Straight Talk About Soy

Rich in protein, it mitigates the effects of menopause and reduces cholesterol

Soy is a grain rich in protein whose cultivation began in Asia more than five thousand years ago. The plant began to be commercially exploited in the West only in the second decade of the twentieth century in the United States.

In Brazil, the cultivation of this grain started to be stimulated in the mid 1950's because it was the best summer alternative to succeed wheat, grown in winter.

Currently, the country produces about 75 million tons of soybeans. Soy provides several health benefits. The bean helps reduce levels of the bad cholesterol, LDL, and helps raise levels of HDL, the good cholesterol.

The food also has isoflavones, substances that help mitigate the effects of menopause and prevent the loss of bone mass.

Types of Soy

Soy has several variations, the most famous and cultivated is yellow. There are two other versions that are also known and provide health benefits. These are edamame and black soy.

Black soy not only has the same benefits as the yellow version, but also has other positive points.

According to a study by the Catholic University of South Korea, black soy helps you lose weight because the anthocyanins, phytochemicals that provide the dark pigment to black soy, are able to act on the cells that store fat in our body and promote weight loss.

This bean also has five to seven times more antioxidants, called phytosterols, than the yellow one. The black pigment that coats this soybean forms a kind of shell around the bean which helps to better preserve its nutrients.

Edamame is soybeans with unripe beans. It is good for your health because it is rich in protein, minerals, and vitamins A and C. However, the food has a low quantity of isoflavones.

Soy is rich in protein, a nutrient that helps in the growth of children, in the formation and maintenance of organs, and in healing. Thus, it can be a good substitute for meat. It is also rich in fiber, so its consumption helps to improve intestinal transit.

• 73% of the protein
• 36% of the fat
• 13% of saturated fat
• 72% of vitamin K
• 28% of calcium
• 112% of iron
• 101% of phosphorus
• 106% magnesium
• 70% zinc
• 37% fiber

One of the main highlights of soy's composition are the isoflavones, a phytochemical capable of attenuating the symptoms of menopause by participating in the production, metabolism, and action of sexual hormones.

In other words, isoflavones act as a substitute for estrogen (a hormone that suffers a notable drop during the climacteric period) and contribute to the maintenance of hormonal balance.

Phosphorus, a nutrient that helps maintain calcium in the bones, is also very present in this grain. The grain also has a good amount of vitamin K, which is necessary for the blood clotting mechanism.

Benefits of Soy

• Attenuates the effects of menopause: Soy can be a great ally for hormonal balance, since the structure of the isoflavones in the food are similar to estrogen. Thus, the consumption of soy can work as a kind of hormonal replacement for women entering menopause, helping to attenuate the problems that occur during this phase.

• Protects bone health: Responsible for preventing the loss of bone mass are the isoflavones, present in soy. As they have a similar effect to estrogen, they will provide this benefit, especially during menopause, a phase in which the levels of this female hormone decrease.
• Lowers cholesterol: The health of the heart also benefits from the consumption of soy. A study conducted by the University of São Paulo (USP) showed that soy helps reduce levels of bad cholesterol, LDL, and increase levels of HDL, the good cholesterol.
• Prevents breast cancer: A research published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute of Oxford University in the United Kingdom with 21852 women concluded that the consumption of soy decreases the risk of cancer due to the isoflavones.
• Improves intestinal transit: Because it is rich in fiber, soy helps improve intestinal transit, avoiding problems such as constipation and constipation.
• Protects the lung: A research published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology concluded after a study with 444 women diagnosed with lung cancer that consuming soy helps improve survival of patients with this disease.

Recommended Amount of Soy

The recommendation of the Ministry of Health is to consume a maximum of one soy shell a day, equivalent to about 100 grams.

It is also interesting not to eat the food every day, try to restrict consumption to three times a week due to the high quantity of isoflavones which, because they have a similar effect to the female hormone, can cause problems when ingested in excess.

The orientation is valid for both men and women.

How to Consume Soy?

There are several variations of soy, the main forms in which it can be consumed are flour, beans, tofu, oil and texturized soybeans. The best way to eat the food is as tofu, because this way the nutrients from soy will be better absorbed by the body.

