Hyrdolyzed Vegetable Protein

iStockphoto © Westhoff

A current USDA Food Recall cites HVP (Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein) as the culprit carrying salmonella in some ready-to-eat beef products.

So what IS HVP, really? Well, basically it's MSG. And it's everywhere. And it's highly addictive, encouraging us to eat more and more (increasing our waistlines and the manufacturer's bottom line). Since the uproar over MSG several years ago, it now hides behind more than 45 different names such as 'natural flavoring' and the FDA has set no limit on how much can be added to our foods.

HVP is made by boiling legumes (usually soy beans) in hydrochloric acid and then neutralizing the solution with sodium hydroxide. The hydrochloric acid breaks down the proteins into their various component amino acids, such as glutamic acid, aka MSG, which is used as a flavor enhancer in processed foods.

There are hundreds of studies showing long-term damage from MSG, and a strong link to obesity. (One of the things MSG does in the human body is triple the amount of insulin the pancreas creates.) If you go to the US Government's pubmed and type in 'MSG Obesity' you will find more than 200 studies posted.

MSG is an 'Excitotoxin' and a broad range of neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and even strokes) are linked, in part, to them. Even the typical memory loss attributed to age is thought to be linked in part to the excitotoxins.

In posting yesterday about my thyroid condition and soy, I named Soy Protein Isolate or SPI, which is also a flavor enhancer like HVP. From my research online, I cannot actually tell if SPI and HVP are identical, but they sure have the same effect on our bodies.

This article names many common foods probably in your pantry containing MSG (even if hidden under another name) plus a list of many fast food places that serve foods with hidden MSG. The list is startling, and appalling.

And to cap it all, soy is the leading commercial GM crop in the USA, with 91% of all soybeans grown here being GM. Cotton, Corn and Canola follow closely with 88%, 88% and 85%.