
• Spicy Chicken Breast Fillet
• Chicken Strips Grilled
• Creamy Ranch Sauce
• Creamy Southwest Dressing
  

  The Spicy Chicken Sandwich has MSG

• Croutons Gourmet Seasoned
• Egg Rolls
• Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
• Hot Taco Sauce
• Lite Ranch Dressing
• Ranch Dressing
• Sausage Patty
• Seasoned Curly Fries
• Sirloin Beef Patty/Mini Sirloin Beef Patty
• Soy Sauce
• Sun Dried Tomato Sauce
• Taco Sauce
• Teriyaki Dipping Sauce
• Teriyaki Sauce

The Curly Fries have MSG (yeast extract)

The worst offenders are the Chicken Sandwiches, Tacos and Egg Rolls. These items are stacked with various forms of Monosodium Glutamate. Some include Hydrolyzed Soy Protein and Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP),

Almost all of the sauces have MSG in some form or another. It’s actually pretty hard to find sauces anywhere that don’t have MSG of some sort. Fast food is cheap quality food, that’s why you can buy it for .99 cents. The cost is cheap because it’s poor quality food, so they add fillers to it to make it cheaper. This act will then make it not taste very good so then you have to add flavor enhancers such as Monosodium Glutamate and lots of salt to add flavor back.

The problem is the MSG just isn’t good for you, no matter what the main stream media will tell you. They lie. Their advertisers are in the food industry, if the main stream media suddenly started telling you the truth about how harmful MSG is, their advertisers would be severely hurt, loss of revenue.

One of the fillers the food industry uses for fillers is called TVP or Textured Vegetable Protein. Think of it as tofu, pretty bland and tasteless. TVP itself often contains excitotoxins like MSG. You have to mix it in with other things, like MSG or Soy Sauce which has MSG/free glutamates.

The Egg Rolls have MSG

For more info on the dangers of MSG and the link between obesity and MSG. Click here.

Also search for Russell Blaylock M.D., he has several books, one of them is called Excitotoxins: The Taste that Kills, the other is Health & Nutrition Secrets  That Can Save Your Life. I own both books and I swear by the information in them. Dr. Blaylock is a board certified neurosurgeon for over 20 years.

In 1968 Dr. John Olney started conducting experiments on mice using MSG. (Mice are frequently used as test animals because they react most like humans to MSG.) Obsessed with the microscopic changes in the brains of the mice he overlooked something quite dramatic first noticed by his assistant. She pointed out to him that all of the mice were grossly obese. At first he thought it was just a fluke, but as the experiment progressed he noticed that indeed all the mice fed MSG became grossly obese.

MSG fed rodent

Since his early observation, other studies have confirmed that MSG causes gross obesity in animals. At an international neuroscience meeting, Dr. Olney was asked if he thought the reason AMericans were so obese was, inf act, due to their high consumption of MSG additives. The question was never answered, but since that conference in the 1970′s, America has undergone this virtual epidemic of gross obesity, especially among its youth.

While most will attribute the problem to children’s couch-potato lifestyles or diets high in sugar and other forms of carbohydrate and fat, other research has been conducted that sheds further light on the theory of MSG-induced obestity. One study discovered that animals fed MSG soon after birth preferred foods that were high in carbohydrates and low in nutritional value. They also ate less, but ate rapidly. In other words, they were eating like teenagers.

Researchers also found that this fat could not be exercised off and was extremely difficult to remove through dieting, no matter how astringent. Again, this is reminiscent of the problem in our population. Today, most processed foods contain signifcant amounts of glutamate, enough to produce injuries to our children’s brains similar to those seen in experiemental animals. This is extremely important when you consider that, of all the mammals, humans are the most susceptible to physical damage from ingested MSG. We possess a sensitivity five times greater than the mouse and twenty times greater than the rhesus monkey.

With this enormous consumption of foods laced with MSG additives, it is no wonder that we have an obesity problem in this country, especially when you combine the hyptothalamic lesion caused by MSG to the high-fat and carbohydrate diets of young people. Of particular concern is the suggestion that MSG ingested by pregnant women may actually cuase this lesion in children while they are still in the womb.

One of the worst offenders is pizza, especially commercial pizza. The tomato sauce is high in naturally derived free glutamate alone. When you add this to a liberal helping of MSG additive, you have a very neurotoxic mix. Add to that a twenty-once diet drink and you can see why we are having problems with obesity. Our children have become lab rats.

Excerpts from: Russell Blaylock M.D., Health and Nutrition Secrets that can save your life.

