What was up after Allen & Hines (1940)?

By Tatjana van der Krabben

When you zoom in on lipedema literature, you mainly find Allen & Hines (1940) in the USA and a huge leap towards the late nineties. That’s where it seemingly resurfaces in Europe, mostly in the German context of descriptive cases and liposuction. This blog is an attempt to partially bridge this gap. I’m jumping from one paper to the next to see where it takes me. Obviously I found heaps more. In this blog I highlight the more interesting finds.

Other research on lipedema in the US

My first lead was L.E. Wold, who published with Allen & Hines on lipedema. He too vanished into thin air together with Allen & Hines.  The last reference being a publication by Hines (1952): http://www.researchgate.net/publication/8750774_Lipedema_and_physiologic_edema.

 J. Beninson and J.W. Edelglass from the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Michigan published on it in 1984. The paper has an intriguing title: Lipedema: the non-lymphatic masquerader. They already observed it may be (part) hereditary. They also mention treatment with diuretics was unsuccessful and they actually refer to the extraction of fat: “Rank and Wong have had some success with surgically debulking some fatty tissue.” Alas, no other publications I could find on lipedema by these gentlemen. Plenty on lymphedema, though.

I also found G.H. Rudkin and T.A. Miller from UCLA School of Medicine. This is the abstract of their paper: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7972431. While looking into lymphedema, they also found lipedema cases (1994). The lipedema paper was unfortunately a onetime thing. For the both of them, as far as I can tell.

There were a few other dotted incidents, mostly of a descriptive nature, expressing surprise on the existence of lipedema and/or debating the name tag. Like Eisman and Swezey from the University of California (1979) advocating the term ‘juxta-articular adiposis dolorosa’ or JAD for short, mainly making an issue of fat hindering the joints – with good reason, it being a source of pain and damage to the joints. Yet it just never quite sticks anywhere, not until much later when dr. Herbst picks up on the subject – nothing within that gap until the mid-nineties.

From mostly descriptive stuff to some serious content

“We found cases of women with fat legs etc.” I found enough papers from ‘the gap’ along those lines to wallpaper my entire house! I pushed onwards, trying to get to the good stuff. My definition of that? A doctor looking beyond quoting Allen & Hines and trying to learn or find something new on lipedema.

The first I found from ‘the gap’ was in German, but…from Switzerland, official translation of the title: Vascular diseases in lipedema of the legs. Special symptoms, common therapeutic results, viewpoint on vascular surgery, by U. Brunner (1982). Brunner seemingly also had a non-sticking attitude towards lipedema: no other publications on the subject. It’s a vital piece, (already) warning to take particular care when proceeding with vascular surgery in case of lipedema.

Next, I found a real treat: Experimentelle Untersuchungen zur Frage akrocyotischer Zustandsbilder by Moncorps, Brinkhaus and Herfeld-Münster. It mentions the specification on the ‘Moncorps’ type of lipedema. I knew of the Moncorps type – was diagnosed with that myself – but never saw the details of the relevant publication. Currently not really en vogue anymore, but reference to lipedema nonetheless. This is the fun part: published in Berlin in…1940!

I still have a gap to look at, but apparently the Germans never jumped on the train, they were already on it from the start.  

Finally a pattern started to emerge. Scattered across Europe, tucked away between a long list of mostly descriptive papers, I found more in-depth research. Bilancini et al (1995) touch upon a long list of significant references regarding research on our lymphatics and veins. They boldly call lipedema a chronic vascular disease and quote German, Dutch, French and Italian literature from the eighties and early nineties. A theme, cross references and a subcutaneous sneak peek! In short, in the 1980’s it picked up speed, mostly in Europe. Not just Germany.