Soybeans and soy flour are also interesting options and rich in nutrients. When preparing the first is interesting to soak it in water between 10 and 12 hours before consumption, because this way it is possible to reduce the amount of phytic acid in soy. This compound hinders the absorption of some nutrients present in the food, such as calcium, iron, and zinc.

Soy milk is a good alternative, especially because it is enriched with calcium during manufacture. Soybean oil and texturized soybeans are nutrient-poor foods compared to other varieties of the bean.

Compare Soy to Other Foods

Compared to other beans, soy's main distinguishing features are its high calcium and high protein content. However, the other foods in this table are also high in protein.

Thus, soy is not the only choice of vegetarians to replace meat.

When compared to red meat, soy has a lower amount of protein. The maximum recommended amount of soy has 16.64 grams of this macronutrient, while red meat has 27.31 grams.

However, soy has no cholesterol, while meat has 24% of the recommended daily amount.

Nutrients (100 g of the grains)	Cooked soybeans	Cooked black beans	Cooked beans	Cooked lentils	Cooked Kidney Beans
Calories	173 kcal	77 kcal	76 kcal	93 kcal	78 kcal
Proteins	16,64 g	4,5 g	4,8 g	6,3 g	5,1 g
Total fat	8,97 g	0,5 g	0,5 g	0,5 g	0.6 g
Carbohydrates	9.93 g	14 g	13,6 g	16,3 g	13,5 g
Calcium	102 mg	29 mg	27 mg	16 mg	17 mg
Potassium	515 mg	256 mg	255 mg	220 mg	253 mg
Iron	5,14 mg	1,5 mg	1,3 mg	1,5 mg	1,1 mg
Phosphorus	245 mg	88 mg	87 mg	104 mg	85 mg
Sodium	1 mg	2 mg	2 mg	1 mg	1 mg
Zinc	1,15 mg	0,7 mg	0,7 mg	1,1 mg	1,1 mg
Magnesium	86 mg	40 mg	42 mg	22 mg	38 mg
Fiber	6 g	8,4 g	8,5 g	7,9 g	7,5 g

1. Source for cooked soybeans: Table of the United States Department of Agriculture.
2. Source for other grains: Brazilian Table of Food Composition / Taco - version 2, UNICAMP

Combining Soy

Flaxseed + Soy: Both foods have phytoestrogens, but they have different actions: the first contains lignans, while the second contains isoflavones.

Both acts positively on the symptoms of menopause, and instead of seeing them as competitors, most experts encourage you to add the consumption of both to your daily routine to enhance the effect.

In addition, soy in excess can cause thyroid problems, which makes its association with flaxseed even more positive for health, considering that there will be a reduction in soy consumption if it is consumed with flaxseed.

Contraindications

People with hypothyroidism should talk to their doctor before consuming soy. This is because there is a theoretical risk of the grain hindering the formation of thyroid hormones.

However, nutritionist Gisele Panvin, nutrition coordinator at Unilever, argues that this belief is outdated, because the relationship between soy and thyroid was observed in the 1960s with the identification of several cases of goiter in children who ingested infant formula based on the grain.

However, these cases have no longer been associated with soy since the formulas were fortified with iodine.

Risks of Overconsumption

There is a controversy over whether too much soy can cause health problems or not. Some experts argue that because soy is rich in isoflavones, which are similar to the female hormone estrogen, the concentration of this hormone in the body increases when a person ingests too much of this bean.

Thus, there would be the possibility of excessive consumption of the grain by girls causing precocious puberty. Another problem that could occur is that soy when ingested in large quantities by men would impair sperm quality and consequently fertility.

In both cases, no definitive conclusion has been reached as to whether soy causes these health problems.

Other research states that the chemical structure of isoflavones is similar to that of the hormone estrogen, but they are not steroids, but a phytoestrogen.

While the hormone exerts its effects on two types of receptors, isoflavones act on only one, which is not linked to puberty or sperm problems. Thus, soy would not be harmful to girls or men.

Excess soy consumption can be considered more than two glasses of soy milk daily or a number of soybeans beyond what you would put beans on your plate.

It is good to eat soy up to three times a week in the recommended amount.

Some people have difficulty digesting soy in its bean form, in which case it can cause gas.