I have a couple of issues with soy, the first being a good replacement for milk. First of all, soy isn't the complete food that it's cracked up to be. For something to be a complete food, it needs to be a food that you could survive on without eating anything else. Soy is not a complete food for a number of different reasons. It does NOT have a complete and full spectrum of vitamins and minerals that your body needs. Also, the protein in soy may be a decent protein, but it is highly indigestible by the human digestive system. (In fact, the most digestible soy products are fermented soy products such as miso.) You will NOT be getting the required nutrients that your body needs and craves from being on a strict soy diet. It could even lead to serious malnutrition diseases by being on a strictly soy diet.
The second big reason that I'm not much of a fan of soy is because of what are called phytoestrogens (I'll call them PEs cause it's easier to type). PEs are structures naturally within the soybean. PEs are exactly what they sound like, estrogen compounds. Now, most people know that women have higher estrogen and men have higher testosterone. But men also have estrogen. When you increase soy intake, you are also increasing your estrogen intake with PEs. In men, this could lead to hormonal changes that give higher levels of estrogen. Not only that, but higher estrogen levels in women can be a big deal as well. Higher estrogen can lead to things such as an increased risk for breast cancer or infertility. Not to mention that if you give your baby soy formula, you will be exposing them to much higher levels of estrogen in the form of PEs before their little body can handle it.
Finally, the last big issue that I have with soy is actually with US soy. Any soy that you buy that was grown in the US is going to be GMO (genetically modified), unless it is certified organic. If you want to read why GMO foods are such a detriment, just re-read my blog titled The Breakdown on GMOs.
So the next time you decide to swap out your milk for soymilk or baby formula for soy formula, just remember, there are better options out their. Try coconut milk, oat milk, almond milk, or even try to get away from the milk dependence that we were brought up with.
What types of "effects" would man see who has had too much soy? We discovered my partner has major sneezing episodes after ingesting milk (worst with milk, but happens with cheese too, but not so much with yogurt...odd?), so we switched him over to soy milk about a year ago. Then I read other info and now your blog, and we are wondering how much damage has been done and what that damage is? I also use soy milk on occasion (he eats cold cereal almost daily - I have it only 1-2times a week), and am borderline diabetic. I do enjoy almond milk, though from a financial perspective, soy milk is more cost effective given how much he eats. I can stop cold cereal all together so we can work towards affording almond milk (we both love) over soy milk, but I'd like to know what the soy milk has likely done to me as well... I hope I have been clear on my 2 questions. :) Thank you for having your blog. ~Annette in Tacoma WA
ReplyDeleteThere could be no visible effects but there could also be more serious effects to an increased intake of soy in someone's diet whether they are male or female. The main issue is with the hormones. If too many phytoestrogens are consumed by a male (especially if younger) it could manifest in symtoms of decreased testosterone (lower energy, lowered libido, possible link to osteoporosis, etc.).
ReplyDeleteWith regard to the sneezing fits after ingestion of milk, it's probably the body telling him that milk's not such a great idea. Sneezing os one of the body's many natural responses to an offending invader (colds, lint, allergies). It more than likely doesn't happen with yogurt because of the probiotics in the yogurt which help your body digest the offending portion of the dairy (more than likely it's a protein called casein).