Very vital findings available on healing issues after surgery (Tiwari et al, 2003 and Macdonald et al, 2003, Brunner, 1982), our lymphatic and venous functions (for instance Harwood et al, 1996 and Wittlinger & Wittlinger, 1978) and the use of scans to help differentiate lymphedema en lipedema and other conditions leading to swollen legs (for instance Boursier et al, 2004 and Dimakakos et al, 1997). A pleasant surprise among all that European input was ‘CT of swollen legs’ by Australian B.F. Vaughan (1990). Unfortunately these efforts received far less attention than the descriptive stuff and liposuction.

Besides liposuction

When liposuction made medical headlines, most quotes, also among patients, evolved around liposuction papers: results, risks, long-term results, techniques. I get it: it’s the closest thing found to a cure – although it’s not a cure, but a road to relief. You get the false impression nothing much went on after Allen & Hines. The research on our veins and lymphatics got covered in dust. Bloody shame if you ask me. Most doctors are clueless you can’t just dive in with a scalpel, what people like Brunner already warned about in 1982. Now we mostly still need to warn our doctors ourselves – if we know there are increased risks of complications after surgery in case of lipedema.

Yet, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Until the 1990’s publications were highly incidental. Severely hindered by the fact virtually each researcher only touched upon it briefly, rarely proceeding more in-depth. The last few years there are many, many publications. Not just on liposuction. Research on the exploration of suspected further symptoms like hypermobility, vitamin B12 and D3 deficiency and the genetic factor, further research on our capillaries and veins, our fatty tissue: it’s happening as we speak. Either recently published or about to be published. The abundance of papers gives me hope it will percolate its way into medical praxis more broadly.

Cortisol and Estrogen Connection in Lipedema Recovery - Part II

by Maggie McCarey

Sorry, for taking so much time to write part 2 of cortisol and estrogen connection.  Studying it was like learning a new language (which is ironic since my life depends on knowing speaking it to my primary). After reading about cortisol and estrogen until my eyes crossed, I came across one doctor, Alfred J. Plechner, who brings the adrenal gland into our estrogen discussion and oddly makes the discussion understandable.  He writes:

I have long regarded adrenal dysfunction as a well-spring of excess estrogen which may contribute to hormonal imbalances, immune destabilization, and increased vulnerability to disease. As a practicing clinician, I have consistently found elevated total estrogen as part of an endocrine-immune derangement present in many common diseases of dogs and cats.

     

Wait.  What?  Dogs and Cats?  Yes, Alfred J. Plechner is a veterinarian, but before I discuss Dr Plechner’s findings, I want to share why I am so interested in this topic.

      

I am looking for 1) why lipedema spikes during female reproductive stages;  2) how to stop lipedema in its tracks during these reproductive events; and 3) how to stop my ever-present hormonal surges, sore breasts, occasional bleeding, premenstrual crampiness, and peaking emotions since post-menopause 8 years ago.  (Yes, I have had the traditional medical tests designed to detect cancer but otherwise do not address serious medical issues)

Like many of you, one or more hormonal events triggered a lipedema spike in my body. Mine: huge weight gain at menses and at the birth of my first child, a boy.  Then weight loss when my daughter was born and during peri-menopause.  A weight gain, all-time high at menopause with a new addition of much immovable weight gain in my stomach which had been no more than a pouch.  And now, post-menopause, no more weight gain, as I have lost slowly and steadily for the last three years but with much unexpected hormonal activity even though my reproductive stages have supposedly ended.

     

Because women are finally sharing their collective history of post-menopause with such consistency, a new understanding of menopause is being forged and a new phase, perhaps, will be named.  Oh wait, in my research, I discovered there is such a name. Are you properly strapped into your ruby red slippers?

After menopause, every woman will be affected differently and they will be at higher risk for breast cancer, cardiovascular disease, fibroids, post-menopause weight gain, urinary incontinence, a thin, watery vaginal discharge tinged with blood signaling vaginal wall atrophy, hair loss, and  osteoporosis.  At the same time ovulation ceases, progesterone drops to zero while estrogen drops 40 - 60% from its pre-menopause level.  In order for the body to be healthy, estrogen and progesterone need to be in balance, and when they are, women are disease-free. This is called post-menopause syndrome.                                   