Sources:

1. Bunyan J, Elspeth A, Murrell A, Shah PP. The induction of obesity in rodents by means of monosodium glutamate.   British Journal of Nutrition 35(1976): 25-39.
2. Kanarek RB, Marks-Kaufman R. Increased carbohydrate consumption induced by neonatal administration of monosodium glutamate to rats. Neurobehavioral Toxicology Teratology 3(1981): 343-350
3. Nikoletseas MM. Obesity in exercising, hypophagic rats treated with monosodium glutamate. Physiology & Behavior 19(1977): 767-773.

Animal tests were conducted by Dr. John Olney in 1969 testing the brain destruction of the hypothalamus in a small group of cells called the arcuate nucleus. These are a tiny group of neurons that control the release of the regulating factor for growth hormone, which may also be responsible for other pituitary hormones. Dr. Olney discovered that animals fed MSG not only produced less growth hormone but they also lacked the normal release pattern seen in nearly all other mammals, including humans. The pituitary glands normally secrete growth-regulating hormone in spurts, with an extra blast occurring when we fall asleep or take a nap, this is one reason why it is so important for children to get plenty of sleep.

Studies found that this nucleus connected to all the other nuclei of the hypothalamus, and was therefore given a special status. We’ve also learned that the most important neurotransmitter in the hypothalamus is glutamate. As a result, high doses of glutamate given to newborn animals could damage several of the important nuclei in the hypothalamus. This was reflected in observations that many of the regulating hormones secreted by the pituitary and controlled by the hypothalamus were deficient in these animals.

Numerous studies using immature mice have shown that LH, FSH and prolactin (the reproductive hormones), HGH (growth hormone), ACTH (adrenal regulating hormone), and TSH (thyroid regulating hormone) were all decreased following exposure to MSG. These hormone deficiencies were reflected in the animals by small size, low reproductivity ability, gross obesity and low metabolism.

Source: Health & Nutrion Secrets that can Save your Life, pg 186, Russell Blaylock M.D.

If fried snack chips had a warning printed right on the bag that said, “Warning: these chips will make you obese,” would you still buy them? Would you still eat them? Well, in a sense, you do see that warning on chips; just read the ingredient list. Research suggests that monosodium glutamate causes obesity, making unhealthy snacks even unhealthier than you may have suspected.

MSG-laced

I’m sure you already know that tortilla and potato chips aren’t health foods, right? They’re made with fried fats, they almost always harbor hidden toxic chemicals (acrylamides), and if they’re flavored, they usually contain monosodium glutamate (MSG). This is basically a recipe for obesity.

But how does MSG cause obesity? Like aspartame, MSG is an excitotoxin, a substance that overexcites neurons to the point of cell damage and, eventually, cell death. Humans lack a blood-brain barrier in the hypothalamus, which allows excitotoxins to enter the brain and cause damage, according to Dr. Russell L. Blaylock in his book Excitotoxins. According to animal studies, MSG creates a lesion in the hypothalamus that correlates with abnormal development, including obesity, short stature and sexual reproduction problems.

Based on this evidence, Dr. Blaylock makes an interesting point about the American obesity epidemic, especially among young people: “One can only wonder if the large number of people having difficulty with obesity in the United States is related to early exposure to food additive excitotoxins, since this obesity is one of the most consistent features of the syndrome. One characteristic of the obesity induced by excitotoxins is that it doesn’t appear to depend on food intake. This could explain why some people cannot diet away their obesity.” As an increasing number of elementary school students bring snack-size bags of chips to school in their lunch boxes, the MSG-obesity link demands parental caution.

Instead of passively watching modern society become obese and then commenting on it, we need to change it at the start. That begins with you, the consumer. By avoiding foods with MSG, you are not only protecting your health and your family’s health, you are also protecting society’s health by not supporting companies that use MSG. Use your buying power to show that you don’t accept manufactured foods that use MSG or any of the other hidden forms of MSG such as yeast extract, hydrolyzed vegetable proteins and autolyzed proteins.

The experts speak on MSG and obesity:

Olney, J.W. “Brain Lesions, Obesity, and Other Disturbances in Mice Treated with Monosodium glutamate.” Sci. 165(1969): 719-271. Humans also lack a blood-brain barrier in the hypothalamus, even as adults. It is for this reason that Dr. Olney and other neuroscientists are so concerned about the widespread and heavy use of excitotoxins, such as MSG, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, and cysteine, as food additives. In his experiments Dr. Olney found that high-dose exposure to MSG caused hypoplasia of the adenohypophysis of the pituitary and of the gonads, in conjunction with low hypothalamic, pituitary, and plasma levels of LH, growth hormone, and prolactin. When doses below toxic levels for hypothalamic cells were used, he found a rapid elevation of LH and a depression of the pulsatile output of growth hormone. In essence, these excitotoxins can cause severe pathophysiological changes in the central endocrine control system. Many of these dysfunctional changes can occur with subtoxic doses of MSG. One can speculate that chronic exposure to these neurotoxins could cause significant alterations in the function of the hypothalamus, including its non-endocrine portions.
Excitotoxins by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 263

