Barefoot Healthy Hippie

While writing this article I came across a great reference. They have done their research and instead of publishing what I wrote, I'll direct you to their page. So if you want to know: Read it! You can find it here.

If you don't want to take the time, here are the nuts and bolts (taken from the page):

Following are some of the major problems caused by soy, as described by the Weston Price Foundation on their website:

* High levels of phytic acid in soy reduce assimilation of calcium, magnesium, copper, iron and zinc. Phytic acid in soy is not neutralized by ordinary preparation methods such as soaking, sprouting and long, slow cooking. High phytate diets have caused growth problems in children. (Like developing too early)

* Trypsin inhibitors in soy interfere with protein digestion and may cause pancreatic disorders. In test animals soy containing trypsin inhibitors caused stunted growth.

* Soy phytoestrogens disrupt endocrine function and have the potential to cause infertility and to promote breast cancer in adult women.

* Soy phytoestrogens are potent antithyroid agents that cause hypothyroidism and may cause thyroid cancer. In infants, consumption of soy formula has been linked to autoimmune thyroid disease.

* Vitamin B12 analogs in soy are not absorbed and actually increase the body's requirement for B12.

* Soy foods increase the body's requirement for vitamin D.

* Fragile proteins are denatured during high temperature processing to make soy protein isolate and textured vegetable protein.

* Processing of soy protein results in the formation of toxic lysinoalanine and highly carcinogenic nitrosamines.

* Free glutamic acid or MSG, a potent neurotoxin, is formed during soy food processing and additional amounts are added to many soy foods.

* Soy foods contain high levels of aluminum which is toxic to the nervous system and the kidneys.


What will I do with all this information?

I am a new vegan, so learning about soy is important to me since it is high in protein. I have felt uneasy about soy products for some time now but never took the time to research it until now. Now that I have the facts I choose to not drink soy milk and instead drink almond milk. Almond milk contains calcium naturally and is cheaper than rice milk in my area.

I use beans for protein, I don't need tofu. I can get along fine without adding additional soy into my diet. I feel safer for myself and my family without it. So for me, the bottom line is to limit my soy intake and use it only as a condiment.

This article explores what makes soy healthy. It's important to note that Dr. Greene, who I quoted, is teamed up with Silk Soy Milk. That makes him bias, but it doesn't change the health facts about soy.

"I love sipping a glass of organic soymilk, made from whole soybeans. This is completely different from scarfing down a bag of greasy potato chips made with partially hydrogenated soybean oil that has been chemically derived from genetically modified soy plants and different from gorging on heavily processed convenience foods containing hydrolyzed vegetable (soy) protein, textured vegetable (soy) protein, or soy protein isolates and concentrates. Is soy healthy? It depends on how we grow it, how we process it, and how we eat it. How much do we eat? What other ingredients are in our soy-containing foods? What other nutrients are in our diet? Are we allergic to soy?"
-Dr. Alan Greene from DrGreene.com

Nutritional Information

The fact is that soy has no cholesterol and is low in fat. If you are watching fat and cholesterol intake, then soy is a far healthier choice than meat. That is, whole soy, not processed soy.

The following chart is the nutritional information for whole, raw soy beans. The serving size is the yield of ten pods.

Nutrition Facts
Calories 29	(123 kJ)
% Daily Value 1
Total Fat	1.4g	2%
Sat. Fat	0.2g	1%
Cholesterol	0mg	0%
Sodium	3mg	<>%
Total Carbs.	2.2g	1%
Dietary Fiber	0.8g	3%
Protein	2.6g
Calcium	39.4mg
Potassium	124mg

Compare that to the following chart, which is for 2.9 ounces of raw tofu. Notice that processing of the soy increases all catagories, good and bad.

Nutrition Facts
Calories 117	(491 kJ)
% Daily Value 1
Total Fat	7g	11%
Sat. Fat	1g	5%
Cholesterol	0mg	0%
Sodium	11mg	<>%
Total Carbs.	3.5g	1%
Dietary Fiber	1.9g	7%
Protein	12.8g
Calcium	553.2mg
Potassium	192mg

The following paragraph also came from DrGreene.com. The study it sites can be found in the book, Blue Zones, which I read and loved, I would quote directly from the book except I borrowed and returned it and haven't bought my own copy yet.

"In Okinawa, Japan. more of the people live to be over 100 years old than any place else in the world. The Okinawa Centenarian Study examined lifetime eating habits of 600 residents of Okinawa who were over 100 years old. Tofu, a non-fermented soy food, has been an important part of their diet for hundreds of years. The study concludes that high consumption of whole soy foods (about two servings a day) is one of the main reasons that elderly Okinawans have 80 percent fewer heart attacks and 75 percent fewer hormone dependent cancers (including breast, prostate, ovarian and colon cancer) compared to Americans. The Okinawans also have a lower rate of Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. The centenarians in the study shared several lifestyle factors, including regular physical activity and low-calorie diets containing an abundance of soy foods, vegetables and fish."