I just want to repeat the salient sentence in the above paraphrase: 

In order for the body to be healthy, estrogen and progesterone need to be in balance, and when they are, women are disease-free. When the estrogen and progesterone are not in balance, a woman sufferers from post-menopause syndrome. 

Is it possible to ascertain cortisol level in the human body? Yes, with a non-invasive, inexpensive, simple 24-hour urine test and now with hair analysis which tells the history of cortisol in your body.  Is it possible to test one’s progesterone and estrogen levels? Through blood tests, yes, and more accurately, saliva testing is the most accurate test to determine steroid hormones (i.e. progesterone, estrogen, DHEA, cortisol, and testosterone) levels. Saliva testing is much more accurate and useful than any blood test when attempting to determine who needs hormone replacement. (http://www.bhrtdoctors.com/menopause2.htm)  

Why then are the mammogram and pap smear the only yearly tests offered to determining women’s health when inflammation, estrogen, progesterone, cortisol, and testosterone levels can easily and cheaply be measured? And let’s not forget DHEA, a naturally occurring hormone secreted from the adrenal gland to help with weight loss and muscle strengthening.

   

It is important at this point to understand the adrenal gland.  Its purpose is to secrete hormones such as estrogen, progesterone, steroids, cortisol, and cortisone, and chemicals such as adrenalin (epinephrine), norepinephrine, and dopamine. I have often heard that a weak adrenal gland is the root cause of most disease and the good news is that you can test your adrenal function at home.  It is called the paradoxical papillary reflex test.

To take the test:

Standing in front of a mirror in a dark room, take a flashlight and shine the light into one eye at a 45-degree angle from the side. Watch your pupil. When in the dark, your pupil should be dilated (open). When you shine the light it should constrict.  The duration of constriction can indicate adrenal function, though there are other causes for a positive finding on this test. Wait 30 seconds in the dark before repeating with the other eye.

PUPIL CONSTRICTION                                           POSSIBLE FINDING

Stays constricted for at least 20 seconds                    Healthy adrenal function

Fasciculates (pulses) after 10 seconds                        Fair adrenal function

Fasciculates (pulses) in 5-10 seconds                         Poor adrenal function

Immediate pulsation and dilation                               Adrenal exhaustion

www.precisionnutrition.com/what-do-theadrenal-glands-do

And now finally back to Dr. Alfred J. Pletchner who is accredited with applying his research with dogs and cats to something that applies to humans as well: Pletchner’s syndrome.  He explains his findings as follows:

Q. HOW DOES EXCESS ESTROGEN AFFECT MY IMMUNE SYSTEM?

A. Imbalanced CORTISOL allows for the pituitary gland to over-stimulate the production of excess ESTROGEN. This excess estrogen not only causes an inflammation of the lining cells of all arteries in the body, including those arteries to the intestines, but causes the B and T immune cells to become deregulated. It also causes the B cell to reduce its production of antibodies. This in turn causes further turmoil in the gut. When regulated, the B cell protects the body against bacteria and makes protective antibodies to vaccines and other intruders. When the T cell is regulated it protects the body against viruses and plant invaders like yeast and fungi. The hormonal antibody deregulation is why all of these intruders can cause medical effects (illnesses and diseases). Many substances are used to combat these EFFECTS, but while this is being done, the CAUSE must also be corrected, otherwise the EFFECTS will continue. The continuous use of antibiotics and anti-yeast and fungal medications alone will not correct the problem since they can only be managed effectively through replacement and correction of the hormonal antibody imbalance.

(http://drplechner.com/learn/plechner-syndrome/)

So, first things first.  Take your home test or go to your doctor and ask for all of the tests that are available to you so you can know exactly what your adrenal gland needs.  It’s a very important thing to do because before considering any medication aimed at hormone replacement you should know adrenal function, blood sugar balance, and gastrointestinal function.  Understanding the state of your adrenal gland seems to be one of the most important pieces of information you and your primary can have, especially if you are about to enter a hormonal reproductive event that can be monitored via hormone balance.

