Withvegetarianismgainingincreasingpopularityfromthe1970's,reachingitspeakinthe1990's,soyhasemergedasa 'nearperfect'food,withsupportersclaimingitcanprovideanidealsourceofprotein,lowercholesterol,protectagainst cancerandheartdisease,reducemenopausalsymptoms,andpreventosteoporosis-amongmanyotherthings.Itseems like a good thing - or is it really?Howdidsucha'healthyfood'emergefromaproductthatin1913waslistedintheU.S.DepartmentofAgriculture(USDA)handbooknot as a food but as an industrial product?AccordingtolipidspecialistandnutritionistMaryEnig,PhD,"Thereasonthere'ssomuchsoyinAmericaisbecausethesoyindustry startedtoplantsoytoextracttheoilfromitandsoyoilbecameaverylargeindustry."Therewasalotofsoyoilandwithitcamealotof soyproteinresidueasaleftoverby-product,andsincetheycouldn'tfeedittotheanimals,exceptinsmallamounts,theyhadtofind another big market which, of course, was human consumption.Thisexcesssoyproductionanditsproteinresiduewasthemotivationforthemulti-milliondollarsspentonadvertisingandintense lobbyingoftheFoodandDrugAdministration(FDA),whichresultedinabout74percentofU.S.consumersbelievingthatsoyproductsare healthy.Australiahastraditionallyprideditselfasbeingadairyconsumingnation,duetothefactthatwehavesuchabundantsupplyof cattle.However,lactoseintoleranceisbecomingahealthconcernrecognisedbythemedicalprofession;accordingly,soyisbecomingvery popularasanalternativetodairy,followinginthefootstepsofUSconsumersinbelievingthatallsoy-basedproductshavehealth benefits.Inreality,theresearchthathasconcludedthatallsoyproductsarehealthyisfarfromaccurate,andverymuchskewedby economic motives.Let's examine why soy products are far from healthy:Forgreaterclarity,soyproductsareclassifiedintotwomaingroups:fermentedandunfermented.Therearealsoanothertwosub-groups:organicandGeneticallyModified(GM).TheGMsoyistobeavoidedatallcosts,asthehazardsofGMaresomeoftheworst innovationsofmoderndaybio-technology.NotonlyareallGMproductsunhealthytohumansandanimalsbutalsotothenormalplants thatgrowinthesurroundingarea,duetothenaturalprocessofwindscausingcross-pollination,resultinginmutatedspeciesofwhat wereoncenaturalvariationsofplants.Thistopicistoovasttocoverinthisarticlebutformoreresearch,visit(http://www.non-gm-farmers.com) .Theunfermentedsoycategoryisamostproblematicone.Itincludessoyproducts,suchastofu,beancurd,allsoymilks,soyinfant formulae, soy protein powders and soy meat alternatives, such as soy sausages/veggie burgers, made from hydrolysed soy powder.So what is wrong with unfermented soy products?Soybelongstothefamilyoflegumes.Othermembersofthelegumefamilyincludebeans-suchasadzuki,redkidney,navy,barlotti,etc., aswellaschickpeas.Peanutsareincludedaswell,astheyaretechnicallynotanutbutalegume.Alllegumesandwhole-grains-suchas, rice,barley,oats,wheatandrye-containamountsofphyticacid.Beingalegume,soycontainsahighamountofphyticacid.So,what's wrong with phytic acid? A number of things - yet, in some cases, phytic acid can also be beneficial.Phyticacid'sstructuregivesittheabilitytobindminerals,proteinsandstarch,andresultsinlowerabsorptionofthesesubstances. Hence,phyticacid,inlargeamounts,canblocktheuptakeofessentialminerals,likecalcium,magnesium,copper,iron,andespeciallyzinc intheintestinaltract.Soyalsoinhibitstheuptakeofoneofthemostimportantmineralsneededforgrowthandmetabolism,iodine, whichisusedbythethyroidglandintheproductionofthyroidhormones.However,fornon-vegetarianmen,phyticacidmayprovetobe quite helpful, due to its binding/chelating ability with