Claim: Coca-Cola spiked with MSG is an aphrodisiac or soporific.
FALSE
Example: [Collected via e-mail, November 2008]
Dear friends,
I received news about the recent tactic used to spike girls' drink. It is a cheap and widely used method. This method was used in Canny Ong murder. Rapist uses this method.
Coca-cola + Ajinomoto/monosodium glutamate = a medicine which will cause drowsiness and excitement in the victim.
This mixture is poisonous if used too often on the victim. Please send this to all your female friends, sisters, & your loved ones and ask them to beware.
DO NOT accept coca-cola or any other drinks from stranger / even if it is your friend that you are not very close with.
Origins: This warning about rapists spiking their victims' Coca-Cola drinks with MSG has been circulating on the Internet since
also false.
MSG is a glutamate that is used as a flavor enhancer in a number of foods. Ajinomoto is both the name of a Japanese company that manufactures MSG and the brand name for the MSG product itself (in much the same way that
Because some people who ingest MSG experience adverse reactions, the
- Burning sensation in the back of the neck, forearms and chest
- Numbness in the back of the neck, radiating to the arms and back
- Tingling, warmth and weakness in the face, temples, upper back, neck and arms
- Facial pressure or tightness
- Chest pain
- Headache
- Nausea
- Rapid heartbeat
- Bronchospasm (difficulty breathing) in MSG-intolerant people with asthma
- Drowsiness
- Weakness
While both drowsiness and rapid heartbeat are both symptoms of an adverse reaction to MSG (and thus there is some fit with the
typical serving of glutamate-treated food contains less than
Moreover, only some people experience adverse reactions to MSG. Spiking the drinks of random women in hopes of hitting upon one who is MSG-intolerant wouldn't be a very effective strategy for someone looking to incapacitate the unwary, especially considering that those who are susceptible to the chemical could experience any of the symptoms listed, and thus the potential rapist could just as easily end up with a woman who develops a headache, feels nauseous, or experiences chest pains rather than one who gets drowsy or excited.
The Coca-Cola company says the following regarding rumors about the combination of its flagship product and MSG:
Some people have been lead to believe that combining Our Response: MSG is a flavor enhancer used in many foods, but it is not an ingredient in
Rumor: Coke + MSG = Aphrodisiac
As for the claim that the abduction, rape, and murder of 28-year-old Canny Ong had anything to do with a spiked drink
Barbara "(wr)ong theory" Mikkelson
Last updated: 1 December 2008
![]() | Sources: |
Lourdes, Charles. "Police Tell How Canny Was Abducted, Raped and Killed." The [Malaysia] Star. 24 June 2003. McCord, Shanna. "Woman Slain While Visiting Malaysia." The [San Diego] Union-Tribune. 26 June 2003.