Relationship between cortisol and estrogen, part I
Relationship between cortisol and estrogen, part III

I spy… A label!

By Tatjana van der Krabben

This blog explains what companies are legally bound to put on the label, but also where it tends to go wrong. The problems are more or less universal, but in this blog the specific regulations in the USA were taken as a starting point.

Rules of the label game

A product’s ingredients are listed in descending order of weight, from most to least. Ingredients that are less than 2% of the weight of a product are exempt from the rule to be labeled in order of predominance. The manufacturer has the liberty to put these ingredients in a different order (US Code of Federal Regulations 21 CFR 101.4 and 21 CFR 101.4(2)). This is often mistaken for anything less than 2% of a product’s weight need not be on the label. However, that does not mean all ingredients have to be accounted for on the label: ‘trade secret’ ingredients are exempt from the requirements, you can throw in ‘flavoring’ without breaking it down into ingredients and there’s the omitting ingredients of an ‘insignificant level’. May I ask what is ‘insignificant’ and to whom?

Nutritional value

There are few exceptions, but a label should also state the nutritional value. These are percentages on fat, sugar etc. In the US that gets more attention. Here is the general information by the FDA: http://www.fda.gov/ICECI/Inspections/InspectionGuides/ucm074948.htm. These diet recommendations do not match a low-carb lifestyle or don’t reveal how many additives it contains and tell you very little about how healthy a product truly is.

Even if you single out carbs, you only know so much. Carbs in a product can be labeled as ‘zero’ when there’s less than 0,5 gram of carbs in it. 0,5-0,99 as 1, or less than 1. Over 1 gram can be rounded to the nearest gram. Also, if a manufacturer makes a large batch of a product, it’s impossible to analyze each package. The number of carbs is therefore calculated by difference as they call it. Now every measurement technique has something called a ‘standard error’. In case of the total carbohydrates reported may include 5 different standard errors. The effect of standard error is a problem according to this source where one large number is subtracted from another. The small number remaining may be very inaccurate. (http://www.expertfoods.com/FAQ/labelvalues.php) This website also provides a very good example. Heavy cream is supposed to be reported in one tablespoon servings. It correctly reports carbs as ‘zero’ for 1 tablespoon. A whole cup, however, contains 6,6 grams of carb. 

‘Low-carb’ is a term we use loosely: there is no formal definition at this point. That makes it o.k. to advertise a product as low-carb, even if it isn’t. In labeling, fat and salt are the enemy. According to many critical food bloggers labels are more accurate regarding fat and salt content, not with respect to carbs. Be aware of the magic trick that involves ‘net carb’. ‘Net’ means something was subtracted from the total. So, in plain English not all the carbs from the dry ingredients are listed. Some manufacturers subtract fiber that is believed to not be digested or claim to have a special recipe that will prevent you from digesting all the carb. It’s not allowed, but it does occur. If you are really keen on low-carbing these differences can really mess up a low-carb diet.

The label says one thing, product tests another

So much for what is supposed to be on the label. 100% beef: you know what I’m getting at. The label said 100% beef, but product tests revealed many products also contained horsemeat. The drama in the media was more focused on the type of animal: a horse, which has more of a pet status in our culture. Some reports also expressed concern whether these animals were suitable for human consumption due to medication possibly administered to the horses. To me, the problem is not that the unlisted extra ingredient was horsemeat, aside the risk of contamination with heavy medication, it was the fact that it was unlisted. This is not unique.

Recently a new scandal popped up. Eggs labeled as organic in Germany were not organic after all:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-21573158. It was hushed with the explanation they were perfectly good eggs. They better be! A little bit before these cases there was also this issue: pesto that should have contained Grana Padano cheese and olive oil actually contained the cheaper sunflower oil and Latvian cheese. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2233064/Supermarket-supplier-fined-25-000-sauces-claimed-included-virgin-olive-oil-Gran-Padano-cheese-turned-contain-cheaper-products.html. To name but a few examples.