minerals.Sincealargepercentageofnon-vegetarianadultmaleshaveexcessiron,phyticacidwouldbehelpfultothembybindingtheexcessiron. Butweneedtobearinmindphyticacidwillsimultaneouslybindotherminerals,suchascalcium,magnesiumandzinc.Inthecaseof childrenandmenstruatingwomen,thephyticacidinsoycanbeaseriousnegative,aswomenandchildrenneediron.Inwomen,ironis needed to replace the loss during their menses and in children iron is required for growth and development.Apart from the phytic acid-related phenomena, there are additional factors that make soy an unhealthy choice.Soy:* contributes to thyroid disorder, especially in women* promotes kidney stones* weakens the immune system* contributes to food allergies and digestive intolerancePerhapsthemostdisturbingofsoy'silleffectsonhealthhastodowithitsphytoestrogens,whichcanmimictheeffectsofthefemale hormone,oestrogen.Thesephytoestrogenshavebeenfoundtohaveadverseeffectsonvarioushumantissues,anddrinkingonlytwo glasses of soy milk daily for one month has enough of the chemical to alter a woman's menstrual cycle.Soyisparticularlyproblematicforinfantsanditwouldbeverywisetoavoidgivingthemsoy-derivedproducts,sinceithasbeen estimatedthatinfantswhoareexclusivelyfedsoyformulareceivetheequivalentoffivebirthcontrolpillsworthofoestrogeneveryday. Checkout(www.westonaprice.org)tofindsomealarmingresearchandstatisticsonwhatcangowrongwheninfantsandchildrenare regularly fed soy formula.Inordertoderivesomebenefitfromsoy,consumingonlyfermentedsoyproducts-suchasorganicmiso(mugibarleyandgenmaimiso arethebest),organictempeh,soysauceortamariandnatto-isthewaytodoit.Thisisbecausethephyticacid,whichisinherentinsoy beans,hasbeenneutralizedintheprocessoffermentation.Consumingfermentedsoyisverybeneficialinrecolonizingthefriendly bacteriainthelargeintestine,whichneutralizesthe'unfriendly'bacteriaandallowsforgreatergeneralassimilationoffoodsand nutrients.So,fermentedsoyisofbenefitandunfermentedsoyisnot.Itisnotonlysoythatneedstobefermentedbutwhole-grainsaswell.Infact, grains(apartfrommillet,buckwheatandcouscous)andlegumesarebestconsumedaftersoakingthemfor48-72hourspriortocooking, whichallowsfermentationtotakeplace.Thesoakingofgrainsandbeansisalsoadvocatedintheprinciplesofmacrobiotics,whichisvery popularamongstvegetarians.Yetmanyvegetarianrestaurantsdonothavetimeorforgettoincorporatethisveryimportantprocessin theirvegetariancookingandthuspeoplewhoregularlyeatoutatvegetarianrestaurantsmightdevelopseveremineraldeficienciesdue to the large consumption of phytic acid in their diet.Anothercommonfallacyisthatsoyfoodscouldn'tpossiblyhaveadownsidebecauseAsiancultureseatlargequantitiesofsoyeveryday andconsequentlyremainfreeofmostwesterndiseases.Inreality,thepeopleofChina,JapanandotherAsiancountrieseatverylittlesoy. Thesoyindustry'sownfiguresshowthatsoyconsumptioninChina,Indonesia,Korea,JapanandTaiwanrangesfrom10to90gramsper day.Thatisgramsofsoyfood,notgramsofsoyproteinalone.Comparethiswithacupoftofu(250grams)orsoymilk(240grams).Many AmericansandAustralianstodaywouldbeconsumingacupoftofuandacoupleofglassesofsoymilkeveryday.Theymightalsoadd veggieburgerstothis,thinkingtheyaregettingtheirmuchneededproteinintake.Infantsonsoyformulaareprobablythemost disadvantaged,asthatistheirmainsourceofnutritionandtheyingestlargeamountsofsoyrelativetotheirbodyweight.Oftentheside effectsarenotnoticedbut,astheyaregrowingup,runnynoses,frequentcolds,irritability,severesugarcravingsandfoodintolerance develop.The summary below outlines the adverse effects of unfermented soy products:*Trypsininhibitorsinsoyinterferewithproteindigestionandmaycausepancreaticdisorders.Intestanimalssoycontainingtrypsin inhibitors caused stunted growth.