What can you eat at Bojangles if you are allergic to MSG?
by Ask a Healer
Who beat Bojangles for the most msg in their foods?
I've learned that even when a company reveals products that contain monosodium glutamate, they may not necessarily reveal if any products contain free form glutamic acid. If you are severely allergic to MSG in any form, please contact any fast food restaurant thru their website, to rule out free form glutamic acid in their foods.
Monosodium in Bojangles Food, per Bojangles Support Center Representative: I appreciate Bojangles for being forthcoming with products that contain MSG. However, I find it disturbing that there is not an ingredient list and notification of all foods containing msg on their website because msg is not the only ingredient I want to avoid. Others include carrageenan, high fructose corn syrup, aspartame, xylitol, sorbitol, etc. Fast food restaurants, in particular, need to realize how big an issue monosodium glutamate in all it's forns is and accommodate requests for information. A lot of times, the response I get from workers is "what is msg?"
OK, so this is the list of fast foods from the Bojangles chain, that contain monosodium glutamate. (I would add that dressings and sauces at all fast food restaurants I've visited tend to contain it): Ranch Dressing, Bleu Cheese Dressing, French Fry Seasoning, Vegetable Seasoning, Dirty Rice, Brown Gravy, Smoked Sausage and Beef Steak.
I am told that there is no MSG in the chicken at Bojangles. However, I still have a reaction to Bojangles chicken, though not as strong as the dirty rice, for example so I wonder if it contains ingredients which contain msg, like autolyzed yeast extract or hydrolyzed soy protein or .....
MSG Disclaimer: I don't know if Bojangles chicken or the breading on it contains free form glutamic acid or any of the many, many other ingredients often used to include hidden msg in products without having to label it. If Bojangles adds autolyzed yeast extract, maltodextrin, modified food starch, or any of the other suspect ingredients often already containing msg, then their assertion that their foods are msg-free is a misrepresentation. For now, I'm only telling you what a Bojangles rep told me via email. I don't eat at Bojangles enough to pursue an answer.
If you only have a mild MSG aversion, you might be able to tolerate Bojangles chicken. Being extremely allergic to msg (monosodium glutamate) myself, and being aware that msg is an excito-toxin, I tend to stay away from any food that gives me an msg-type reaction.
Health Care Disclaimer: Monosodium Glutamate is consider a safe ingredient to consume or the FDA would not allow it in our foods. I believe it is unsafe and will eventually be banned. MSG is an excitotoxin. By definition, an excitotoxin excites but is toxic. MSG makes food taste better thru excitation of the senses, hence is often called a flavor enhancer. The only thing it enhances in my experience, is discomfort after the excitement wears off. Not a fair trade. Notice your reactions after consuming foods where monosodium glutamate is listed as an ingredient. I would advise you to learn about excitotoxins.
Note: Processed free glutamic acid may be added to foods without labeling as MSG. Some foods natural contain it as well but it's not processed. Manufacture of processed free glutamic acid changes it in ways a chemist could explain but I'll just say, from what I've read, that change is NOT good. Some foods that naturally contain free glutamic acid included parmesan cheese, shrimp, crab, lobster, turkey and peanut butter.
