Day 039 - 20 Oct 94 - Page 51
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2 MR. MORRIS: Shall we move on to Monosodium Glutamate?
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4 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes. Can you just call that MSG?
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6 MR. MORRIS: Yes. Can you very quickly summarise the case
7 against MSG?
8 A. By comparison with other food additives, reports of
9 acute adverse intolerance to MSG are more common than for
10 most other additives. There have been a few studies which
11 I have not listed individually but which are referred to by
12 both the Scientific Committee for Food and JECFA, have been
13 studies, double-blind studies, some of which have,
14 apparently, shown an effect and others of which have
15 apparently not shown any effect. So, here we have an all
16 too common situation where we have equivocal and
17 inconsistent evidence.
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19 MR. JUSTICE BELL: The parts I had underlined in relation to
20 direct human evidence are on page 36, the second paragraph,
21 what JECFA, SCF and FAC have said in the first two lines,
22 and then the reference to Chinese Restaurant Syndrome. Are
23 there other direct human matters? I cannot see one.
24 A. No, the study referred to at the bottom of page 36,
25 footnote 119, by Tarasoff and Kelly is one of these
26 attempted double-blind studies. But, for reasons that
27 I give on the next page referring to a commentary by
28 Dr. Adrienne Samuels, I do not know find the Tarasoff and
29 Kelly study convincing.
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31 I think Samuels has correctly drawn attention to many of
32 the serious shortcomings in the Tarasoff and Kelly study.
33 For example, in what was supposed to have been the placebo
34 or control against which MSG was being compared, included
35 the artificial sweetener Aspartame, and I believe there is
36 some important evidence suggesting that Aspartame is itself
37 not pharmacologically inert. Therefore, I do not think it
38 is appropriate to use it as an ingredient in a placebo.
39 But that is just one of a lengthy list of shortcomings to
40 which Dr. Samuels draws attention.
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42 MR. MORRIS: We have Dr. Samuels' letter. Which document is it?
43 A. I had as -----
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45 MS. STEEL: It is probably just going to be behind the
46 statement.
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48 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I put it behind.
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50 THE WITNESS: Will it be in here at all?
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52 MR. JUSTICE BELL: No. For my own convenience, I have put it
53 behind my copy of your statement, Dr. Millstone.
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55 MS. STEEL: Do you have a copy there?
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57 THE WITNESS: No, I do not. (Handed).
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59 MR. MORRIS: Who is Adrienne Samuels?
60 A. She is not personally known to me. I gather from the