* Soy phytoestrogens disrupt endocrine function and have the potential to cause infertility and to promote breast cancer in adult women.*Soyphytoestrogensarepotentanti-thyroidagentsthatcausehypothyroidismandmaycausethyroidcancer.Ininfants,consumptionof soyformulahasbeenlinkedtoautoimmunethyroiddisease.VitaminB12analogsinsoyarenotabsorbedandactuallyincreasethe body's requirement for B12.Soy foods increase the body's requirement for vitamin D.* Fragile proteins are denatured during high temperature processing to make soy protein isolate and textured vegetable protein.*FreeglutamicacidorMSG,apotentneurotoxin,isformedduringsoyfoodprocessingandadditionalamountsareaddedtomanysoy foods.* Soy foods contain high levels of aluminum which is toxic to the nervous system and the kidneys. Source: (www.westonaprice.org)Incontrast,consumingorganicfermentedsoyproductsisquitebeneficial.Consumingevensmallamountsofunfermentedsoyona regularbasiscouldcausesomeadverseeffectsinourbody.Nexttimeyouconsiderdrinkingsoymilk;perhapsinsteadconsideroatmilk, coconutmilkorgoat'smilk.Somepeoplewhoareallergictodairycantolerategoatmilkandgoatcheeseproductsinsmallquantities. Replacing soy and regular milk with these alternatives allow us to enjoy our beverages and cereals without harming our health.References:http://www.phytochemicals.info/phytochemicals/phytic-acid.phphttp://www.westonaprice.org/Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America's Favourite Health Food by Kaayla Daniel: http://www.mothering.com/articles/growing_child/food/soy_story.htmlIf you would like additional information regarding our services or to request an appointment, you can contact us by phone (952 80 53 68) or by email.
Withvegetarianismgainingincreasingpopularity fromthe1970's,reachingitspeakinthe1990's,soy hasemergedasa'nearperfect'food,withsupporters claimingitcanprovideanidealsourceofprotein, lowercholesterol,protectagainstcancerandheartdisease,reduce menopausalsymptoms,andpreventosteoporosis-amongmany other things. It seems like a good thing - or is it really?Howdidsucha'healthyfood'emergefromaproductthatin1913 waslistedintheU.S.DepartmentofAgriculture(USDA)handbook not as a food but as an industrial product?AccordingtolipidspecialistandnutritionistMaryEnig,PhD,"The reasonthere'ssomuchsoyinAmericaisbecausethesoyindustry startedtoplantsoytoextracttheoilfromitandsoyoilbecamea verylargeindustry."Therewasalotofsoyoilandwithitcamealot ofsoyproteinresidueasaleftoverby-product,andsincethey couldn'tfeedittotheanimals,exceptinsmallamounts,theyhadto find another big market which, of course, was human consumption.Thisexcesssoyproductionanditsproteinresiduewasthe motivationforthemulti-milliondollarsspentonadvertisingand intenselobbyingoftheFoodandDrugAdministration(FDA),which resultedinabout74percentofU.S.consumersbelievingthatsoy productsarehealthy.Australiahastraditionallyprideditselfas beingadairyconsumingnation,duetothefactthatwehavesuch abundantsupplyofcattle.However,lactoseintoleranceisbecoming ahealthconcernrecognisedbythemedicalprofession;accordingly, soyisbecomingverypopularasanalternativetodairy,followingin thefootstepsofUSconsumersinbelievingthatallsoy-based productshavehealthbenefits.Inreality,theresearchthathas concludedthatallsoyproductsarehealthyisfarfromaccurate,and very much skewed by economic motives.Let'sexaminewhysoyproductsarefarfrom healthy:Forgreaterclarity,soyproductsareclassifiedintotwomaingroups: