Friday, September 5, 2008

ORGANIC SOY, NOT GENETICALLY MODIFIED AND CHEMICALLY GROWN AND PROCESSED SOY

ORGANIC SOY, NOT GENETICALLY MODIFIED AND CHEMICALLY GROWN AND PROCESSED SOY
In short, ancient Nature's soy, not U.S. soy

From: Franky Corne
To: Cocoy777
Hi Cocoy,
I think it is a good article that you wrote on soy. I found another article on Internet and you can find it at the end of this.
Actually, the greatest danger of soy I think is firstly the fact that about 90% of the soy (at least in the US) is Genetically Modified and secondly the overconsumption due to commercial advertising. However, apparently soy germs (non-GM of course) are ok.
Franky

Read the whole article below and take note of its conclusion, to wit:
In conclusion, Soy is a very highly processed food. The dangers of soy far outweigh any claims of benefits. The only safe way to eat soy is to consume slow fermented soy such as miso, soy sauce, tempeh, and natto.

SOY - Health or Hype?
So, you think you're eating healthy by buying soy products...
...You’ve replaced milk with soy, and you look for protein bars and various other products containing soy. After all, it is supposed to be high in protein, lower your cholesterol, fight osteoporosis, reduce your risk of cancer, and be heart healthy. How can you go wrong? Truth is, soy may not be the all round good food it’s cracked up to be. In fact, it may be down right unhealthy.
New studies show that soy may increase the risk of breast cancer in women, affect brain function in men and cause developmental abnormalities in infants.
The soy marketing campaign has truly been phenomenal. Soy was once considered unfit to eat – even in Asia. Soybeans were planted as a rotation crop, not to be eaten, but to add nutrients back into the soil (specifically nitrogen). Soy was not used for food until the discovery of fermentation techniques. The first soy foods were natto, miso, tempeh, and soy sauce. The Chinese did not eat unfermented soybeans due to the large quantities of natural toxins called “antinutrients” they contained.
These antinutrients include potent enzyme inhibitors that block trypsin and other beneficial enzymes needed to digest protein. Soybeans also contain haemagglutinin, a clot promoting substance that causes red blood cells to clump together. These clustered blood cells cannot properly absorb oxygen for distribution to the body’s tissues, and are unable to help in maintaining good cardiac health. So, instead of being supposedly "heart healthy", soy has the opposite effect.

Haemagglutinin and trypsin inhibitors are both “growth depressant” substances. Farmers are well aware of this because animals on soy feed must be given lysine supplements to achieve normal growth. Fermenting soybeans does de-activate both haemagglutinin and trypsin inhibitors, while cooking and precipitation (a soaking/washing process used in the manufacture of soy products) do not.

Soybeans are high in phytic acid. Phytic acid is present in the bran or hull of all seeds. It can block the uptake of essential minerals like calcium, magnesium, copper, iron and especially zinc in the intestinal tract. Phytic acid is reduced or removed in most other beans by long slow cooking. But, this is not the case with soybeans. Only a long fermentation process will significantly reduce the phytate levels in soybeans.
Soy processors have worked hard to get the toxins (antinutrients) out of the finished product, particularly soy protein isolate (SPI). SPI is the key ingredient in most soy foods which imitate meat and dairy products.
Soy Protein Isolate:
SPI is not something you can whip up in your kitchen. This processing takes place in industrial factories where soybeans are first mixed with an alkaline solution to remove fiber, then precipitated and separated using an acid wash and, finally, neutralized in an alkaline solution.
The acid washing portion of the above process is done in aluminum tanks and can leach high levels of aluminum into the final product. As a result, soy-based baby formula has over 1000% more aluminum than conventional milk based formulas. Finally, the resulting curds are spray-dried at high temperatures to produce high protein powder. Nitrates, potent carcinogens, are formed during spray-drying and a toxin called “lysinoalanine” is formed during the alkaline processing.
Food manufacturers then use the Soy Protein Isolate to produce another product, textured vegetable protein, by mean of high pressure extrusion processing. This high temperature processing removes much of the trypsin inhibitor content, but not all. Ironically, high temperature processing denatures the other useful proteins in soy, rendering them largely ineffective for use by the body.
Numerous artificial flavorings, particularly MSG, are added to soy protein isolate and textured vegetable protein products to mask the strong beany taste and create the flavor of meat and milk.