Reading labels and relying on labels is challenging at best. Off shelf products are tricky. It’s hardly surprising most low-carb advocates eventually cook a lot of their food, or even all of it, from scratch.

Food - Part 1 - Grassfed and Pastured Beef

by Molly M Peterson

Molly M. Peterson is a photographer, farmer and advocate of causes close to her heart living in rural Virginia. You can read more about her at www.mollympeterson.com and follow her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mmp.documentinglife . 

________________________________________________________________________________

I have Lipedema. I’ve written about it {here}, {here} and {here}. I’m a part of a beautiful support group of women on Facebook who also have Lipedema (or Lipoedema depending on where you live) and often I find myself responding to the food questions and comments that I can address easily because of the life my husband and I lead as grassfed/grass-based/pastured farmers in the countryside of Virginia. Apparently I post often enough that I’m even tagged to answer a question I hadn’t yet commented on and then I was approached to write an overview on food: specifically the topics I usually talk about: organic, pastured/grassfed, and locally sourced foods.

This is topic is vast so I’ll post more and this will be the first one: Grassfed/Pastured Meats.

I will stick mostly on the surface for sake of time and I will be happy to elaborate on specific requests if I am able. I also encourage you to do a little research, but I will warn you, it is like the layers of an onion, only you can decide how deep into the onion you want to go and how many layers to the food system you want to peel back and expose.  Only you can decide how to best fit your budget but I’m here to help if you need it. And only you can know what resonates with your body for it’s optimal health. I can tell you that now that I have peeled these layers back, I’m never going back. Knowledge is power. I have resources to help you start {here}. You can also read about it on my {Farm} page on this site.

So… here goes.

What does it mean and why does it matter to buy “Grassfed” or “Pastured” meats?

Most of the animals raised in the United States  for human meat protein consumption– I’m not sure about other countries — are “finished” in feedlots on a diet of corn, soy and certain by-products (of what, you probably don’t want to know). If they are cattle, it’s likely they were raised on a “Cow Calf” farm and were likely raised on grass for a bit of their lives, they may have also eaten grain at the original farm, and then sold at an auction and moved to the feedlot where they were fattened by the grain mixture in a short period of time. While on the feedlot [Google "feedlot photos" if you'd like a visual] they were likely given antibiotics (this might have even started at the original farm mixed in with minerals and/or feed – a common practice) not because they were sick necessarily but because they needed to be kept “healthy” until slaughter. Not exactly my personal preference for preventative maintenance of health. Now, many things play in to this use of antibiotics: this promotes antibiotic resistance (hello superbugs that can do lots of damage to animals and humans! Look up Russ Kremmer from the movie Fresh.) these animals are not being fed a diet that is natural to them so they’re susceptible to illness, where/how they live affects their bodies and their emotional being (yes, cows have emotions…just like us) become stressed, and they live in mass mono-cultures with little room to move around (if they aren’t moving, they aren’t burning calories but instead gaining weight faster!) and live as their species was designed to live able to walk and graze at will. It’s a little different with dairy cattle but I’m not going to delve too deep in to that one at this point in time. If you’re really truly interested in the lives of commercial dairy cows, I really enjoyed the book Portrait of a Burger as a Young Calf (male dairy cows have to go somewhere – they can’t produce milk!). {Antibiotic article}

Side Story: I remember going to a 4H fair a couple of years ago with so many steers that were just around a year old and at the fair they are then sold at an auction so the kids bathe them and fluff them up and proudly walk them around to hope for the biggest sale to prove they had done a good job raising that animals.  But what saddened my heart is that they were HUGE. They had lots of fat covering, they were tall and they could hardly walk: stiff, bulky, slow. I was shocked. I compared them to our steers at the same age and even the same breed and mine were half the size and weight. And my heart sunk: THIS is what Americans look like now. THIS was heart disease and obesity. As the cattle have grown so have we.