The study also concluded that their exercise and way of life had a lot to do with their longevity. These people had friends visiting them every week, they walked miles and still did a lot of their own labor. They were mostly vegetarian, maybe one meat serving a week because of expense. They also ate a lot of miso soup and tofu.

Another reason to eat soy, or be vegetarian in general (or at least cut back on meat) is that it's more sustainable than cows, chicken, fish, etc. It takes less water, less space, and less energy to grow plants than raise animals for food. It takes 8 gallons of water per pound of hamburger meat when you count up what the animal drinks and the water it takes to grow the food for the cow to eat for a lifetime. (Conscientious Cooking, a book published in the late 70s which is out of print and I wish I had.)

How to choose the right product

Up to 80% of soy beans grown in the US are genetically modified. There have not been long term studies on health risks of modification, but I wouldn't risk it for myself or my family. Organic soy beans are not modified and are not grown with pesticides or other chemicals. (One caveat is if the farm is located near a grower of modified plants there will be cross pollination so there is no guarantee of purity.)

Choose products that are made from whole soy beans, not just the isolated soy protein. Anything that is isolated is never as strong/healthy as the whole product. Herbs are a great example. Removing the salicylic acid (asprin) from the willow bark will still stop a headache, but it can cause your stomach to bleed. The whole willow bark has properties that keep your stomach from bleeding as well as stopping the headache.

There are soy milks that are made from whole beans, and some that are made from just the soy protein so read your labels!


Everything in Balance

Eating too much soy is not healthy, and eating pizza at every meal and then adding a cup of soy milk to your diet won't benefit you either. Over processing and over indulging in any food is a poor health choice.

How much is too much? No one really knows. I found sources recommending two servings per day and others say not more than two per week.

The bottom line: Whole soy is the best choice, read labels, buy organic.


The next article will be SOY: The Bad

This article comes from a trusted source, Green Smoothie Girl

This is a good base article to start understanding soy better. I will be following it up with my own research and information in the coming weeks. One thing I can add to this article right now is there are some small girls, who have been fed soy products as a large portion of their diet (i.e. soy milk), who have developed prematurely. This includes menstruating before they hit adolescence and developing breasts early as well. I personally knew of a girl who got her period in the second grade, it scared the daylights out of her because no one educates their kids that young about things that should be happening years later!


The Danger of Soy Products

Myth #6: “Soy products are a health food (especially for women).”

As more and more data has emerged in recent years about the dangers of eating a diet rich in animal products, soy product offerings have exploded at health food and other grocery stores as a “wonder food.” They include soy protein powders and bars and meat replacements (hot dogs, burger patties, and more). America’s soybean growers have hit the motherlode and now sell waste products of the soybean as “soy isolate protein powder”: this food is refined, processed, and separated from the whole food. Even the whole food is problematic, and the danger of soy product must come to light.

We have been told the Japanese have lower rates of breast, uterus, and prostate cancer, and that is attributed to high soy consumption. Unfortunately, Japanese people (and Asians) have higher rates of esophageal, pancreatic, liver, and stomach cancers. Soy causes these cancers in lab animals. Also, the Japanese tend to eat fermented whole-soy products such as miso, tempeh, and tofu-not refined products made from soy oil and isolated proteins.

The isoflavones in soy cause toxicity in estrogen-sensitive tissues and depress thyroid function, causing decreased metabolism as well as other thyroid diseases. Soy products now in virtually everything at the grocery store (breads, spaghetti sauce, cookies, even canned tuna) contribute to the epidemic of both diagnosed—and an estimated 10 million undiagnosed—thyroid problems. Most thyroid problems are in women over 40, and soy’s thyroid-depressing effects are likely contributing to the rise in obesity.

Soy lowers testosterone levels in men and causes malnutrition, especially in babies and children drinking soy milk or soy formula. Dozens of studies show that soy causes reproductive problems, immune problems, and cognitive decline. Doctors and researchers including Andrew Weil, Mary Enig, Kaayla T. Daniel, FDA advisors, and many others caution against soy consumption.

Fact: Soy is not a good alternative to meat and should be avoided because it promotes disease. Of particular concern are soy formulas for babies, soy protein powders and bars, soy-based hormone creams for women, and anything that features “soy isolate protein powder” or other non-fermented, refined products. The danger of soy product is coming to light, but many operate under the assumption that it is a nutritious food, especially for protein.