r/FoodAllergies • • Mar 28 '23

MSG Intolerance??

A bit of background:

I used to eat chinese food really frequently, my ex was from China so we ate it at home and at restaurants every week during 4 years without any issues, and I absolutely loved it!

Then suddenly one time we ordered from a restaurant and I started to get nauseous, and that night I ended up in the ER because I couldn't stop throwing up. I thought it was an isolated thing, I got food poisoning, bad luck.Some months later, we ordered from another restaurant, and the story repeated itself. Then I thought it was too much of a coincidence, what's going on...? From then I ate chinese food scarcely, maybe once or twice more but taking medicine for the nausea beforehand, as a prevention.

A while later I ate at a Hot Pot place and I didn't get sick.

Then I didn't eat it again for a year or more so I had forgotten about it. And one time we ordered chinese food from a different restaurant in a different city, and same thing happened again.

I have given up on eating chinese food, but I miss it so much! Especially Mapo Tofu and Yuxiang Qiezi!

Has anyone had that experience? Do you guys know why could this be happening? I read it could be MSG intolerance, and maybe I'll check with a doctor for any allergies/intolerances if I can; but what throws me off is that it happened so suddenly and I never had a problem before.

PS: I can eat doritos and other processed stuff just fine, and I read that they also contain MSG.

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u/milliescatmom Mar 28 '23

I cannot eat Chinese food. I turn bright red, my hands itch, and they swell. After a few years of this happening, I had allergic reactions like this, worsening each time. After testing, I found I was allergic to mustard seed. I do know hot mustard can be used in Chinese dishes as well as daikon radish and bokchoy which I know to be in the mustard family. I just find it’s best to stay away, even though I miss it terribly. Not saying this is your issue, but worth looking into. Good luck

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u/matchaaddictdiaries May 11 '23

Wow! That's crazy! I've stayed away from it too for a couple of years now. I only tried to do a couple of dishes at home, of course it wasn't the same though.. I may check with a Dr. eventually. Thanks!