The Shocking Dangers of MSG You Don’t Know

The TRUTH about MSG has been known for decades, but the masses continue to choose taste over health. I've been a Chiropractor for 12 years and experienced the detrimental effects of this potent neurotoxin. Headaches and telescoping vision were frequent reminders as to how much restaurants lie about the quality of their products. When it comes to eating, I follow the advice of the great Jack Lalanne: "If God made it, eat it; If Man made it, don't eat it." Packaged, processed foods and restaurant foods are poison. Increase your hydration and avoid all stimulants (coffee, teas, sodas, alcohol and MSG).   Dr. Dan Bettiol  www.truthaboutwaterhealing.com

It is pretty DARN DISGUSTING how all of these chemicals get snuck into our foods by calling them something else!!!  It really sucks living in the world today!! It is soooooooooo hard trying to take the best care of your family with such a screwed up world!  All I can do is try my best and make sure they all end up in heaven one day!

Kimmyd64:  I could not have said it better!  You are asking the questions that demand answers.  It doesn't seem that anything will change until the DEMAND is there from "ordinary citizens"--and enough of them.  Those in government appear to be totally engrossed in lining their own pockets and of their friends.  There ARE no protections, in spite of what we are told.  What absolutely blows me away is their ability to focus everyone's attention on some herb or other (for example) and very quickly enact laws so that the public does not harm themselves.  At the same time, the prescribing of grossly toxic drugs is supported, encouraged, and even made into law (Gardasil comes to mind).  The word conspiracy comes to my mind..................

The list goes on:

"Natural flavorings"

(Parmesan cheese naturally high)

2-aminoglutaric acid

Accent (remember "Wake up that flavor!")

Ajinomoto

Autolyzed yeast extract

Cenovis (Swiss)

EU food additive code: E621

Flavor enhancer 621

HS code: 29224220 (IUPAC name 2-aminopentanedioic acid)

Hydrolyzed vegetable protein

Hydrolyzed yeast

Marmite (Britain/New Zealand)*

Monosodium glutamate

MSG

Sodium glutamate

Soy extract

Soy sauce

Vegemite (Australia/New Zealand)*

Vetsin

These all either are, or are code names for, or are very high in, MSG or other 'free' glutatates.  This is one of those things where a little, i.e., naturally-occurring amounts, is okay but a lot becomes a serious problem.  Kind of like caffein, where the 100mg in a cup of coffee is sometimes a Good Thing (for example, as opposed to falling alseep at the wheel in traffic!) but 10,000mg (10g) or even 1000mg (1g) all at once would definitely be overstimulation!

FYI, the Brits, Aussies & New Zealanders use the noted* items as a spread on breads etc. or in pastries where we might use fruit jam or preserves.  I gather it's a lot like a sort of soy sauce paste made from brewers' yeast.  It seems someone in that industry wanted to find a way to sell what they used to have to dispose of, and found a market for it thusly.  (The Swiss stuff is in the same general class, I think.)  It's the fluoride story all over again!

Ok, I'm officially confused.

Dr Blaylock says that pretty much all of our organs and vital systems have glutamate receptors.  I take that to mean that glutamate is absolutely necessary to our survival.  If it weren't, why would we have receptors for it everywhere?

In fact, the human body actually produces as much as 40 GRAMS of glutamate every day. That's 40,000 milligrams folks!  

Sooo, if we make our own and our bodies are chocked-full of receptors for it, how can someone make the determination that it's harmful for us?

To follow that line of reasoning, if our bodies had receptors for and manufactured large quantities of, say, cyanide every day, then clearly it would NOT be toxic to us.  Does that make sense?

So, maybe Dr. Blaylock gave his obese mice the equivalent of four or five times (or more) the amount naturally produced in their bodies on a daily basis (like the saccharine tests in the 50's).  And by my reckoning, if a person consumed four or five times their recommended 8 glasses of WATER each day, they'd have some severe side effects from that too - and I'm talking about the purest of pure water.

I'm not a complete dolt and I trust the major U.S. governing bodies as far as I can throw them, so maybe someone can enlighten me with facts, rather than conjecture and scare tactics.

Is it the single sodium atom (i.e. monosodium) attached to the glutamate molecule that makes MSG bad for us?  And is it THAT atom that causes MSG to be classified as an excitotoxin?