Still with me?

A cow/bovine/steer/calf/bull/heifer is an herbivore (pigs and chickens are omnivores). Their systems are made to digest grasses. They are not made to consume corn and soy and by-products; when they do to excess, it creates dis-ease in the body and sicknesses can be more prevalent. But Americans like their fat marbled beef and Americans sure do like to eat and they like it now and they like it cheap: this has created our current food system. And I have even touched on subsidies or GMOs (genetically modified organisms). (more text below photo)

Now think about it this way. If an animal is sick or not at optimal health when it is slaughtered and processed into cuts of meat to then be consumed by a human being, that meat isn’t suddenly magically turned in to a healthy product to consume.  It is what it is. It’s a transfer of energy.

So when the terms “humane” and “holistic” and “grassfed/pastured” are recently being put out there, it’s because people are starting to realize and demand differently. People are becoming aware of that connection between the health of the animal and the energy that goes in to their own body. Energy is energy; it just shows up in different forms: be it something we can touch or feel like food or something intangible like love or fear or sadness.

There are numerous articles out there about the health benefits of grassfed meats (yay for Google! or you can click {here}, too). And just because it says “Grassfed” does not necessarily mean that it was not “finished” (fattened) on grain. That’s one of the newest marketing ploys because those that market are catching on to what people are beginning to demand. If true 100% grassfed and grass-finished meats are important to you then you need to source from a farmer or connect with a retailer (small, independent businesses are usually the best) and ask the questions. If you’re in the United States you can check with www.eatwild.com for a great resource base or even email me and I’ll help you look. Connecting with a farmer is actually really fun; it may cost you more (yes, the true cost of food costs more) and it might be slightly less convenient but you’ll make up for it in the health of what you choose to consume, and the pride you have in knowing that your support of a local farmer goes far beyond an exchange of a few green pieces of paper (or plastic if that’s what you prefer).

Grassfed does taste a little differently than what you’d be used to in a traditional “beef” taste in the US. This is because there are many factors that determine taste: the terroir,for one, are the grasses, the soils, the water source of the land where the beef was raised, and the lifestyle and wait it was treated. 100% grassfed beef raised in Virginia will not taste the same as one raised in California. It’s comparable to wine that way. Grassfed is also less fatty than a corn fed beef but here’s the kicker: the fat that is on grassfed beef is actually — wait for it —- healthier for you. Our bodies need fats but good fats. Red meat gets a bad rep but, really, in my opinion, it’s not the red meat, it’s what the red meat consumed and how it was treated before becoming red meat. As a farmer who raises meat I do agree that this country eats too much meat; instead I encourage, if you’re going to do it, make it good meat. Meat that was raised with love and respect and the best intentions of health.

“You are what you eat eats too.”

- Michael Pollan.

Do the research. Dig a little deeper. Go back to basics. Go back to before Man decided he could grow something faster and cheaper; did anyone else notice that then we all got fatter and sicker when that happened?

See the connection?

#RealFood

For a great grassfed article please visit: http://organicconnectmag.com/wp/the-ancient-roots-grass-fed-beef/#.USobp-hva8F

Photos taken at www.mountvernongrassfed.com

MSG - What's the Big Deal?

By Stefanie Gwinn-Vega

Monosodium Glutamate - What's the Big Deal?

 

Monosodium glutamate aka MSG, is the sodium salt of glutamatic acid, one of the most abundant naturally occurring non-essential amino acids. It is considered a safe food additive by the USDA and the European Union. MSG is used as a flavor enhancer because it “balances, blends and rounds the total perception of other tastes” and is very cost effective for mass production.

MSG is a proven endocrine disruptor, interfering with normal hormone release and uptake. When our thyroid, pituitary, hypothalamus, and pancreas are compromised by this powerful excitatory neurotransmitter, the effects on our health are devastating. In order to study Obesity, we must first make something obese. It is a given in research that if you need a fat-rat then you give it MSG. Scientists inject mice and rats with MSG in order to make them fat quickly. Now that's interesting considering that MSG is often added to everything we eat. 

