Are soy products good or bad for you?!
Are soy products good or bad for you?
I hear conflicting reports about soy products and their effect on health. What is the truth?
Answers:
Felicity Lawrence's article on soya was potentially misleading (Soya: it's in most of the processed food we eat, but is it safe?, July 25). Lawrence described how a dead parrot in New Zealand led Dr Mike Fitzpatrick to investigate the safety of phytoestrogens (plant hormones) in soya. She didn't mention that he is a director of the Weston A Price Foundation, a body that promotes traditional farming and the consumption of butter, eggs, whole milk, meat and saturated animal fat. It is also responsible for a long-running campaign against soya.
Lawrence states: "In its raw form, the mature [soya] bean is known not only for its oestrogenic qualities but also for its anti-nutrients, according to the clinical nutritionist Kaayla Daniel, author of The Whole Soy Story." Yet Daniel too is a director of the foundation.
Moreover, Lawrence presents the conclusions of the government's committee on the toxicity of food in 2002 as saying that "in general the health benefits claimed for soya were not supported by clear evidence and [it] judged that there could be risks from high levels of consumption for certain age groups". In fact, the committee concluded that neither the risks nor benefits were supported by clear evidence.
However, the UK's Joint Health Claims Initiative is so convinced of the health benefits of soya that it has approved the following health claim: "The inclusion of at least 25 grams soya protein per day as part of a diet low in saturated fat can help reduce blood cholesterol." Lawrence acknowledges that "30-40% of all infants in the US are raised on soya formula", but doesn't point out that, if soya is so harmful to babies, then this massive sample would prove it. It doesn't.
It's one thing to feed experimental animals massive doses of soya isolates, but human studies show a different result. In 1998, one study (Klein) looked at soya formulas, found no risk to infants and found them to be a nutritionally complete feeding option. Another study (Strom, 2001) looked at the effect of soya on reproductive health and found none.
As a health campaigner, I think it would be extraordinary for any organisation to promote cow's milk as a better alternative to soya when it contains 35 different hormones and 11 growth factors, which can be up to 20,000 times stronger than phytoestrogens, and have been linked to cancers of the breast, ovaries, prostate and colon - as we in the Vegetarian & Vegan Foundation established in White Lies, our report on the health consequences of consuming cow's milk. Two-thirds of UK milk comes from pregnant cows, when hormone levels are particularly high. In a country where breast cancer has increased 80% since 1971 and now affects one in nine women, we should be much more concerned about oestrogen rather than phytoestrogen, a plant hormone that has been consumed by millions of people for thousands of years.
Lawrence is right, soya production is devastating the rainforests: but as at least 80% goes for animal feed, including dairy cows, the promotion of dairy will ensure the destruction continues.
・ Article written by Dr. Justine Butler
(This is just a side note,alot of anti soy info comes from Dr. Mercola,and guess what?He also happens to be a member of Weston A. Price!The website soyonlineservice has been quoted alot by users in this forum claiming soy is bad,they also get their info from Weston A. Price)
well if you cant eat/drink regular things my mom wood by soy products so ya
soy products are good for you
The truth is that ppl can't make up their minds about what is good or bad!
Anything in excess is bad,just like not enough is also.
My philosophy is,if it is food & you can get past the taste,then it won't kill you!(unless you are allergic of course,which is why soy products were invented.Formula for babie allergic to milk,etc...)
WHAT'S PROVEN in most verified legit scientific research: basically, soy is a complete protein (it's good for muscles and nervous system functioning) and an excellent source of both calcium and polyunsaturated fats. That means its helpful in reducing bad cholesterol, and overall cholesterol, (dieases such as CVD / CAD) and osteoporosis ( = skeletal bone disintegration). Polyunstayurated good fat is also useful in protecting vital organs and in nerve cell functions. I could go on and on here but you probably get the point. Less researched claims include the cancer prevention properties of soy but there too have been significant studies, though not yet "conclusive" --not enough evidence yet to really make the claim stick to the scientists.
Would you rather consume a healthy drink made from beans that has a balance of a lot of nutrients and can still be fortified further...or milk your mother or a sister and drink there milk daily? Of course you'd have to keep them constantly pregnated to do this. If anyone laughs at this just consider that your doing the same thing to a cow when you buy milk at the store and use it at home.
I understand this question wasn't aimed towards soy vs cows milk..but when you consider the alternative,... +_+
Soy has been in use for longer then written records, beginning in asia and working its way into england then later to the US and other areas.
