Glutamates are found in many foods, they serve as flavor enhancers and can be used by some people Glutamate intolerance to lead. In the vernacular, this phenomenon is often called Chinese restaurant syndrome designated. Glutamates are generally classified as not hazardous to health, but consumption can have unpleasant consequences for people with intolerance. However, foods with glutamates are usually not particularly nutritious and rich in vitamins, so it can make sense to avoid them even without a known intolerance.
What is Glutamate Intolerance?
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Glutamate intolerance is understood to be an accumulation of symptoms that occur immediately after eating foods that contain the additive glutamate.
An intolerance to the flavor enhancer can suddenly appear, men and women are equally affected. Glutamate is hidden in many foods, especially in ready-made products, bag soups or canteen meals. According to the law, additives such as flavor enhancers must be included in the list of ingredients of a product; glutamates are hidden behind the designations E 620 - 625.
It is often assumed that the words "free of flavor enhancers" would exclude the use of glutamate, but this is an error. Glutamates can still be present in ingredients such as yeast extracts and the like. If you want to be absolutely sure, you can only use natural products, in the case of glutamate intolerance this is necessary anyway.
causes
What causes glutamate intolerance has not yet been conclusively clarified. Some people can consume the flavor enhancer in large quantities without ever developing an intolerance, while other people develop intolerance in the course of their lives.
Children can also suffer from glutamate intolerance, and it often happens that food intolerances manifest themselves in childhood. The risk of a food allergy is increased if there are already known cases of such intolerance in the family.
In general, people with a weakened immune system are more likely to suffer from glutamate intolerance than people with a strong immune system. Some people are generally more prone to allergies and intolerance than others; if they are already known, the likelihood of developing glutamate intolerance is higher in the course of their lives.
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➔ Medicines against nausea and vomitingSymptoms, ailments & signs
The symptoms of glutamate intolerance often appear after a visit to a Chinese restaurant. About 20 minutes after eating, they manifest themselves as a sudden tingling sensation and numbness in the oral cavity, dry mouth, itching in the mouth, reddening of the cheeks, headache, stiff neck, palpitations, cardiac arrhythmias, pain in the limbs and nausea. Since Chinese dishes contain large amounts of glutamate as a flavor enhancer, it is assumed that this substance is intolerant.
However, this fact has not yet been clearly proven. It could also be an intolerance to other ingredients in these dishes. The symptoms appear only briefly and quickly subside. The affected persons report that they only suffer from these complaints after consuming the food containing glutamate.
Usually these are unpleasant but otherwise harmless symptoms. In rare cases, however, complications are also observed. These can manifest themselves in severe breathing difficulties, severe cardiac arrhythmias or even impaired consciousness. Deaths have not yet been reported. However, if the cardiac arrhythmias are particularly severe, there is also the potential for heart failure.
Overall, however, the prognosis is very favorable. In some patients, the symptoms may also be due to a so-called nocebo effect. This effect is based on the assumption by those affected that a certain substance has a negative health effect.
Complications
Glutamate intolerance only leads to complications or complaints if the patient ingests glutamate. If the glutamate is not used, in most cases there are no further complaints or complications. The intolerance usually manifests itself in severe nausea and headache.
A dry mouth and tingling sensation throughout the oral cavity develop. The patient feels sick and has aching limbs. Heart palpitations and sweats can also occur. The complaints severely limit the patient's everyday life and reduce the quality of life. The person affected is severely restricted in their diet by the disease.
In the worst case, it can also lead to breathing difficulties, which can also cause the patient to lose consciousness. Treatment can usually not be carried out.The patient has to avoid glutamate for his entire life and is not allowed to take it.
It cannot be predicted whether glutamate intolerance will go away by itself in the further course of life. If the person concerned does not use the ingredient, no further complications arise.
When should you go to the doctor?
A doctor's visit is necessary as soon as irregularities arise immediately after eating. If there are abnormalities or health problems after consuming ready-made products or visiting a restaurant, there is cause for concern. Depending on the extent of the symptoms, a doctor should be consulted immediately. If the intensity is low, it is advisable to consult a doctor the following day. Itching of the throat, redness of the skin, or swelling are unusual.
A doctor should be consulted so that glutamate intolerance can be determined using a blood test. If the mouth is very dry despite the ingestion of food, this is a warning from the body that should be followed up.
If you experience numbness or sensory disorders in the mouth that cannot be attributed to burns, a doctor's visit is required. If you have a headache, neck discomfort or a feeling of stiffness in the shoulders or neck, see a doctor.
Severe nausea, dizziness or a general feeling of illness should be clarified by a doctor. If you experience palpitations during or shortly after meals without consuming caffeine, it is advisable to consult a doctor. Any pain in the limbs or slow motor skills should be examined by a doctor. Sweating and shortness of breath are also reasons for a doctor's visit.