Serious health issues are plaguing millions across the globe. Some are claiming many of our health problems are primarily caused by MSG. Based on books by Neurosurgeon, Dr. Russell Blaylock (Excitotoxins: The Taste that Kills) and Toxicologist, Dr. George Schwartz (In Bad Taste: The MSG Symptom Complex) here are some common symptoms of MSG toxicity:
 

Numbness or paralysis, Mouth lesions/sores, Swelling of hands, feet, face, Diarrhea, Mitral valve prolapse, Nausea, Rise or drop in blood pressure, Stomach cramps and gas, Irritable bowel, colitis, and/or constipation, rapid heart beat, Angina, change in heart beat, spastic colon, shaking, chills, extreme thirst, TMJ, Water retention and bloating, obesity, muscle aches, Asthma symptoms, flu like symptoms, Heaviness of arms & legs, chest pain, mental dullness, depression, dizzy & light headed, anxiety, bi-polar, chronic cough, tickle in throat, skin rash, hives, flushing, ADD, ADHD, gagging reflex  numbness, balance problems, Aching teeth, dry mouth/cotton mouth, lethargy, difficulty focusing, loss of memory, uncontrollable bladder, sleeping disorders, pressure behind eyes, migraine headaches, see shiny lights, blurry vision, Neurological disease, sinus issues, thyroid, infertility, gastro issues, tinnitus, gout like symptoms, gall bladder problems, kidney pain.

So now that we know its really bad for us we should just not eat it right? Well that is easier said than done. Due to its addictive properties and all those flavor enhancers, companies have figured out a way to keep adding it to food without having to let you know it. If MSG is in its pure form, it must be listed on a food label. However, if it is a component part of certain food additives, such as autolyzed yeast or hydrolyzed protein, the FDA allows it to go into food not labeled as MSG.

 
Hidden names of MSG containing up to 78%:

Gelatin
Calcium Caseinate 
Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein(HVP) 
Textured Protein
Hydrolyzed Plant Protein 
Yeast Extract 
Glutamate 
Autolyzed Plant Protein 
Yeast food or nutrient 
Glutamic Acid 
Sodium Caseinate 
Autolyzed Yeast 
Vegetable Protein Extract 
Senomyx (wheat extract labeled as artifical flavor)

The following substances contain some factory created free glutamate in varying amounts. Many foods will have more than one of these ingredients list, so it could add up to quite a bit of glutamate in one product:

Malted Barley (flavor)
Natural Flavors, Flavors, Flavoring
Modified food starch
Barley malt
Rice syrup or brown rice syrup
Malt Extract or Flavoring
Natural Chicken, Beef, or Pork, Flavoring "Seasonings"
Lipolyzed butter fat
Maltodextrin, dextrose, dextrates
Soy Sauce or Extract
"Low" or "No Fat" items
Caramel
Soy Protein
Corn syrup and corn syrup solids, high fructose corn syrup
Stock
Soy Protein Isolate or Concentrate
Citric Acid (when processed from corn)
Milk Powder/Dry Milk Solids
Bouillon
Carrageenan
Wheat, Rice, Corn or oat protein
Whey Protein
Anything enriched or vitamin enriched
Annatto
Whey Protein Isolate or Concentr ate
Protein fortified "anything"
Spice
Amino acids
Fructose (made from corn
Lecithin
Lecithin
Protein powders: whey, soy, oat, rice (as in protein bars shakes and body building drinks)
Ultra-pasteurized dairy products
Pectin
Algae
Gums (guar and vegetable)
Enzyme modified proteins

Phytoplankton

Protease enzymes

Fermented proteins

Yeast Nutrients

So there you have it. Lots of information on MSG to digest. I know after my research today I am personally going to avoid it like it is one of those ancient deadly plagues.