Fortifying your knowledge of energy drinks, yogurt & MSG
Reading food labels with their many health and nutrition claims, is often like reading labels on dietary supplements. In fact, in the past, many foods were actually being sold like patent medicines. In 1990, the US FDA produced new rules, which required that claims be “science-based,” though the food industry has successfully pushed for looser rules and frequently tests the limits of those rules.
As more products old standbys as well as new fortified “functional” foods proclaim their health benefits, the claims often confuse and mislead as much as they enlighten. For today’s column, let us discuss three food items and what science knows about them today.
Yogurt, the new super food
Yogurt can do almost everything these days alleviate constipation, prevent colds, lower cholesterol and blood pressure, even help keep you young. That is, if you believe what the labels and ads say or boldly imply. No question, yogurt is a healthy food. But does it live up to its new super-food status?
Yogurts are produced by fermenting milk with “probiotic” bacteria such as Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus. These bacteria convert milk sugar (lactose) into lactic acid, giving yogurt its characteristic tang. Some yogurts contain additional bacterial strains. Probiotics (meaning “for life,” as opposed to antibiotics) are live microorganisms that supposedly confer health benefits when present in sufficient number in the intestinal tract. Different strains are thought to have different physiological effects. In general, they are said to rebalance the bacteria naturally present in the large intestine, though what that means is debatable, especially for healthy people. A growing number of manufacturers boast that their products have unique probiotics or other special ingredients that make them even healthier and often charge a premium price for them.
Among the health claims of yogurt products are that they “strengthen the body’s defense system,” “enhance digestive health,” and “help you slim down by burning more fat.” The escalating health claims for yogurt have not gone unnoticed by consumer agencies and a class action lawsuit has been filed against some manufacturers.
Here’s a medical advice to you on taking yogurt for health reasons: Don’t eat yogurt for medical benefits. Eat it if you like it and as a good source of calcium, protein, potassium, and other nutrients. One cup offers nearly half your calcium needs. Here’s what to keep in mind when shopping for yogurt:
• Choose low-fat or nonfat versions.
• For the most nutrients, buy plain yogurt and add fresh fruits. Many fruit yogurts contain lots of sugar and not much fruit.
• Don’t pay more for less. Yogurts with extra ingredients and health claims often come in smaller containers yet cost more than regular yogurts. Some yogurt add-ons though may be worth seeking out: vitamin D, extra calcium, and sterols (if you have high cholesterol).
• Probiotics in yogurt may have a range of benefits, though most are still unproven. For example, it’s not known just how many live organisms are really present, which strains are most beneficial, or how much you would need for any of the proposed health benefits.
MSG & The Chinese restaurant syndrome
Though it may sound like some industrial additive cooked up in a chemical factory, monosodium glutamate, or MSG, is as natural a flavorant as you can find. It is about 78-percent glutamate (also called glutamic acid) and 12-percent sodium. The former is an amino acid (a building block of protein) that occurs in human cells and many foods. That plate of spaghetti with tomato sauce probably has more glutamate than a similar quantity of Chinese food.
MSG was first isolated in Japan around 1908, where it was extracted by boiling seaweed. Widely used all over the world today, it can also be made from molasses or sugar beets, for example. Many foods, especially the most flavorful and nutritious, are rich in free glutamate (without the sodium molecules). These include walnuts, tomatoes, grape juice, peas, mushrooms, potatoes, chicken, Parmesan cheese, and soy protein. Human milk contains glutamate. A glutamate-free diet would be hard to design.
Nevertheless, many people fear MSG their fear being a source of amazement in such nations as China and Japan, where people consume large amounts without reporting adverse reactions. The term “Chinese Restaurant Syndrome” was coined in 1968 in a letter to the New England Journal of Medicine. It was said to consist of vague symptoms including headache, weakness, rapid heartbeat, and facial burning. But years of scientific research have never been able to establish that any such syndrome exists. You’ll even find claims on some websites that MSG is a poison and the cause of everything from migraines to cancer, and is hidden in our food by people who want to kill us.
The US FDA, World Health Organization, and other authorities have concluded that MSG is safe in the quantities commonly used in foods. Many large, well-designed studies have failed to find any association between MSG and adverse symptoms of any kind, including asthma and migraines. It’s possible that a very small percentage of people are sensitive to MSG and feel strange after they take it, but no study has ever been able to show that MSG causes more than transient and mild symptoms, even in people who believe they are sensitive.
An international symposium at the University of Heidelberg in 2006 reviewed all the evidence. The research concluded that MSG is harmless in the amounts added to foods, even for pregnant women and fetuses, and that MSG might improve appetite in the elderly. The body processes MSG exactly the same way it processes free glutamate. If you believe MSG gives you headaches or causes other reactions, there is no reason to consume it. When it’s added to foods, the labels must say so. Recognizing their customer’s preference, a number of Chinese restaurants in Metro Manila no longer use MSG. Ask about this when you order. But keep in mind that soy sauce has lots of MSG.
“Energy” drinks
For those of you who have shopped at convenience stores abroad, you would not have missed such drinks as 5-Hour Energy, Daredevil Lighter Fluid, Rock Star, Jolt Endurance Shot, Sex Drive, Roboosto, and X Energy. These are “energy” drinks a fast growing billion-dollar market. Red Bull was the first of these brands in 1997, and they have multiplied since by leaps and bounds. These beverages contain or claim to contain a variety of “energy boosters,” such as tyrosine, phenylalanine, taurine, and other chemicals. Many boast antioxidants, “green-tea based energy,” and mega doses of B vitamins, as well as ginseng and other herbs.
But the only ingredient in those drinks guaranteed to make you feel energetic is the hefty dose of caffeine (or caffeine-containing ingredients such as yerba mate). Some supply two or three times as much caffeine as a cup of brewed coffee. A few are simply herbal cocktails, with the same claims but no caffeine.
These products are pitched at the young. They promise not only to provide “energy,” but also to boost libido and provide a “second wind” for all-night partying. If you are simply an exhausted adult faced with lots of mental or physical work, you may wonder if these drinks could help. The answer is not much at least not more than coffee. There’s nothing wrong with a cup or two of coffee, but swallowing large amounts of concentrated caffeine can give you the jitters, upset your stomach, and bring on agitation and insomnia. The claim that vitamins or herbal cocktails are “energizing” is false. Vitamins and herbs do not give you energy.
Energy drinks have been linked with “toxic jock identity” risky, aggressive behavior coupled with substance abuse which was the focus of a recent study from the Research Institute on Addictions at the University of Buffalo. One can of energy drink won’t turn you into a toxic jock, of course. But if you need a quick lift, coffee or tea are better choices than these drinks. If you have teenagers in your household, try to steer them away from these products.