Because if glutamate by itself is an excito-toxin, then I submit to you that we NEED excito-toxins (at least that one) in order to survive.  Again, we make our own and have receptors for it all over our bodies.

Another thing he doesn't cover (which I imagine he does in his book) is how our bodies rid themselves of excess glutamate.  He makes it sound like it keeps stacking up inside us till we either get too fat to move or our brains explode from all the "excitement".

Feedback?

I think we all need to be wary also, of those who make a living ,claiming to be looking out for all these hidden dangers to us, while earning a great living from it!! Same thing different package!!

Sue

OH MY ! What a eye-opener !!

I am going clean my kitchen out of MSG and hidden MSG  !

I hope there is something left to eat :(

THANK YOU DR.M !!!

This is just more incentive for me staying home and cooking.  I use to visit a wonderful Chinese restaurant where they not only had signs showing that they did NOT use MSG, but they also posted signs showing the dangers of such.  That's a rarity.

Despite more people drinking filtered water and avoiding soda pop and fastfood, we are still a very sick people in the U.S. because we still rely way too much on processed foods (using our busy lives as an excuse for poor eating).  If people would just try to eat more raw veggies and fruit and eat grass fed meat and raw milk, they would be so much better off!

My sister and I, ate at a sushi restaurant over the weekend. About 10 minutes after we left the restaurant, we were both hit with a severe headache, feeling dizzy and blurry eyed. Those are the classic symptons of MSG. We had asked the server if they cook wth MSG. He said "NO". This is mainly why I prefer to cook my own food. =]

Where have the videos gone?

Why have you removed them?

Can we get them back?

Who was the user who posted them?

My reaction to msg overdose, (he Chinese reastaurant said none in the soup, I forgot to ask.. well what about the wonton, dumplings), was a serious arrythmia. These arrythmias sometimes cause cardiac arrest. 2 young Thai workers died in Singapore bout a year ago after a meal. The autopsy report stated cardiac arrest, probably from genetic heart causes. 2 young guys die at the same time from a heart defect? Yes likely says mainstream medicine. Had I not been on the usual vitamin and herb  megadosing, maybe I too would have succumbed to a genetic heart defect. This stuff gives you more than a buzz....

Green/White Tea inhibits MSG.

Seaweed is considered to be the most nutritional food on the planet although the main source of msg is extracted from seaweed. I think some foods contain chemicals, vitamins and or minerals higher in one food than another. The answer I believe is instinct/intuition to balance your body, listen to it. If you eat too much sweets, eat something sour or drink green tea. Some foods balance blood sugars and other system processes. It's just good sense to know how to balance yourself or inhibit poisons if you can't know everything that has been added to your food. Learn the signs of your body and what you can do to balance it.

In the city where I live there is a large population of Hispanic folks, they use a seasoning in almost all the foods that they cook, it is called Sazon, Goya is one of the brands. This seasoning has coloring in it that turns Spanish rice that orangie color. The number one ingredient in Sazon is MSG.So it isn't just in chinese food. If you eat Spanish Rice, Rice and Beans  etc. MSG is probably in there...

Thank you so much for sharing these videos and your article!!

Anyone like Mexican food???

Mexican food has been one of my weaknesses, but not after reading and seeing the videos today!! It's scary to think how it can affect our bodies! Yesterday I ate Mexican food and my eyes became blurry almost immediately after I ate the food.  I knew that MSG was most likely in that food. I tried to find information on the "blurry-eyed" symptoms after eating Mexican food on the internet but failed to find it.Today, you have answered my question!!! I am so happy to hear this and it's such a refreshment to know that Dr. Mercola and his staff are doing so much to share this helpful information with people so they can regain their health.

Also, CBN should be thanked for posting those videos.

I have read from several sources that Kimchee is one of the healthiest foods out there, but I can't find any without MSG.  The ingredients are cabbage, radish, water, salt, sugar, pepper, onion, "spices", sometimes fish sauce, sometimes salted shrimp, and MSG is always last.  I understand MSG is bad, but fermented foods are like a natural probiotic supplement. I'm not ready to make my own kimchee (yet!) so in the meantime, do the health benefits of fermented foods like kimchee outweigh the health problems associated with MSG?

