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Japanese food conjures up images of fish, rice, miso soup and tofu but recently fitness in the Land of the Rising Sun appears to be deteriorating. Unfortunately, an increasing number of Japanese are adopting unhealthy eating patterns and eating like Sumo wrestlers. The Japanese used to eat food high in protein, but over the past few decades there has been a shift towards eating more animal fat, and western fast food. Experts warn that Japanese children are leading increasingly sedentary lives, and foregoing tofu for burgers and instant noodles.

Wow, a higher fat/higher caloric diet (fat contains more than twice the calories, per gram, as carbs and protein) and a sedentary lifestyle is leading to health problems among Japanese children. Who would have thunk it? The horror.

The Japanese have been eating a diet high in MSG for hundreds and hundreds of years while never suffering from obesity. They also continue to enjoy one of the longest life spans of any people. But now you want to blame MSG for higher calorie diets and a sedentary lifesyle. Idiot.

MSG consumption has increased globally in recent years, with recent estimations of the current average daily intake believed to be up to 10 g/day (16). 16. Nakanishi Y., Tsuneyama K., Fujimoto M., Salunga T. L., Nomoto K., An J. L., Takano Y., Iizuka S., Nagata M., Suzuki W., et al. 2008. Monosodium glutamate (MSG): a villain and promoter of liver inflammation and dysplasia. J. Autoimmun. 30: 42–50 [PubMed]

Yes, the current daily intake of glutamate from all sources is estimated to be around 10 grams per day. Of that amount, approximately 90% comes from naturally occurring sources while approximately 10% comes from added sources. Hence, 1 gram per day from added sources.

Trying to use Google as a substitute for an education in life science is about as effective as using Google as a replacement for critical thinking skills. You are failing in both respects. Please stop. Go find something else to occupy your time.

"Yes, the current daily intake of glutamate from all sources is estimated to be around 10 grams per day"

Nice try except the article did not say "all sources" but you keep trying there sparky.

"The Japanese have been eating a diet high in MSG for hundreds and hundreds of years while never suffering from obesity."

Yes and in those hundreds of years they have been eating an eastern diet lacking in the modern wonders Big Agra gives us in a our processed food. But now they are eating food which has MSG combined with trans fats and all the other wonderful crap they are getting fatter. Their caloric intake is increasing now is that because they all suddenly got hungrier in the last couple of decades?

Is it possible the combo of MSG and say transfats or highly refined sugars like HFC create on override on the bodies ability to recognize it has taken in enough food?

What I've read states that MSG is absorbed very quickly in the blood stream where as glutamic acid-containing proteins in foods (A.K.A. natural occurring glutamate) does not. Thus MSG spikes the level of glutamate in the bloodstream so saying it is the same as natural occurring glutamate is a misnomer at best.

So then you have MSG spiking glutamate levels in the bloodstream what does such do to the glutamate receptors responsible for taste in the human body>

Did you know there is a malady called "Excitotoxicity"? Basically its a condition where the glutamate receptors get over stimulated by high levels of:

wait for it...

Glutamate in the bloodstream.

Gee isn't that interesting?

Large amounts of Glutamate in the bloodstream all at once overload the taste receptors of the human body and can cause Excitotoxicity yet naturally occurring Glutamate in foods don't spike those levels...

interesting. Don't you think?