“Consuming MSG leads to obesity”

Early exposure in life to high doses of glutamate, or the other excitotoxins, could theoretically produce a whole array of disorders much later in life, such as obesity, impaired growth, endocrine problems, sleep difficulties, emotional problems including episodic anger, and sexual psycho-pathology.
Excitotoxins by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 89

The stress-induced abnormalities in blood-brain barrier permeability suggest differing MSG effects dependent on existing states of relaxation or stresses. The suggestive evidence for MSG-induced neuroendocrine effects is substantial, coupled with the observation of increased obesity in children.
In Bad Taste by George R Schwartz MD, page 39

With this enormous consumption of foods laced with MSG additives, it is no wonder that we have an obesity problem in this country, especially when you combine the hypothalamic lesion caused by MSG to the high-fat and -carbohydrate diets of young people. Of particular concern is the suggestion that MSG ingested by pregnant women may actually cause this lesion in children while they are still in the womb.
Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 180

This also means that, while pregnant, mothers of diabetic children also consumed very large amounts of these excitotoxin-containing foods. Also, many parents feed their babies table food from an early age—food often laced with large amounts of MSG. In addition, large numbers of babies are also fed formula, and many formulas are known to be high in excitotoxins such as caseinate. I have already cited studies showing that gross obesity is frequently linked to excessive MSG consumption in test animals.
Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 182

Particularly disturbing is the later obesity after MSG exposure during the neonatal and infant period even after only a short or limited exposure.
In Bad Taste by George R Schwartz MD, page 22

With all of these endocrine malfunctions you would expect these mice to develop abnormally, and they do. Consistently, the animals exposed to MSG were found to be short, grossly obese, and had difficulty with sexual reproduction. One can only wonder if the large number of people having difficulty with obesity in the United States is related to early exposure to food additive excitotoxins since this obesity is one of the most consistent features of the syndrome. One characteristic of the obesity induced by excitotoxins is that it doesn’t appear to depend on food intake. This could explain why some people cannot diet away their obesity. It is ironic that so many people drink soft drinks sweetened with NutraSweet® when aspartate can produce the exact same lesions as glutamate, resulting in gross obesity. The actual extent of MSG induced obesity in the human population is unknown.
Excitotoxins by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 81

“Animal studies demonstrate link between MSG and obesity”

The obesity effect of MSG in animals requires evaluation since unexplained obesity is increasing in our population, along with hypertension and diabetes. MSG-induced obesity in animals may carry long-term significance for humans.
In Bad Taste by George R Schwartz MD, page 22

Since his early observation, other studies have confirmed that MSG causes gross obesity in animals. At an international neuroscience meeting, Dr. Olney was asked if he thought the reason Americans were so obese was, in fact, due to their high consumption of MSG additives. The question was never answered, but since that conference in the 1970s, America has undergone this virtual epidemic of gross obesity, especially among its youth.
Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 180

This MSG-induced obesity was characterized by a preference for carbohydrates and an aversion for more nutritious foods, just as we are now witnessing in our youth. Also, excess weight was extremely difficult to exercise off or diet off in these experimental animals.
Health And Nutrition Secrets by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 182

http://www.naturalnews.com/009379.html

Monosodium Glutamate "MSG"

Sources of MSG include: MSG, Monosodium Glutamate, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein, Vegetable
Protein, Hydrolyzed Plant Protein, Plant Protein Extract, Sodium Caseinate, Calcium Caseinate,
Yeast Extract, Textured Protein, Autolyzed Protein, Autolyzed Yeast, and Hydrolyzed Oat Flour.

Additives frequently containing MSG: Malt extract, Malt Flavoring, Bouillon, Broth, Stock,
Flavoring, Natural Flavoring, Natural Beef or Chicken Flavoring, Seasoning and Spices.

Additives that may contain MSG or Excitotoxins: Carrageenan, Enzymes, Soy Protein Concentrate,
Soy Protein Isolate, and Protein Concentrate. Protease enzymes of various sources can release
excitotoxin amino acids from food proteins.

Foods to watch out for include: Soybean milk (naturally high in glutamate / often has hydrolyzed
vegetable protein added to it), kombu, miso, and soy sauces all contain MSG.

Reference:
Blaylock, R. (1997).Excitotoxins – The Taste That Kills, Albuquerque, NM: Health Press NA.