(BTW I had a similar question for a while about soda (HFCS) vs diet soda (aspartame), and finally read on this site that aspartame is worse.  I didn't switch back to regular soda, I just phased diet sodas down to about 1 every 2-3 months. Thank you Dr. Mercola for clearing that one up!)

There are some incredibly frightening disinformation comments in this thread. I'm referring to "Concerned Doc."

Why not put the "culprit"  on your headline rather than have us hunt it out through your wordiness...much of you info is repetitios so we know or have heard of it.  Be straight forward in our busy times.  I have had to make a folder for your stuff as it is hard to keep up with it.  I have about 100 files I have not read and am trying to keep up with recent ones.  Then your commercial ones also interfere with what  is really bad. You teeter on the edge here and have turned many off with this.

what I do not understand is if MSG increase the bad fat in the body, why Chinese people are slim?

Go to Google and type in "AUXI GRO" and read some of the articles about this. Especially if you all think you can avoid MSG just by only eating fresh friuts and vegetables.

I received a devastating diagnosis a little over a year ago and proceeded to make drastic changes in my diet. I have had follow-up appointments since then, and my condition has reversed, and I've lost 55+ pounds to boot.

I now eat organic foods and natural meats almost exclusively...no sugar (I use stevia), no sugar substitutes, no coffee, and I avoid wheat, gluten, and yeast...actually, I pretty much follow the candida control diet.

I was shocked to see that Horizon organic milk is not healthy due to the ultrapasteurization process. I've been using this brand in the past, but now will check out other brands. I have been using Irish or Danish butter and Canadian cheese because it is my understanding that our country is the only one that feeds our cattle antibiotics and growth factors. I hope this is not a mistaken assumption like the one I made about the Horizon organic milk!

Please let every one you know that just because a product says it organic or natural does not mean it dose not have msg in it.  I bought some Annies Natural Organic BBS and the second ingredient is Brown Rice Syrup, another name for MSG.  Please let the company and your friends know abouth this.  Thanks

Haidapreciosa said "...... Cannot see many chinese people with eyesight problems..."  Well, a quick look at PubMed reveals Asians do have eyesight problems. Note - Normal tension glaucoma is thought to be associated with MSG consumption.

Ann Acad Med Singapore.1998 Nov;27(6):819-23.

Glaucoma pattern amongst the elderly Chinese in Singapore.

Sim DH, Goh LG, Ho T.

Specialist Eyecare Clinic, Singapore.

Glaucoma is a major blinding condition and is more prevalent amongst the elderly. A population study of 479 elderly Chinese aged 60 years and older, and residing in Singapore was carried out to determine the prevalence of glaucoma. The overall glaucoma prevalence was 4.8% with normal tension glaucoma (61%) and primary angle closure glaucoma (26%) being the most prevalent forms of glaucoma. All cases were silent in presentation with 97% of cases previously undiagnosed. With the greying population in Singapore, the issue of screening the elderly for glaucoma should be considered.

Or how about this?

Possible role of excitotoxicity in the pathogenesis of glaucoma.

Casson RJ.

Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Royal Adelaide Hospital, North Tce

Excitotoxicity describes the process of neuronal injury by excess stimulation of amino acid receptors. This form of insult was first described in the retina, and subsequently has been shown to be an important component of the pathogenesis of ischaemic and traumatic injury in the central nervous system. Furthermore, there is increasing evidence that excitotoxicity is involved in several chronic neurological conditions, and anti-excitotoxic treatment has already been approved for some of these conditions. A large-scale trial is currently underway that will determine the efficacy of an anti-excitotoxic drug (memantine) in the management of glaucoma. This review provides an overview of neurotransmission and the mechanisms of excitotoxicity.The evidence for excitotoxicity as a component of certain neurological diseases, including glaucoma, is discussed.

According to Dr. Blaylock, gelatin capsules, such as they use for some nutritional supplements, are also a significant source of exitotoxins. This information is also listed at at www.msgtruth.org/avoid.htm

Can anyone else verify this?

According to Dr. Blaylock, gelatin capsules, such as they use for some nutritional supplements, are also a significant source of exitotoxins. This information is also listed at at www.msgtruth.org/avoid.htm

Can anyone else verify this?

I had to laugh at all the American propaganda about the Chinese catching up to the U.S. with weight problems.  Granted I did not visit Hong Kong but did go to Beijing and saw only one person who was overweight!!!  When I went to a shopping mall I found that the largest size in a dress sold was U.S size 8.

