Using soy products for healthy living
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Soy products are an important addition to healthy diets. Soybeans are an outstanding source of both fiber and protein. In addition, soybeans make for a great meat alternative for vegetarians or anyone else who is unable or unwilling to eat meat. Furthermore, the isoflavones, or plant hormones, found in soy products have been found to help prevent bone lose, to reduce the risk of cancer, and to decrease levels of LDL, better known as "bad cholesterol".
Allergies to Soybean Products
Like all things that we eat, it is important to monitor the intake of soybeans. For example, some people are allergic to soy products. In fact, one out of five children with food allergies are allergic to soybeans. Those who are allergic to soy products generally suffer from hives, diarrhea, and breathing problems after eating soybeans.
Potential Ill Effects of Soybean Products
For those who are not allergic to soybeans, there is a concern that including too many soybean products in the diet can adversely affect the function of the thyroid. This concern focuses primarily on soy-based infant formulas, which contain over 20,000 times as many phytoestrogens than human breast milk. In fact, the Canadian Health Coalition issued a press release stating that soy formula can potentially lead to thyroid dysfunction or cause problems with hormones and a child’s ultimate ability to reproduce.
In addition, the Pacific Health Research Institute has conducted a study that found consuming large amounts of tofu could lead to cognitive impairment, including increasing the likelihood of developing Alzheimer’s disease.
Soybeans, like all legumes, also contain trypsin inhibitors. Typsin is an enzyme produced by the pancreas, which assists in the digestion of protein. Therefore, consuming large amounts of raw soybeans can result in digestive difficulties caused by excess protein molecules passing through the digestive track. But, soy products are all made from soybeans that have been processed and cooked, which effectively deactivates the soy inhibitors found in raw soybeans.
Research Regarding Soybean Products
Many studies into the possible ill effects of soy products are currently being conducted. Most researchers, however, agree that the proven positive health effects of soy products far outweigh the potential negative effects. Furthermore, to garner negative health effects, a person would have to consume inordinately large amounts of soybeans.
No one knows for certain how much soybean consumption is “too much,” or if there should even be a cap at all. Many cultures, including Asian cultures and vegetarians, however, have been consuming soybean products for hundreds of years without ill effect. In China, the 1991 per capita consumption of soybeans was 9 grams per person. In Japan, the individual per capita consumption was 30 grams.
The FDA currently recommends eating 25 grams of soy protein each day. This is roughly equivalent to one cup of fresh soybeans, 3 ½ cups of soy milk, ½ cup of soy nuts, ore two soy hot dogs or soy burgers. Eating soybeans in these amounts is considered safe and does not put a person at risk for any of the possible harmful side effects of soybean products, but still allows the person to gain all of the positive health effects enjoyed by those who regularly consume soy products.