fermentedandunfermented.Therearealsoanothertwosub-groups:organicandGeneticallyModified(GM).TheGMsoyistobe avoidedatallcosts,asthehazardsofGMaresomeoftheworst innovationsofmoderndaybio-technology.NotonlyareallGM productsunhealthytohumansandanimalsbutalsotothenormal plantsthatgrowinthesurroundingarea,duetothenaturalprocess ofwindscausingcross-pollination,resultinginmutatedspeciesof whatwereoncenaturalvariationsofplants.Thistopicistoovastto coverinthisarticlebutformoreresearch,visit(http://www.non-gm-farmers.com) .Theunfermentedsoycategoryisamostproblematicone.It includessoyproducts,suchastofu,beancurd,allsoymilks,soy infantformulae,soyproteinpowdersandsoymeatalternatives, suchassoysausages/veggieburgers,madefromhydrolysedsoy powder.Sowhatiswrongwithunfermentedsoy products?Soybelongstothefamilyoflegumes.Othermembersofthe legumefamilyincludebeans-suchasadzuki,redkidney,navy, barlotti,etc.,aswellaschickpeas.Peanutsareincludedaswell,as theyaretechnicallynotanutbutalegume.Alllegumesandwhole-grains-suchas,rice,barley,oats,wheatandrye-containamounts ofphyticacid.Beingalegume,soycontainsahighamountofphytic acid.So,what'swrongwithphyticacid?Anumberofthings-yet,in some cases, phytic acid can also be beneficial.Phyticacid'sstructuregivesittheabilitytobindminerals,proteins andstarch,andresultsinlowerabsorptionofthesesubstances. Hence,phyticacid,inlargeamounts,canblocktheuptakeof essentialminerals,likecalcium,magnesium,copper,iron,and especiallyzincintheintestinaltract.Soyalsoinhibitstheuptakeof oneofthemostimportantmineralsneededforgrowthand metabolism,iodine,whichisusedbythethyroidglandinthe productionofthyroidhormones.However,fornon-vegetarianmen, phyticacidmayprovetobequitehelpful,duetoits binding/chelating ability with minerals.Sincealargepercentageofnon-vegetarianadultmaleshaveexcess iron,phyticacidwouldbehelpfultothembybindingtheexcess iron.Butweneedtobearinmindphyticacidwillsimultaneously bindotherminerals,suchascalcium,magnesiumandzinc.Inthe caseofchildrenandmenstruatingwomen,thephyticacidinsoy canbeaseriousnegative,aswomenandchildrenneediron.In women,ironisneededtoreplacethelossduringtheirmensesand in children iron is required for growth and development.Apartfromthephyticacid-relatedphenomena,thereareadditional factors that make soy an unhealthy choice.Soy:* contributes to thyroid disorder, especially in women* promotes kidney stones* weakens the immune system* contributes to food allergies and digestive intolerancePerhapsthemostdisturbingofsoy'silleffectsonhealthhastodo withitsphytoestrogens,whichcanmimictheeffectsofthefemale hormone,oestrogen.Thesephytoestrogenshavebeenfoundto haveadverseeffectsonvarioushumantissues,anddrinkingonly twoglassesofsoymilkdailyforonemonthhasenoughofthe chemical to alter a woman's menstrual cycle.Soyisparticularlyproblematicforinfantsanditwouldbeverywise toavoidgivingthemsoy-derivedproducts,sinceithasbeen estimatedthatinfantswhoareexclusivelyfedsoyformulareceive theequivalentoffivebirthcontrolpillsworthofoestrogenevery day.Checkout(www.westonaprice.org)tofindsomealarming researchandstatisticsonwhatcangowrongwheninfantsand children are regularly fed soy formula.Inordertoderivesomebenefitfromsoy,consumingonly fermentedsoyproducts-suchasorganicmiso(mugibarleyand genmaimisoarethebest),organictempeh,soysauceortamariand natto-isthewaytodoit.Thisisbecausethephyticacid,whichis inherentinsoybeans,hasbeenneutralizedintheprocessof fermentation.Consumingfermentedsoyisverybeneficialin recolonizingthefriendlybacteriainthelargeintestine,which