Soybeans are also used in industrial products including oils, soap, cosmetics, resins, plastics, inks, crayons, solvents, clothing, and biodiesel. Soybeans are also used as fermenting stock to make a brand of vodka.
I'd guess its used in probably at least 1/3-2/3 of processed shelf foods.
"Soybeans are a source of complete protein."
So..if soy products are detrimental to our health..I'd say we're !@#$ed and its so curious how over the last 4-5k or longer years they've possibly been consumed in cultures..that so many people have had so many good benefits from them.
It is one thing you have to make up your own mind for.
per that says it does. ."
Read the link below
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/soybean...
In healthy women Soy is a very good food, The jury is still out on wether or not you should eat or drink it if you have had breast cancer.
"What is the Effect of Soy on Breast Cancer Patients and Survivors?
At this time, researchers are not certain what effect soy may have on breast cancer patients or survivors. However, some researchers believe that phytoestrogens found in many soy foods may stimulate cell growth and could actually lead to a higher risk of breast cancer recurrence.
''Some physicians feel that women with estrogen receptor-positive breast cancers or those who are taking the drug tamoxifen for breast cancer should limit their intake of soy products containing phytoestrogens until researchers are able to better understand the effects of soy on breast tumors. In fact, many physicians advise women with a strong personal or family history of breast cancer not to consume phytoestrogens. ''
・ Soy can have both very positive and negative effects.
・ The type of soy products used can have very different effects.
・ The amount of soy products used has significantly different effects.
There are some pretty clear benefits of soy in diet. A few of these are:
・ Soy can have an impressive effect in limiting postmenopausal osteoporosis. This is one of the very positive estrogenic effects. (Scheiber, Liu et al. 2001), (Picherit, Bennetau-Pelissero et al. 2001), (Arjmandi, Birnbaum et al. 1998)
・ Soy can improve vaginal health for post-menopausal women. It helps ward off what is known as vaginal atrophy that is a thinning of the vaginal wall that comes with aging. (Santen, Pinkerton et al. 2002), (Baird, Umbach et al. 1995)
・ Soy contributes to lower cholesterol (this was shown with soy foods not as supplements). (Anderson, Johnstone et al. 1995)
・ Soy is heart healthy because it relaxes coronary arteries, reduces inflammation, reduces blood lipids, homocysteine and blood pressure. (Setchell 2001)
・ Soy seems to be chemo protective in certain breast cancers. This happens when the soy isoflavones go and sit in the estrogen sites and block the actual estrogen from signaling for the cancer cells to grow. This effect is true for those cancers that are made worse by higher levels of estrogen. (Pagliacci, Smacchia et al. 1994)
・ Soy contains something called a protease inhibitor that can have powerful anticancer properties. Protease is an enzyme that is involved in making new cells. If you stop the process, you keep cancers from growing. Soy has been shown to have a very powerful effect on some cancers. (Kennedy 1998)
・ Soy seems to have a particularly powerful effect on bladder cancer.(Su, Yeh et al. 2000)
・ Soy protein intake is a very useful option for those with kidney disease because it is very low stress on the kidneys. (Anderson, Blake et al. 1998)
Raw soy beans, just like raw kidney beans are toxic.
Fact is that too much of anything is not good for you.
What you need to focus is a purely balanced approach that meets your physical needs. Soy for most can help in that.
soy is good for you, espcially for ur heart,if you take it moderately. but if you have too much soy, the downside comes.. too much soy, can cause hormonal imbalance..soy has some contains estrogen. dont treat it like its the only food u can eat for life..hehehe..also, some soy products have been genetically modified(GMO), those are bad for u..careful on picking soy products, make sure to read the ingredients first..:)...if ur not so sure, go for organic soy products, with the (FDA organic) seal on them, its assured that 95% of the products they use is organic.if its below 90 or 70, they might not have a seal on them.. but they might be a little pricey tho^_^...
They're both good and bad... you know the regular good stuff and healthy and all... but they also cause cancer, blood clots, strokes, heart attacks, etc etc. Well I mean soy can contribute to that but in the long run it probably doesn't hurt THAT much. Like eating aspartame.
Everything in moderation. Even healthful foods like soy when eaten in excess or not as part of a balanced diet can be bad for you. Soy should not be your only source of protein. There are many veggie sources of protein such as whole grains and a wide variety of lovely beans and lentils. So, yes, soy can be part of a healthy diet, as long as it is not eaten as your only protein source.