As for sushi, here in America it is treated with carbon monoxide which is one of the reasons it is so unaturally tender.  It is illegal to treat sushi with carbon monoxide in most other countries.  

This has nothing to do with the health subjects here, but is one of my pet peeves.  Incorrect use of the phrase, "couldn't care less" (see gmhertzog's post).  Everybody says, "could care less" when they actually mean "couldn't care less".  Think about it.

Russ, you wanted to know how MSG can be bad for your body when your body requires glutamic acid. The difference is that glutamic acid we get from food is bound to protein, and is released as required by the body. Free glutamic acid or MSG,is not bound to a protein, and is not subject to this regulatory system, and consequentially, a situation develops where higher than normal amounts of MSG can enter the blood and brain.Food grade MSG is used routinely by scientists who wish to kill off brain cells in experimental animals. Also, Dr Blaylock did not experiment on mice/rats with MSG,the original experiments were performed by Dr John Olney. Fat rats are used in the study of diabetes, and probably thousands are created each year for this purpose, by a single shot of MSG given to them as pups. Food for thought, huh?

Ever wonder why this knuckle head living in the White House, sometimes, has come out on behalf of "Tort Reform."  Let me see, leathal vidals, bad medicine, and lead in children's toys, and God only knows what other dangers are out there we have not heard about.  The best thing the "Boob" in the White House can come up with is Tort Reform.

We only have ourselves to blame.  We expect Government to protect us.  Not.  Those whom we have given this responsiblity, that is protecting us from the "Money Changer" have not a care.  Except as "Dollar Chasers."  This they are very good at.  In fact most of their time is spent in this very exhausting activity.  Lobbists, write our laws, and those in Government just rubber stamp what ever "Big Business" wants.

No wonder our food poisins us not to mention a multitude of other things.  But hey life is simple, and regardless of the unnecessary dangers, we like it this way.  You can tell by the way we vote or do not vote, and the way we care more about Britney Spear's big comeback, than even the troops in Iraq.  Wow what a people.

Sorry, but I'm a bit confused!  After studying the various hidden MSG lists, I realise Gelatin contains MSG.  Why then is my Chlorella and Krill oil from Dr Mercola contained in gelatin capsules?  

I love this powdered dietary supplement that has "aspartic acid" in it, does anyone know if this is MSG in disguise? I contacted the company, and that deny that it is the same thing.

As others have commented, MSG is hidden under many aliases or pseudonyms to confuse the public.  Disodium inositate, sodium guanylate, torula yeast extract, any autolyzed/hydrolyzed plant protein, including soy found in soy sauce, corn, wheet, and even "natural flavors" found in Heinz ketchup and Campbell's tomatoe soup. Ripened tomatoes and parmesan cheese contain MSG naturally. It is a chemical which is difficult to avoid since it has infiltrated in most pre-prepared foods, similar to the use of high fructose corn syrup.  So if you read a label or sign that states "No MSG", don't believe it.

PATTYD

RESEARCH THIS WEB SITE . THERE HEALTH CARE SITE. I THINK YOU WOULD BE AMAZED WHAT YOU WILL FIND THAT CAN HELP YOUR DAUGHTER. AND MY SISTER 's BABIES ARE ALLERGIC TO FORMULA AND COWS MILK SHE GIVES HER NEWBORNS GOATS MILK. AND THERE OLDEST IS 7 ALREADY AND HE IS HEALTHY  AND SO ARE HER OTHER TWO. 5 YEAR OLD AND 1 YEAR OLD. SHE BUYS IT AT A FARM WHERE THEY HAVE A MILKING  PALOR. AND PROCESS THERE OWN MILK.   HEREIS THE WEB SITE    www.hamartin.com

Did anyone notice Organic Pastures RAW Milk in video 2 and 3? In Part 2, Jack Samuels and the interviewer are in front of the dairy case and he's holding a glass bottle of Organic Pastures RAW Milk! And there are plastic jugs of it also visible in the background. I used to get it here in Arizona, not anymore :-(, so I remember what the bottles used to look like. I even have some of the glass bottles I bought when I was in California! It's 3:21 into the video in Part 2.

