So why do Asians seem to eat soy without the health concerns? Well, first of all they aren't eating the same types of soy that is in the American diet or as much. Epidemiological* studies have shown that Asians, particularly in Japan
and China, have a lower incidence of breast and prostate cancer than
people in the United States, and many of these studies credit a
traditional diet that includes soy. I personally do not believe soy is the only reason. Asians consume much more raw food than Americans.
Studies showing the dark side of soy dates back 100 years," says clinical nutritionist Kaayla Daniel, author of The Whole Soy Story (New Trends, 2005)."The Asian diet does include small
amounts--about nine grams a day--of primarily fermented soy products,
such as miso, natto, and tempeh, and some tofu. Fermenting soy creates
health-promoting probiotics, the good bacteria our bodies need to
maintain digestive and overall wellness. By contrast, in the United
States, processed soy food snacks or shakes can contain over 20 grams of
non-fermented soy protein in one serving." **More than double the amount the Asians are consuming. And think about it ... if you are trying to lose weight, you might have a protein bar for breakfast, protein shake for lunch, another protein bar for a snack. Then maybe a meal for supper, and lets pretend that the meal you are eating does not contain any processed food. Probably you have consumed 60 grams of soy in one day alone. Compare that to the 9 grams the Asian diet contains. And remember they eat many more vegetables than Americans.
"Industry discovered soy and found that lots of money could be made from the plant, every part of the
bean makes a profit. Soy oil has become the base for most vegetable oils;
soy lecithin, the waste product left over after the soybean is
processed, is used as an emulsifier; soy flour appears in baked and
packaged goods; different forms of processed soy protein are added to
everything from animal feed to muscle-building protein powders. 'Soy
protein isolate was invented for use in cardboard,' Daniel says. 'It
hasn't actually been approved as a food ingredient.'"**
"Soy is everywhere in our food supply, as the star in cereals and
health-promoting foods and hidden in processed foods. Even if you read
every label and avoid cardboard boxes, you are likely to find soy in
your supplements and vitamins (look out for vitamin E derived from soy
oil), in foods such as canned tuna, soups, sauces, breads, meats
(injected under poultry skin), and chocolate, and in pet food and
body-care products. It hides in tofu dogs under aliases such as textured
vegetable protein, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, and lecithin -- which
is troubling, since the processing required to hydrolyze soy protein
into vegetable protein produces excitotoxins such as glutamate (think
MSG) and aspartate (a component of aspartame), which cause brain-cell
death."**
Switching to organic soy isn't the answer either. Soybeans naturally contain plant
estrogens, toxins, and anti-nutrients.
These can not be removed from the plant.
Taking a look at each one of these substances;
anti-nutrients block the body's ability to digest properly, mainly trypsin
inhibitors; which limits the amount of energy the body has to use and
process. The result is a lack of
proper absorption of what the body needs.
The toxins that the many articles I read referred to
haemagglutinin a clot-promoting substance that causes red blood cells to lump
together. Think blood clot ...
Along with the trypsin, heamagglutinin is a growth inhibitor. Makes you wonder why so many mothers
use soy formula. Goitrogens, which
are also in soy, are substances that depress thyroid function. In the last decade the US has reported
a rise in thyroid disease, in humans as well as America's pets. Soy is highly used in pet foods.
Lastly, plant estrogens (phytoestogens), which have been
highly debated, almost as much as soy in the American diet is the last one I
will look at in this entry. Some
experts feel that phytoestogens are great for replacing estrogen in a woman after
menopause, while others say they are the main cause of cancer in menopausal
women. Some claim that
phytoestogens have lead to the rise of infertility in younger American women. Phytoestrogens are readily absorbed
into the body, circulate in plasma and are excreted in the urine.
*Epidemiology is the study of the distribution and patterns
of health-events, health-characteristics and their causes or influences in
well-defined populations.
**Parts of the information in this blog are from The Dark Side of Soy by Mary Vance from Terrain.
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