Abstract
Our aim was to assess the effect of dietary elimination of monosodium glutamate (MSG) and aspartame on perceived pain in fibromyalgia. A total of 72 female patients with fibromyalgia were randomized to discontinuation of dietary MSG and aspartame (n = 36) or waiting list (n = 36). Patients were requested to rate their pain using a seven-point scale. Comparisons between both groups showed no significant differences on pain referred during the baseline or after the elimination of dietary MSG and aspartame. The discontinuation of dietary MSG and aspartame did not improve the symptoms of fibromyalgia.
References
Wolfe F, Smythe HA, Yunus MB, Bennett RM, Bombardier C, Goldenberg DL et al (1990) The American College of Rheumatology 1990 Criteria for the Classification of Fibromyalgia. Report of the Multicenter Criteria Committee. Arthritis Rheum 33:160–172
Wolfe F, Ross K, Anderson J, Russell IJ, Hebert L (1995) The prevalence and characteristics of fibromyalgia in the general population. Arthritis Rheum 38:19–28
Carmona L, Ballina J, Gabriel R, Laffon A, EPISER Study Group (2001) The burden of musculoskeletal diseases in the general population of Spain: results from a national survey. Ann Rheum Dis 60:1040–1045
Goldenberg DL, Burckhardt C, Crofford L (2004) Management of fibromyalgia syndrome. JAMA 292:2388–2395
Carville SF, Arendt-Nielsen S, Bliddal H, Blotman F, Branco JC, Buskila D et al (2008) EULAR evidence based recommendations for the management of fibromyalgia syndrome. Ann Rheum Dis 67:536–541
Smith JD, Terpening CM, Schmidt SO, Gums JG (2001) Relief of fibromyalgia symptoms following discontinuation of dietary excitotoxins. Ann Pharmacother 35:702–706
Ciappuccini R, Ansemant T, Maillefert JF, Tavernier C, Ornetti P (2010) Aspartame-induced fibromyalgia, an unusual but curable cause of chronic pain. Clin Exp Rheumatol 28:131–133
Logan A (2003) Dietary modifications and fibromyalgia. Complement Health Pract Rev 8:234–245
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Vellisca, M.Y., Latorre, J.I. Monosodium glutamate and aspartame in perceived pain in fibromyalgia. Rheumatol Int 34, 1011–1013 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-013-2801-5
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-013-2801-5