Article ID # 20060901
The Case for Soy
by Ann Loren
Energy Times, September 1, 2006

One of America's most popular health foods has recently been under attack through flawed studies and faulty theories. Here, Energy Times tries to set the record straight about the nutrient that is a valuable source of protein for millions of Americans.

What 2,000-year-old food has been one of the hottest items on store shelves for the past several years? If you said soy, you're absolutely right. From edamame (boiled green soybeans) to soy milk to soy protein in bars and shakes, Americans enjoy soy-based edibles to the tune of nearly $4 billion in sales annually.

Every year the humble bean finds its way into more items; over 1,600 new soy products were introduced between 2001 and 2004. This growth has been driven by an increasing knowledge of soy's many benefits, especially in terms of cardiovascular well-being, among health-conscious consumers. And when you're faced with entire shelves full of soy edibles (soy pasta? who knew?) it's easy to forget this valuable plant's ancient roots in eastern Asia and most notably Japan, where traditional soy foods such as tofu, tempeh, miso and shoyu (soy sauce) have long played a crucial role in one of the planet's healthiest cuisines. In fact, Japan's neighbor China is still among the world's top soy producers (the US, where soybeans were first introduced in 1765, is by far the biggest). But like anything else that enjoys a popularity boom, soy has attracted a small but vocal chorus of naysayers: "I'm aware of Internet paranoia on the subject of soy," says alternative health authority Dr. Andrew Weil.

The Pros of Soy Protein
One of the claims that have been made against soy is that it provides an inferior grade of protein. Actually, nothing could be farther from the truth. Soy has been found to be an excellent source of complete protein, meaning that it contains all of the amino acids the human body can't produce on its own (and supplies a wide range of vitamins and minerals to boot). This helps make soy a vegan's delight-and a healthful addition to anyone's diet. Soy protein is also extremely easy for the body to use-a study in the Journal of Nutrition rated its digestibility at more than 90%. This helps explain why federal law allows soy protein to completely replace animal protein in the National School Lunch Program.

What's more, soy protein-unlike, say, beef-doesn't come attached to artery-jamming saturated fat. That is why soy gets to sport its very own health claim authorized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA): "25 grams of soy protein a day, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease." Making soy protein a regular part of your diet has been shown to decrease the amount of harmful low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol. This subtraction automatically improves the ratio between LDL and the good, artery-clearing high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-a number that the American Heart Association now says is more important than total cholesterol levels in helping to keep your ticker ticking.

More Soy Benefits
Soy is a rich source of isoflavones, chemicals that behave like the female hormone estrogen within the body but with a lot gentler action. Many scientists now believe that soy isoflavones, by competing with a woman's own estrogen for connections with the hormone receptors on breast and other cells, may defend the body against hormonally driven cancer development. "This protection may reduce the effects of excess estrogen exposure from such external sources as meats and dairy products from hormone-treated cows as well as artificial chemicals and industrial pollutants that act as foreign estrogens," Weil says. "Japanese women whose diets contain a lot of soy foods have only one-fifth the rate of breast cancer that occurs among Western women." John Robbins, one of the world's leading experts on the dietary link between the environment and human health, and the author of The Food Revolution (Conari Press), points specifically to the high soy consumption rates among older residents of the Japanese prefecture (state) of Okinawa, where the people have the reputation as being just about the healthiest folks on earth. "Soy makes up 12% of the diet of Okinawan elders," Robbins says, adding that researchers who have analyzed the diet and health profiles of these extraordinary people "conclude that high soy consumption is one of the main reasons that Okinawans are at extremely low risk for hormone-dependent cancers, including cancers of the breast, prostate, ovaries and colon." By the way, those old Okinawans also have very strong bones. No wonder: Research has shown that intake of as little as 40 grams of soy foods a day leads to significantly higher bone density, which helps ward off the skeleton-shattering effects of osteoporosis.

Another soy myth is that it affects brain function. Actually, strong evidence suggests that it does do so-for the better. In study after study, people who consume soy have shown improvements in thinking ability. This could be particularly helpful for older women, who often complain of "brain fog" and forgetfulness: "Results...are tantalizing in that they suggest that soy-extracted isoflavones may benefit some aspects of cognitive function in postmenopausal women," writes the author of one of these investigations in the journal Menopause. One example of soy-as-brain-food in action: Robbins says that Bay Point Schools, a residential public school for problem students in Dade County, Florida, has found that switching their troubled charges to a vegetarian diet-including plenty of soy-has actually produced gains in academic achievement, with not one student getting less than an 85 on final exams. What's more, according to Robbins, the students have found that their improved diets have also given them an extra spark on the playing field.

Eating Mindfully
So now you're convinced that soy's the greatest thing ever and you're going all soy, all the time from now on. Not so fast. "Some people have gathered the impression that as long as they eat enough soy, they don't have to worry about the rest of their diet and lifestyle," says Robbins. "This is a dangerous and mistaken belief." Soy, like any other single food, only works within the framework of a balanced diet and overall healthful way of living that includes regular exercise and stress relief. Broccoli is good for you, too. Think an all-broccoli diet would be a smart idea? (Of the two, the almost infinite array of soy products definitely have a leg up over broccoli in the taste department!) One legitimate concern is the use of genetically modified (GMO) soy. GMO crops have been tinkered with through insertions of genetic material from other organisms, often with the idea of making plants more resistant to herbicides. If that sounds unwise to you, you're not alone. Many people are alarmed about the increasing use of GMO crops, including soy. Fortunately, a number of companies that utilize soy in their products insist on using non-GMO beans. You should, too. So the next time you read something somewhere about the "dangers" of soy, take it with a grain of salt. This remarkable bean deserves a place of honor in a healthy, well-rounded diet.

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