I know you might still be asking yourself,what is this guy really talking about. Don't worry,just move along with me and you will understand.
MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE (MSG) AND ITS EFFECTS TO THE HUMAN BODY
Monosodium glutamate is a flavour enhancer used in many countries,It is found in canned and packed food. Monosodium glutamate is a widely used food additive whose incessant consumption has been reported to possibly induce at a very high extent the rate of oxidative stress and cardiac tissue damages in the human body.MSG is produced majorly by bacterial fermentation in a process that is similar to vinegar or yoghurt production.
Despite numerous reports indicating MSG to be toxic,it's toxicity is still absorbed in substantial controversy.In many countries there are no limitations on the use of MSG as food additive, this is mostly because the labels of MSG containing products do not usually state the concentration of MSG in them.In a bid to curtail this growing menace, doctors recommend synthetic pharmaceutical antioxidants to affected individuals.This drugs are usually costly.
WHAT IS OXIDATIVE STRESS,CAUSES AND EFFECTS ON THE HUMAN BODY
This where we should focus more and learn adequately.
I will try as much as possible to make it simple to understand.
First of all note that PATHOGENS in our body causes infections.There are molecules in our body called free radicals which are produced naturally during excersize, inflammation, cigarette smoking, exposure to ozone,radiation, pollution,certain pesticides and cleaners,high sugar diet,alcohol, high fat diet etc.This molecules contains oxygen with uneven number of electrons and thus are said to be highly reactive oxygen species.
Antioxidants on the other hand are those molecules that donate electrons to free radicals very easily without making themselves appear in an unstable state.When antioxidants donate electrons to free radicals,the free radicals becomes less reactive and at that point they can now fight PATHOGENS very comfortably.In order words an imbalance in the amount of free radicals and antioxidants in our body causes oxidative stress and this is a very hazardous situation because the free radicals tends to start reacting with other molecules other than antioxidants,thus giving rise to very harmful products.
MAJOR EFFECT OF OXIDATIVE STRESS
The harmful products of this reaction can damage tissue,DNA and proteins in our human body given rise to numerous diseases like diabetes,athereosclerosis, or the hardening of the blood vessels,inflammatory conditions,hypertension,heart disease,neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s and cancer etc
HOW TO MANAGE AND ALSO PREVENT OXIDATIVE STRESS
I believe we have learnt what MSG and Oxidative stress is all about, therefore let us now discuss how to prevent their hazardous effects.
In order to decrease the rate of oxidative stress in our body we need to learn how to increase the amount of antioxidants in our body and lower the amount of free radicals being generated in our body systems.This can be achieved in the following ways
- Less Consumption of MSG containing foods
- Consumption of high antioxidants yielding fruits like berries,cherries,citrus,fruits,prunes,dark,leafy,greens,broccoli,carrots,tomatoes and olives etc
- Consumption of other dietary antioxidant sources like fish and nuts,vitamin E,vitamin C,turmeric,green,tea,melatonin,onion,garlic,cinnamon
- Quit smoking
- A regular and moderate excersize routine check
- Avoid overeating
- Be very conscious of your environment
- Lower your exposure to chemicals
- Wear sunscreen
- Decrease your alcohol intake
- Get plenty of sleep etc
IN CONCLUSION
Much intake of MSG containing food is hazardous to health as it imposes a lot of threat through oxidative stress.Excersize induced oxidative stress is most common because a lot of people indulge in strenuous exercises.
Free radicals and antioxidants are part of our natural body planning or building, Oxidative stress only occurs when there is an imbalance of free radicals and antioxidants in our body.We can't entirely avoid our body exposure to free radicals,thus it is wise that we take into consideration to monitor our excersize routine,diet, and environment.