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Treatment & Therapy
It often takes several months to years before a glutamate intolerance is diagnosed. The symptoms are unspecific and are often not associated with food at all. If glutamate intolerance develops, those affected complain about a quarter of an hour after ingesting glutamate about general malaise, stomach problems, headaches and sometimes skin rashes.
Not all symptoms appear in every person affected, especially at the beginning of an intolerance, only isolated signs of intolerance can appear. The first step towards diagnosis is to observe the person affected. If there is already a suspicion of glutamate intolerance, an allergy test can provide more detailed information. The elimination diet is also suitable for diagnostic purposes, in which food containing glutamate is avoided in order to achieve a possible improvement in symptoms.
So-called provocation therapy is sometimes used under medical supervision. Those affected are given glutamate in a targeted manner in order to test the body's reaction to it. Such an attempt should never be carried out alone, but only under medical supervision.
The provocation therapy is only suitable if the person concerned has not yet shown any threatening symptoms. Since severe glutamate intolerance can also lead to breathing difficulties and even allergic shock, the doctor must clearly weigh the cost-benefit ratio.
Outlook & forecast
Glutamate intolerance is a food intolerance and is therefore not curable. The only way to avoid the symptoms is to completely avoid glutamate in food and drinks. Glutamate is classified as harmless to health, but now it has to be indicated on food in supermarkets and on the menus of restaurants if it is contained in food and dishes.
In particular, you should pay attention to ready-made foods and Asian dishes, because there is hardly any glutamate in natural and unprocessed, raw and fresh foods. Glutamate must also be taken into account in the restaurant, even if it is not an Asian restaurant.
In the case of glutamate intolerance, there is currently no known desensitization, as is known for other intolerances and allergies. Also, unlike in the case of lactose intolerance, there are no medications that can be taken before glutamate is consumed in order to reduce symptoms.
In most cases, glutamate intolerance is only very uncomfortable for the patient concerned, but does not lead to serious or life-threatening complications. If glutamate is accidentally consumed anyway, consumption should be discontinued as soon as it is noticed. In addition, it only helps to wait for it to subside and stay calm as possible, even if the symptoms are uncomfortable and unsettling.
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➔ Medicines against nausea and vomitingprevention
Glutamate intolerance can hardly be prevented because it can arise suddenly and a cause cannot always be determined. Basically, it has been shown that a healthy vitamin B level can contribute to better tolerance of glutamates. Even if glutamates are not harmful to health, it is advisable to largely avoid them.
Flavor enhancers are found in many foods, but there are also numerous products without the additives E 620 - 625. If possible, it is advisable to avoid all products with a particularly high glutamate content. This includes ready-made meals as well as chips or food from the canteen. More and more products are now being developed for people with glutamate intolerance.
Aftercare
The most important aftercare measure in the case of glutamate intolerance lies with the patient himself. He should avoid anything that could contain glutamate. The problem with this is that this flavor enhancer is found in many processed foods. Therefore, in the follow-up care, it is important to ensure that as little industrially produced food as possible is on the menu. Preparing everything you eat yourself from fresh ingredients is the safest aftercare.
The salt of glutamic acid has not come under criticism for nothing. Whether the Chinese restaurant syndrome exists or is pure scare tactics is not important in the case of glutamate intolerance. It is important that the person concerned is proven not to tolerate this flavor enhancer. The content of monosodium glutamate or E 621 does not have to be declared for free. A defective blood-brain barrier could actually increase the risk potential.
The problematic point is that glutamate is also an endogenous substance. This arises in the metabolism. Glutamate acts as a neurotransmitter in the body. In addition, natural glutamate occurs naturally in various foods and breast milk - occasionally in high concentrations. It is therefore difficult to ensure total abstinence after the diagnosis of "glutamate intolerance".
However, extensive avoidance is important in aftercare. Knowledge of the natural glutamate content of foods helps here. This can be researched on the Internet.
You can do that yourself
No drug has yet been developed to combat glutamate intolerance. However, it helps those affected to know that this intolerance is not, as the name suggests, against glutamate or the esters and salts of glutamic acid, but only against free glutamates, which are not bound to proteins as a specific flavor enhancer.
In this respect, it helps the person concerned to avoid food in which the flavor enhancer is used. According to the German food law, the flavor enhancer must be labeled; this applies not only to sales in grocery stores, but also in canteens and restaurants. If you have the feeling that you are allergic to food with glutamate flavor enhancers, you should clarify your suspicions with the doctor, who can diagnose the disease with an allergy test and give further advice.
Although the symptoms of those affected after consuming free glutamates are usually not life-threatening, they can be dangerous in asthmatics. In the event of an allergic shock in asthmatics, a doctor should be consulted immediately. If the shock is particularly severe, you should not be afraid to call an emergency doctor.
In general, it helps the body of those affected to eat healthily and z. B. to cook fresh every day. A high vitamin B level in particular helps to make your own organism generally more resistant to free glutamates.
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