Aspartame is safe in limited amounts, say experts after cancer warning
theguardian.com
So maybe the huge worry people had after the news that WHO would classify it as cancerous was a little too much. I think the media could have reported on it in a bit more responsible way.
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About the MSG hysteria, it's not even rooted in actual medical data, just run-of-the-mill xenophobia, which in itself is absolutely wild to me. It's like a whole chunk of the population collectively decided to develop the palate of a toddler, turning up their nose to "foreign" food.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monosodium_glutamate "Researchers, doctors, and activists have tied the controversy about MSG to xenophobia and racism against Chinese culture,[62][63][64][65][66] saying that East Asian cuisine is being targeted while the widespread use of MSG in other processed food hasn't been stigmatized.[67] These activists have claimed that the perpetuation of the negative image of MSG through the Chinese restaurant syndrome was caused by "xenophobic" or "racist" biases.[68][69]"
I didn't dive deep on MSG just to not sound like I'm ranting about that specifically but you nailed it. It was more about Chinese restaurants (at least that's how I heard it) and I remember my parents saying we don't go to Chinese restaurants during the hysteria.
Sucks because I love Chinese food, and Thai, Korean, Japanese and more.
Not exclusively though. For many the fact that there a scary sounding chemical called MSG in their food is enough. Lots of people are obsessive about 'additives' and assume they are all bad.
Perhaps, but I've seen prejudice against MSG in many Asian American families including those of Chinese descent. Anecdotally, it's more than xenophobia at play for its reputation.