The Chinese restaurant syndrome is a type of ailment to which a series of very defined symptoms are allegedly attributed – headache, asthma attacks, palpitations, cramps and hives – that develop in our body. Various internet websites and some non-scientific written publications have reported that such abnormalities are caused by a food additive known as monosodium glutamate. However, to this day, no exhaustive medical study has corroborated that such claims are based on reality, so this substance cannot be blamed for such conditions.
The myth of the headache caused by Chinese food
Monosodium glutamate is a very powerful additive that tends to be abused in certain types of food, such as Chinese food or hot dogs in American restaurants. Although in smaller amounts, we can also find this substance in other commonly used products such as cold cuts, cakes, some vegetables, tomato sauce, mustard, mayonnaise, or olives. Since the 1960s there have been reports that place patients with severe reactions to Chinese food. It was thought that glutamate could be behind symptoms such as headaches, but since no reliable connection has been discovered, it is still used in some foods.
The symptoms usually presented by those women who have been diagnosed with the so-called Chinese food syndrome go through a series of anomalies such as chest pain, numbness in the mouth area, excessive sweating, a feeling of swelling in the face, migraine and redness of the skin. Other features of this pathology, which can be observed in a medical consultation, are: abnormal heart rhythm and reduced air intake to the lungs.
Most women recover from mild cases of this syndrome since some of its symptoms, such as flushing or headaches, do not need any specific treatment. If, on the contrary, we have suffered a potentially fatal reaction, we will have to have medications that the doctor has prescribed after having diagnosed the ailment.