Why we should avoid the oh-so-healthy SOY!

[realityjunkee]

Originally Posted by metqa

Real Shiritaki noodles is just shiritaki yam powder and water. It is only the ones trying to mimic pasta noodles that have soy added. I like the plain clear and dark kind.

Mine were House Brands Tofu Shirataki. I have never seen any other brand of them around here. Both Health stores carry the same brand. I'll look into the other type.

[MountainGirl]

Originally Posted by eclipse8787

The lady at the digestive health clinic told me not to drink soy because it mimics ESTROGEN which could increase risk of breast cancer.

From what I've read, the plant estrogen is better than real estrogen for those who are estrogen-sensitive. The soy replaces the real estrogen and thus is better. People with breast cancer should avoid soy, just to be on the safe side.

She said not to feed soy milk to children especially boys because of the estrogen effect. It could make boys grow breasts and have other issues.

From what I've read, that's a myth.

She said a better alternative to soy milk was rice milk. Rice milk is definitely not LC.. but it's healthier than soy milk.

Actually ALMOND milk is a better alternative and you can easily make it at home using organic almonds. There is a thread about it here: Almond Breeze

[bmoyer1]

Okay,
someone save me then, I am definately menopausal and I have been taking estroven pm to keep me sane. I am under the impression it has soy, as a matter of fact, my gyno said that I should take a ton of soy to get thru this since I don't want to do hrt.
HELP!!

[ghelen]

What about edamame??? please tell me I can still eat that

[Tuscanytrace]

Thanks, Allie! I have been telling, telling, telling people about this for years, because the information has been around a LOOoooooong time. So many people have been so snowballed by the cheap soy foods industry (one of the biggest industries in the country) that most just have no idea. It really helped when the American Heart Association came out with a statement last summer that said that soy does NOT help the heart. Yet so many foods, particularly "health" foods, still say "heart-healthy" on the label in reference to soy (as well as all kinds of carbs).

Thanks for spreading the word.

[Tuscanytrace]

Originally Posted by ljh150

This is why it should be illegal to produce soy infant formula.

Exactly. And people wonder why so many people have infertility problems, and girls are developing as young as 4 (I ran into a boy last week whose mom said he was diagnosed with early puberty at 18 MONTHS!!!!), and an alarming number of young boys have undescended testicles. It's scary.

[Tuscanytrace]

Originally Posted by atcgirl42

You can't avoid soy! It's in every stinking thing! Even cough drops! I can't believe how much soy is added to just about everything. I'm hypothyroid and try to avoid it, but it's really difficult to do. I'm tickled pink when I find a product that doesn't contain soy. Remember, lecithin is soy too.

You have a number of Trader Joe's in the Philly area. They carry a lot of things without soy; and their own brand of soy sauce is a traditionally-fermented variety that is not only delicious but safe in terms of this thread's topic. Fermenting it reduces the "bad stuff".

Plus, Trader Joe's also has the least expensive almond milk I've found, including the unsweetened variety. And they have vowed to keep GMO's out according to their website.

[Tuscanytrace]

Originally Posted by Leo41

Agree about soy being everywhere. I am hypothyroid, but none of my doctors ever mentioned the soy issue. I read about it and asked my endocrinologist, and he agreed that I should avoid soy products. Why don't they tell you? In any case, I check all labels, and it is truly amazing how much soy there is in everything.

They don't tell you because they truly don't know. Most docs only briefly touch on nutrition during medical school. I mean, depending on the school, it might be only a week! They don't go in depth, they don't question, and the information they're studying is well behind the research. So they keep repeating garbage like low carbing dangerous; fat makes you fat; etc.

I know one mom whose doctor looked at her baby, who was something like 75th percentile for height and 60th for weight, and, after hearing the baby was nursed, suggested she start skipping feedings--in essence, putting a baby on a diet who was already slightly on the slender side. While I admire doctors for their ability to diagnose, it's rare that one knows much about nutrition and endocrinology.

[Tuscanytrace]

Originally Posted by peachy

I drink two cups of soy mild everyday! Are you serious about this? Could that be why my weight isn't really dropping now? I'm not buying anymore. I will buy almond milk instead.

My first round of weight loss stalled in 2002 when I started buying Atkins bars, which of course are loaded with soy. Whenever I avoided them for awhile, I'd start losing again. But when I went back, I'd stall again.

And just so I don't have to post separately: I know probably a dozen people who have put babies on the Weston A. Price recipes. Their kids are robust, pink-cheeked...they look like pictures of turn-of-the-century babies, with wide faces...that sort of 20's look. My own kids look like that. I don't. But they've been getting that fresh milk since they were small.

[VGrace]

wow.thank you for posting this.

[aim in Fla*working]

Originally Posted by AnitaLCing

I didn't realize that tuna had soy in it until recently, too. I just bought StarKist Very Low Sodium Chuck Tuna Albacore Tuna in water. Ingredients are: White tuna (fish), water. It costs more, but the ingredients say it all.

my tuna has phosphates but not soy..

[JuliaL]

Originally Posted by bmoyer1

Okay,
someone save me then, I am definately menopausal and I have been taking estroven pm to keep me sane. I am under the impression it has soy, as a matter of fact, my gyno said that I should take a ton of soy to get thru this since I don't want to do hrt.
HELP!!

bmoyer - ask your doctor about bio-identical hormone replacement therapy. It's much safer than synthetic HRT because it's made from natural ingredients, and I don't think soy is one of them (but someone correct me if I'm wrong). Also, because it is transdermal (absorbed through the skin) rather than an oral medication, it doesn't have to pass through the liver. Studies have shown that the risk of stroke, etc., is almost non-existent with BHRT compared to synthetic HRT.

