Prevalence of the "Chinese restaurant syndrome"

A questionnaire survey attempted to define the prevalence of symptoms characteristic of the "Chinese restaurant syndrome" (CRS) in the general adult population. Forty-three per cent of 3,222 respondents associated unpleasant symptoms with specific foods and eating environments; however, only 1 to 2 per cent reported symptoms characteristic of the CRS, and only 0.19 per cent associated these characteristic symptoms with consumption of Chinese food. Most respondents who were "aware" of the syndrome and most of those who believed they had experienced it reported non-specific symptoms. If the word "syndrome" is to be used to describe symptoms attributed to specific food ingredients, the limits of the "syndrome" must be specified.