Also, in Part 3 of this video series. Again, Jack Samuels and the interviewer are in front of the dairy case and the voice over of the interviewer suggests that people "...buy milk which has been pasteurized...", this is 4:16 into the video. What a crock! I'm sure Jack Samuels was specifically extolling the VIRTUES of RAW MILK and the interviewer or CBN decided to just OMIT that tidbit of information!!!

For SHAME, CBN!!! For, SHAME!!!

Their shoveling genetically altered crap into us?  One day we will break free from this diamond mine and inform the masses!

"Between the genetically altered crap they shovel in us, to the fact the "hide" the ingredients under alternate names should tell us something"

Blurry-eyed's assay is horribly enlightening. One important thing about MSG is the claim authoritative individuals make saying that it can't pass throught the blood-brain barrier. However, much research has shown that the glutamic acid can do so, but through a back door, namely the hypothalamus gland, then entering the cerebro-spinal fluid. And people wonder why they have those incapacitating migraines!

This is a technique of Fabian Socialism: "Kill 'em with kindness." Ah, but it tastes so good! Really? Is the process of killing oneself that sweet? It's easier if you don't know you're doing it.

My advice is to get rid of anything isolated, extracted, hydrolyzed or autolyzed, and then avoid all caseins and gums (xanthan, guar, etc.)

One question I have regards all these protein drinks. How can we be sure the soy or whey protein isolates do not have MSG in thr process, since the FDA permits non-labeling if the content of MSG is under 70%? No one has been able to give me a straight answer, even the technicians at ReLiv. Therefore, I am remaining distrustful. When CODEX Alimentarius arrives, then we can be completely distrusting.

Last question: To what does aspartic and glutamic acid bind on the receptor site in terms of emotions and to what neuropeptides are they linked, if at all. I have heard fear, and it associated hormones, are linked to these small-chain acids, which are sythetic and chemical invaders.

Allow me to give a brief history of how MSG came to be discovered and perverted into what it now is.

MSG, the sodium salt of the amino acid glutamic acid and a form of glutamate, has no distinct taste of its own, and how it adds flavor to other foods is not fully understood.

Asians had originally used the “kombu” seaweed’s broth as a flavor enhancer, without understanding that glutamic acid was its flavor-enhancing component. In 1908, a multi-million-dollar industry was born when Professor Kikunae Ikeda of the University of Tokyo isolated monosodium glutamate using kombu. He noted that the Glutamate had a distinctive taste, different from sweet, sour, bitter and salty; he gave this taste the name “umami”. Umami, translates roughly to savory or meaty in the English language.

In 1909 MSG entered the marketplace as Aji-no-moto, a product so successful the company reorganized itself around the substance.  At this point MSG was not poisonious.                                                                               .

A slow and costly extraction process was used to produce MSG until 1956, when the Japanese succeeded in producing glutamic acid by means of fermentation, and large-scale production of MSG began.

This is the excitotoxin we now know as MSG....different than the original seaweed extractive originally discovered.

Today, the Ajinomoto Group’s 15 factories supply about one third of the 1.5 million-tons of MSG sold annually.

If anyone who doesn't know about it wants to get the very best alt health newletter (paper) in the country, check out Dr David Williams alternatives newsletter, it's where I learned about this and a myriad of other topics.

I have personally witnessed people having a MSG reaction, don't believe the FDA,

I grew up in Hong Kong and have lived in China. While it is true that most Chinese food in the United States is changed for American taste buds and is not as it is overseas, in China and Hong Kong they DO use MSG. We used to call the feeling we got after eating a lot of Chinese food "buzz jaw". You could feel it in your face.

Just go to a Chinese grocery store here in the states, and find the brands of sauces that are made in Hong Kong or China and you will see MSG in most of them.

No one cares, where dollars are concerned.  It is the money that matters.  Do you not get it?

CAN SOMEONE TELL WHY WHEN I JUST GET MERCOLA'S BRAND NEW EMAIL....... THERE ARE ALREADY A TON OF COMMENTS AND SOME ARE FROM WEEKS BEFORE I EVEN RECEIVED IT???  IS THERE SOME PRIORTY LIST OF PEOPLE WHO GET HIS NEWSLETTERS WEEKS BEFORE THE REST OF US????

