If you are a frequent user of soy products then here is a caution for you and some good advice on the healthiest form of soy to include in your diet. Soy is certainly promoted as being helpful to women because of its estrogenic qualities and besides all the standard soy yoghurts and milks it appears as an ingredient in many other products. It can be found listed as yeast extract, soy protein, soybean oil, soy lecithin and soy flour.
Despite its popularity, soy is one of the top eight allergens that can cause immediate reactions such as coughing, sneezing, runny nose, hives, diarrhoea, difficulty swallowing and in extreme cases even anaphylactic shock. As well as an immediate effect there can also be delayed allergic responses that can occur several hours to several days after the food is eaten.
It is not necessarily the fault of the soy, but in order to make it more appealing to the taste many manufacturers have added sweeteners, emulsifiers and synthetic nutrients to soy protein isolate (the key ingredient in most soy foods that imitate meat and dairy products) which is widely regarded as a health food.
This is a triumph of marketing to make unfermented soy seem healthy by association as it has been promoted as a ‘healthy’ alternative. However the reality is rather different as the risks of consuming unfermented soy products seem to greatly outweigh any possible benefits.
There are certainly many studies (evidenced by Dr. Kaayla Daniel, author of The Whole Soy Story) that demonstrate a link between soy and malnutrition, digestive distress, immune-system breakdown, thyroid dysfunction, cognitive decline, reproductive disorders and infertility, dangers in pregnancy and infant abnormalities, and possibly also cancer and heart disease.
What is the problem?
The major issue is that certainly in the USA at least 91 percent of soy grown is genetically modified (GM) which has been linked to an increase in allergies. Indeed, the only published human feeding study on GM foods ever conducted verified that the gene inserted into GM soy transfers into the DNA of our gut bacteria and continues to function. This means that years after you stop eating GM soy, you may still have a potentially allergenic protein continuously being produced in your intestines. Perhaps of even greater concern is recent Russian research which has demonstrated the potential for GM soy to cause infertility in future generations.
Soy contains natural toxins known as “anti-nutrients” comprised of such factors as saponins, soyatoxin, phytates, protease inhibitors, oxalates, goitrogens and estrogens. Some of these factors interfere with the enzymes you need to digest protein and while a small amount of anti-nutrients would not likely cause a problem, if you are regularly consuming large amounts of soy products then you are increasing your risk factors.
Soy and its effect on hormones – yours and your baby’s
Soy contains genistein and daidzeinm which are isoflavones (a type of phytoestroge) and these compounds mimic and sometimes block the hormone estrogen, and have been found to have adverse effects on various human tissues. Soy phytoestrogens are known to disrupt endocrine function, may cause infertility, and may promote breast cancer in women.
Drinking even two glasses of soy milk daily for one month may provide enough of these compounds to alter the menstrual cycle. Although the FDA regulates estrogen-containing products, no warnings exist on soy.
Soy also contains goitrogens, substances that block the synthesis of thyroid hormones and interfere with iodine metabolism, thereby interfering with your thyroid function.
Soy formula milk has up to 80 times higher manganese than is found in human breast milk and high levels of aluminium. Soybeans are processed (by acid washing) in aluminum tanks, which can leach high levels of aluminum into the final soy product and almost 20 percent of U.S. infants are now fed soy formula which is a very high number of babies whose health is at risk.
A particular problem for newborns is that the estrogens in soy can irreversibly harm a baby’s sexual development and reproductive health. Infants fed soy formula take in an estimated five birth control pills’ worth of estrogen every day. In fact infants fed soy formula have up to 20,000 times the amount of estrogen in circulation as those fed other formulas.
The best form of soy to include in your diet
You don’t actually need to avoid soy altogether, what you have to make sure of is that you eliminate non-fermented soy from your diet, which is the type that you will find in processed foods and in tofu, TVP and soymilk.
What you need to buy, and look for, is fermented soy because after a long fermentation process, the phytate (which blocks your body’s uptake of essential minerals) and anti-nutrient levels of soybeans are reduced, and their beneficial properties become available to your digestive system.
Traditionally fermented soy is the form that has been very popular in many Asian cultures for centuries, and numerous studies suggest it aids in preventing and reducing a variety of diseases including certain forms of heart disease and cancers.
One of the main benefits of fermented soy, especially natto, is that it is the best food source of vitamin K2. Vitamin K2 is essential to preventing osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, and diseases of the brain such as dementia, and protecting you from various cancers including prostate, lung, liver cancer and leukemia.
The best products that are made with fermented soy are tempeh, miso, natto, and soy sauce itself. However, make sure any soy sauce is traditionally made by fermenting soybeans, salt and enzymes and is not one made artificially using a chemical process.