Micah Stanley
Soy consumption is discredited with flimsy justifications. There is much to be said about including soy products in your diet.
The Whole or Half Truth About Soy?
The soybean is used as a raw material for many products. Most of the soybean harvest is used for soybean oil and animal feed. Only a small part is processed into food, such as tofu, tempeh, soy milk, edamame, soy yogurt, soy sauce, and many more.
Soy is such a diverse food because the basic taste is very neutral and the basic mass can therefore be transformed into the multitude of products mentioned with the help of spices and other ingredients or with the help of special preparation methods (e.g. fermentation).
Apart from that, the soybean is very rich in protein and vital substances and is therefore a really interesting food that can enormously enhance a healthy diet. Not all people agree with this opinion. On the contrary, many websites attack soybean and their products as if they were the devil in the flesh. It is claimed that the whole truth is that soy products are highly unhealthy and downright toxic. In this article, we will show that this is not even half the truth.
We have dealt with the relevant arguments of soy opponents in detail in our main article on soybeans. You can find the link under the sources, at the end of this text. Below is the short version for those who don’t like to read or don’t have the time.
Soy provides high-quality proteins
Soy is a high-quality source of protein. The amino acids methionine and cysteine are also present in sufficient amounts in roughly the same ratio as in cow’s milk products or meat. Soy products also provide the sensitive amino acid lysine, which is present in slightly smaller amounts in grain products, so grain and soy complement each other very well.
Soy is healthy – whether fermented or unfermented
Contrary to popular belief, unfermented soy products are also easily digestible, very well tolerated, and provide valuable substances for health.
Tofu and Co. are not made from genetically modified soy
Soy products such as tofu, soy milk, or edamame for human consumption are not made from GM soy. Today, organic soy products are even made from German or Austrian soybeans. So anyone who consumes soy products does not necessarily have to come into contact with genetic engineering, let alone promote the deforestation of the rainforests. The same cannot be said for consumers of meat, eggs, and dairy products. Because the genetically modified soy imported from overseas, like genetically modified maize, is often used as animal feed in factory farming.
Soy is not a dangerous allergen
Fewer people are allergic to soy than to cow’s milk, eggs, and peanuts. Nevertheless, it is repeatedly claimed that soy is a dangerous allergen.
Soy is not a problem for the thyroid
People who have thyroid problems are advised not to eat soy, as soy is said to have a goitrogenic effect. Yes, the soybean has a goiter effect – and that is if you were to eat mostly soy products.
The same applies to cabbage vegetables and millet. If you only want to live on white cabbage or only eat a certain type of millet, this could also lead to a thyroid problem. Both are considered goitrogenic under these circumstances.
The fact that EVERY food has health disadvantages if you only want to eat this is not considered here. Because we know that a healthy plant-based diet, which u. Contains soy products that may reduce the risk of thyroid disease.
Soy is only harmful to three target groups
Most of the studies that attest to soy’s harmful effects relate to people who ate excessive amounts of soy products, to infants who were fed soy infant formula and received nothing else, and to people who had high doses and isolated soy isoflavones over a long period of time as took nutritional supplements. There is no mention of people who regularly eat tofu and edamame or drink soy milk.
Soy may reduce the risk of breast cancer
Soy does not pose a risk of breast cancer and may even protect against breast cancer. You can read more about this here: Soy in breast cancer – when harmful, when useful
Soy contains lectins that protect the gut from cancer
Processed soy products contain only small amounts of lectins. Lectins are phytochemicals that, in the amounts found in a healthy diet, are good for the gut and can protect it from cancer. Since large amounts of lectins are found in raw beans and they are toxic, beans are cooked before consumption – and all types of beans, not just soybeans.
Soy can protect against osteoporosis
A healthy plant-based diet that includes: Contains soy products, has a very positive effect on bone health. Studies have already shown that soy products can specifically protect against osteoporosis.
Soy does not lead to a mineral deficiency – on the contrary
Soy has been accused of causing mineral deficiencies due to its oxalic acid and phytic acid content, both of which prevent mineral absorption. However, soy contains less oxalic acid than beetroot and also less than chard or spinach. Phytic acid would be a problem if it were consumed in large quantities on a regular basis in an isolated form. However, soy products do not contain problematic levels of phytic acid. The residues left after processing have an antioxidant, anti-cancer, and bone-strengthening effect – so there is no trace of a soy-related mineral deficiency.
Enzyme inhibitors and saponins in processed soy products have a positive effect
The situation is similar to the so-called enzyme inhibitors, which are said to be contained in soy products. They are greatly reduced in quantity when soybeans are processed. The remaining parts of it are considered antioxidant and anti-cancer and therefore positive for health. Saponins are said to have the same properties, another group of phytochemicals that are found in soybeans and that, according to soy critics, are said to be “deadly”. They are the latter when taken in isolation and in overdoses. In the right dose, however, they also have a cancer-protective, antioxidant, blood sugar, and weight-regulating effect.
Soy is cholesterol-free
Like all plant-based foods, soy is cholesterol-free.
Soy is free of toxins that, according to soy critics, would be produced during production
High-quality soy products such as tofu, soy drink, soy cream, soy yogurt, tempeh, etc. do not contain any carcinogenic substances such as hexane, etc. These could at best be found in textured soy products (soy granules, soy chunks, etc.), but not if they are produced by trustworthy manufacturers.
The aluminum load in soy products is neither critical nor relevant
Soy products contain no more and no less aluminum than other foods. Only soy concentrates (e.g. soy baby food or protein isolates) – which we advise against – could show slightly higher values.
Soy products contribute neither to vitamin B12 deficiency nor to vitamin D deficiency
Soy products contribute neither to a vitamin B12 deficiency nor to a vitamin D deficiency, as is often claimed. On the contrary. It is believed that fermented soy products may contain usable vitamin B12. Furthermore, since the vitamin D requirement can only be met to an extremely small extent through food anyway (because hardly any food – apart from the liver – contains relevant amounts of vitamin D), instead vitamin D is obtained with the help of UV radiation in the skin is formed, the vitamin D content of the diet is unimportant.
Healthy soy consumption – what you should pay attention to
If you now pay attention to the following rules when consuming soy, which you have probably already implemented automatically anyway, then you will only be able to benefit from the soybean and its ingredients:
- As with any food, when buying soy products, you should also use products that are as natural as possible from high-quality manufacturers, e.g. B. on tofu, soy milk, soy yogurt, soy cream cheese, etc. from Soyana.
- Of course, you choose soy products of organic quality – ideally from German or Austrian soybeans.
- Of course, you don’t eat only soy products, so you don’t drink liters of soy milk a day or eat a pound of tofu a day. Instead, 100 g of tofu and z. B. 200 ml soy milk for an adult no problem.
- Soy is not an infant formula. Infants should therefore not be fed with soy infant formula.
- Soy products such as soy protein isolates and textured soy (e.g. soy shreds, soy granules) are not recommended.
- Dietary supplements with highly concentrated and isolated soy isoflavones are not recommended.
Alternatives to soy for soy allergies
If you have a soy allergy (whether primary or secondary) then of course avoid soy products.
The truth about soy
So what is the truth about soy? The truth about soy is that all of the bad things people say about the soybean are related either to the raw soybean that nobody eats anyway, to soy protein isolates, to textured soy, to overdosed on soy isoflavones, or to specific groups of people, namely lots of soy -Eaters or infants fed solely on soy formula.
So the truth about soy is that few soy critics have bothered to look at it a little differently and observe the effects of moderate consumption of quality soy products. Instead, the soybean was pounced upon as if it were an evil personified that must be fought and destroyed with all its might.