PS: A few people are allergic to MSG -- just as they can be to shrimps, peanuts, strawberries. If you're allergic to MSG, avoid it! If you're not, I wouldn't worry too much. Far more important to avoid trans fats in your diet, nitrites in preserved meats and sausages, and if you can, processed foods generally!  I hate fake science, whether it's pushed by the food industry, by pharmaceutical companies, or by self-promoting journalists or health writers who want to make a name for themselves without first considering the facts.

OK guys. Glutamate itself is a widespread amino acid: it is found naturally in human bodies, and is found primarily in the bound form in protein-containing foods, such as mushrooms, seaweed, tomatoes, nuts, legumes, meats, and most dairy products. Only a fraction of the glutamate in foods is in a "free" form, and only free glutamate can enhance the flavour of foods. Part of the flavour-enhancing effect of tomatoes, fermented soy products, yeast extracts, certain sharp cheeses, and fermented or hydrolyzed protein products (such as soy sauce and soy bean paste) is due to the presence of free glutamate ions. Parmesan and camembert cheeses, tomatoes, peas and corn all have high levels of naturally occurring free glutamate. Japanese and Chinese cooks have used a natural seaweed broth, such as kelp, for literally thousands of years to create this much-prized "umami" glutamate taste in soups and foods. Considerable research has failed to find any syndrome related to MSG (or in fact any negative health effects at all), and the "Chinese restaurant syndrome" is therefore largely consigned these days to urban legend status.  I am no uncritical supporter of the food industry -- or for that matter the the drug companies, who feed us all manner of poisons in the guise of medicines.  But it's important to get the facts straight, and not just accept without question every scare that the news-hungry media regurgitates.  There is absolutely no agreement among researchers that MSG is harmful as an excitotoxin  -- some think it might be, others are pretty sure it isn't. All agree so far that typical use of MSG does not spike glutamic acid to high levels in adults, and that the only possible cause for concern currently might be the ingestion of large quantities of MSG by babies and young children.

Some questions, If there are 1.5 billion chinese people eating chinese food, how can MSG be bad?

If our dentists don't feel that floride is bad, why should we. Why would McDonalds be feeding us bad food, they want to keep us healthy so we can continue to patronize their restaurants. I read about the wonderful health advances in the newpaper everyday, dont you believe that the medical Profession and the Pharmaceutical professions are here to give us a better quality of life? Aren't they doing just that?  I don't take vitamins because I eat a healthy diet, they are unneccesary. Come on people, You know that Organic food is the latest craze, it's really no better or worse than normal supermarket food. All this talk about what we eat is totally exaggerated. You have tyo understand that as we get older, our bodies break down. thank god we can take all these pills and medicines to extend our lives. If something like a Hostess Tinkie was really bad, why would they be allowed to have sold these for the past 60 years? Lastly, if there were no preservatives, we would not be able to have the wide variety of foods available to us as are present. The large companies lie Nabisco are just as interested, if more, in our health than we are. Again healthy consumers buy more.

Now, before you jump on me, let me explain, I'm a doc who does at least two health related talks every week, the above are common questions I'm asked.  1 Public is no educated to what real health is. 2 The all mighty dollar takes precedence over our healthy. 3 The FDA is riddled with political machinations. (dare I say corruption).

The point, we have a very long way to go if we want to restore the health of our people which is horrendous for the most part, but as George Bush senior said when running for president: "Don't worry, Be Happy" kind of says it all, doesn't it.

GM

I am sure that eating a lot of refined MSG is not a great idea - and eating processed foods in general is a risk - MSG is not all that is problematic in it. However, there are balance issues in every direction. Should I rinse all the MSG off my kombu before making soup stock? There is a significant amount on it. It's chemically the same, from everything I have been able to find out. Where do we stop? I say the kombu is a natural food. But then there are even natural foods that are not necessarly good for us. Potatoes (which have their own share of toxins) may be natural but they don't work well for diabetics like me. The list goes on. Personally, I think sugar and starch is the greatest danger in the American diet. Along with eating processed food, fake fats, too much Omega 6, they are killing us - probably faster than MSG. My solution has been to take the time for slower food - for the most part, don't eat processed food and you will do a heck of a lot better. Cut out the sugar, the starch and the trans-fat and add colored vegetables and berries - you will have a miracle on your hands. Dr. Mercola already pretty much told us so. It works for me. But I will continue to eat the MSG from my kombu in my miso soup.