neutralizesthe'unfriendly'bacteriaandallowsforgreatergeneral assimilation of foods and nutrients.So,fermentedsoyisofbenefitandunfermentedsoyisnot.Itisnot onlysoythatneedstobefermentedbutwhole-grainsaswell.In fact,grains(apartfrommillet,buckwheatandcouscous)and legumesarebestconsumedaftersoakingthemfor48-72hours priortocooking,whichallowsfermentationtotakeplace.The soakingofgrainsandbeansisalsoadvocatedintheprinciplesof macrobiotics,whichisverypopularamongstvegetarians.Yetmany vegetarianrestaurantsdonothavetimeorforgettoincorporate thisveryimportantprocessintheirvegetariancookingandthus peoplewhoregularlyeatoutatvegetarianrestaurantsmight developseveremineraldeficienciesduetothelargeconsumption of phytic acid in their diet.Anothercommonfallacyisthatsoyfoodscouldn'tpossiblyhavea downsidebecauseAsiancultureseatlargequantitiesofsoyevery dayandconsequentlyremainfreeofmostwesterndiseases.In reality,thepeopleofChina,JapanandotherAsiancountrieseat verylittlesoy.Thesoyindustry'sownfiguresshowthatsoy consumptioninChina,Indonesia,Korea,JapanandTaiwanranges from10to90gramsperday.Thatisgramsofsoyfood,notgrams ofsoyproteinalone.Comparethiswithacupoftofu(250grams)or soymilk(240grams).ManyAmericansandAustralianstodaywould beconsumingacupoftofuandacoupleofglassesofsoymilk everyday.Theymightalsoaddveggieburgerstothis,thinkingthey aregettingtheirmuchneededproteinintake.Infantsonsoy formulaareprobablythemostdisadvantaged,asthatistheirmain sourceofnutritionandtheyingestlargeamountsofsoyrelativeto theirbodyweight.Oftenthesideeffectsarenotnoticedbut,asthey aregrowingup,runnynoses,frequentcolds,irritability,severe sugar cravings and food intolerance develop.Thesummarybelowoutlinestheadverseeffects of unfermented soy products:*Trypsininhibitorsinsoyinterferewithproteindigestionandmay causepancreaticdisorders.Intestanimalssoycontainingtrypsin inhibitors caused stunted growth.*Soyphytoestrogensdisruptendocrinefunctionandhavethe potentialtocauseinfertilityandtopromotebreastcancerinadult women.*Soyphytoestrogensarepotentanti-thyroidagentsthatcause hypothyroidismandmaycausethyroidcancer.Ininfants, consumptionofsoyformulahasbeenlinkedtoautoimmune thyroiddisease.VitaminB12analogsinsoyarenotabsorbedand actuallyincreasethebody'srequirementforB12.Soyfoodsincrease the body's requirement for vitamin D.*Fragileproteinsaredenaturedduringhightemperature processingtomakesoyproteinisolateandtexturedvegetable protein.*FreeglutamicacidorMSG,apotentneurotoxin,isformedduring soyfoodprocessingandadditionalamountsareaddedtomanysoy foods.*Soyfoodscontainhighlevelsofaluminumwhichistoxictothe nervous system and the kidneys. Source: (www.westonaprice.org)Incontrast,consumingorganicfermentedsoyproductsisquite beneficial.Consumingevensmallamountsofunfermentedsoyona regularbasiscouldcausesomeadverseeffectsinourbody.Next timeyouconsiderdrinkingsoymilk;perhapsinsteadconsideroat milk,coconutmilkorgoat'smilk.Somepeoplewhoareallergicto dairycantolerategoatmilkandgoatcheeseproductsinsmall quantities.Replacingsoyandregularmilkwiththesealternatives allowustoenjoyourbeveragesandcerealswithoutharmingour health.References:http://www.phytochemicals.info/phytochemicals/phytic-acid.phphttp://www.westonaprice.org/WholeSoyStory:TheDarkSideofAmerica'sFavouriteHealthFood by Kaayla Daniel: http://www.mothering.com/articles/growing_child/food/soy_story.htmlIfyouwouldlikeadditionalinformationregardingourservices or to request an appointment, you can contact us by phone (952 80 53 68) or by email.