I was on BHRT for a while but decided to go cold turkey and get off all HRT. I went through a period of frequent hot flashes and had some mood swings and anxiety, but I dealt with it by getting lots of exercise and seeing a psychologist once every two weeks.

Everyone's experience with menopause is different, and I certainly am not against HRT. Just sharing my personal experience.

[micki]

Originally Posted by AllieCat0817

I went to Whole Foods yesterday. I was going to get a soup off of their HEALTHY soup bar. The ingredients to the one I wanted to get, the DAIRY FREE brocolli cheese soup... of course was LOADED with soy. So I didn't get it. I don't want DAIRY FREE brocolli CHEESE soup anyway. lol

The soups at Whole Foods aren't very good anyways. None of their prepared foods taste good. I think they are mostly low fat.

[JuliaL]

bump

[MountainGirl]

Originally Posted by peachy

I drink two cups of soy mild everyday! Are you serious about this? Could that be why my weight isn't really dropping now? I'm not buying anymore. I will buy almond milk instead.

Hey Peachy,

Soy may not be your problem. Too much is blamed on soy.

Organic soy milk is a good thing. If you are drinking store-bought soy milk, make sure it's:
1) ORGANIC!!!
2) has no starches or sweeteners

Almond milk is fine too, but the same criteria applies.

Again, organic soy is not the "evil" some claim it to be. There are valid studies stating soy has its nutritional and medicinal benefits and its place in a healthy diet. However, we would be wise to stay far away from soy that is not organic and is in a good amount of processed foods.

[thindreams2reality]

Wow! I had no idea. I thought soy was a healthy choice. Thanks for posting.

[Lillianna]

Originally Posted by ljh150

This is why it should be illegal to produce soy infant formula.

LJH, every time I read a thread like this I want to cry. When I went back to work when my daughter was 6 months old, I put her on soy formula. That was 10 years ago....I thought it was better for her!

Now my sweet little 75 lb. daughter is busting out of her bras. Everything about her looks like she's about 7 years old....except her chest! And all the signs point to the fact that she'll get her period any minute now.

I feel so guilty....and I wonder what other effects that horrible soy had/will have on her....

[doxielvr]

Is tofu fermented soy?

[MountainGirl]

Originally Posted by Lillianna

LJH, every time I read a thread like this I want to cry. When I went back to work when my daughter was 6 months old, I put her on soy formula. That was 10 years ago....I thought it was better for her!

Now my sweet little 75 lb. daughter is busting out of her bras. Everything about her looks like she's about 7 years old....except her chest! And all the signs point to the fact that she'll get her period any minute now.

I feel so guilty....and I wonder what other effects that horrible soy had/will have on her....

You don't need to feel so badly. The soy is probably NOT the culprit of early puberty. Studies show that growth hormones in meat, eggs and dairy are the most common factor, not soy.

That's why it's important to buy only organic meat, dairy and eggs, ones with no hormones.

[MountainGirl]

Originally Posted by thindreams2reality

Wow! I had no idea. I thought soy was a healthy choice.

Soy CAN be a healthy choice if it is organic and in moderation. Fermented is best.

[MountainGirl]

Originally Posted by doxielvr

Is tofu fermented soy?

No, but if its organic, it's a good source of nutrition, in moderation.

[metqa]

Tofu is not fermented. It is a precipitated from slurry of ground cooked soybeans. Much like cheese is made.

[metqa]

Found this in the Journal of Food Science:

Nutritional Improvement of Soy Flour Through Inactivation of Trypsin Inhibitors by Sodium Sulfite


ABSTRACT


Treatment of raw soy flour at 75°C with 0.03M sodium sulfite for 1 hr completely inactivated trypsin inhibitors leaving no sulfite residues in the soy proteins. Rat feeding studies showed that the protein efficiency ratio (PER) increased from 1.55 for raw flour to 2.11 for heated flour and 2.49 for flour heated in the presence of sulfite. This nutritional improvement was accompanied by enhancement in in vivo nitrogen digestibilities. Pancreas weights were elevated in rats fed raw soy flour, but not in those consuming heated soy flour, with or without sodium sulfite. Knowledge of the factors that decrease the stability of potentially toxic trypsin inhibitors may be useful for improving the quality of certain foods.

[Lillianna]

Originally Posted by MountainGirl

You don't need to feel so badly. The soy is probably NOT the culprit of early puberty. Studies show that growth hormones in meat, eggs and dairy are the most common factor, not soy.

That's why it's important to buy only organic meat, dairy and eggs, ones with no hormones.

Oh, I feel guilty about those, too She's a very picky eater but has always loved milk and meat. Hormone-filled milk, hamburger and chicken have been the staples of her diet for most of her life.

I buy her organic milk now and we've cut back on that. I have a hard time affording organic, grass-fed beef so I've cut back on meat, too. It's hard to find stuff to feed her....

But, thank you for making me feel better about the soy formula :- ) I think I feel particularly bad about that because I went out of my way to buy it because it was soy

[AllieCat0817]

I cant (wont?) really believe that just because a soy is organic that its not harmful for thyroid or female hormone issues etc. Dunno.