Soy does not have GRAS status (Generally Regarded As Safe)
The amount of toxins formed during soy processing (nitrites and lysinoalanine) was considered too great a threat to the public to allow GRAS (generally regarded as safe) status. Soy protein was given the OK to be used as a binder in cardboard boxes though. Researchers determined that the amounts of the toxins that would migrate from the box into the food ingredients would be too small to constitute a cancer risk. Soy protein has NEVER been given GRAS status (Generally Regarded As Safe).
Soy and breast cancer; does it cause it or protect against it?
Thousands of women consume soy with the belief that it protects them from breast cancer. In 1996 researchers found the women consuming soy protein isolate had an increased incidence of epithelial hyperplasia, a condition that presages malignancies. Studies now conclude soy is not beneficial in the prevention of breast cancer, and may actually increase breast cancer risk in some women.
Soy: and thyroid:
25 grams of soy protein isolate, (about a cup of soy milk) the minimum amount claimed to have cholesterol lowering effects, contains from 50 to 70 mg of isoflavones. A study showed that it took only 45 mg of isoflavones in pre-menopausal women to exert significant biological effects, including a reduction in hormones needed for adequate thyroid function. These effects lingered for 3 months after soy consumption was discontinued.

Scientists have known for many years that soy is goitrogenic (thyroid suppressant). The prevalence of thyroid dysfunction is now reaching such alarming rates that this connection should not be disregarded.
Isoflavones contained in soy have been isolated as the culprit. Isoflavones are estrogen like compounds plentiful in the soybean (phytoestrogens). The discovery that the isoflavones found in soy were damaging to the thyroid rocked the soy industry that has promoted these phytoestrogens as beneficial.
It was found that in normal women, consuming sufficient iodine, it only took 30g of roasted soybeans daily, containing about 38mg.of isoflavones, to depress thyroid function. Sensitive individuals were found to be affected by even less soy.
Soy: The estrogenic equivalent of The Pill
In 1992, the Swiss health service estimated that 100 grams of soy protein provided the estrogenic equivalent of The Pill. Speaking of The Pill…if a person was giving an infant 5 birth controls pills per day, they would probably be charged with child endangerment. Sadly, if an infant is given a diet consisting solely of soy formula it is being given the equivalent of 5 birth control pills per day due to the isoflavones. Soy was introduced into the infant formula in the early 1960’s.

Soy and Diabetes:
Research done at Cornell University Medical College and the Long Island Community Hospital found that children who develop Type 1 diabetes are twice as likely to have been fed soy formula as those fed other formulas.
Soy; infant and child development
The effects of soy products on the hormonal development of infants is a potential nightmare. In the first few months of a normal male infant’s development, they undergo a “testosterone surge”. During this period the infant is programmed to express male characteristics in his sexual organs, masculine physical traits, and form patterns in the brain of male behavior. Physicians are noticing a large number of boys whose physical maturation is delayed or does not begin at all. This includes sexual organs not developing. Learning disabilities in male children have reached epidemic proportions. Soy cannot be ignored as a possible cause for these developments.
An alarming number of girls are entering puberty at an early age. A recent study shows that one percent of all girls now show signs of puberty, such as pubic hair or breast development before the age of three. By the age of eight, 14.7 percent of white girls and 48.3 percent of African American girls are showing signs of puberty. Soy has also been implicated in early menarche.
Other problems related to soy fed children of both sexes include extreme emotional behavior, asthma, immune system problems, pituitary insufficiency, thyroid disorders and irritable bowel syndrome. There is a movement in Canada and New Zealand to ban the sale of soy infant formula.
Over 90% of all soy is GM (genetically modified)
This means that a pesticide and or herbicide was injected into the seed so that pesticides and herbicides can be sprayed on the crop to kill bugs and weeds but will not kill the soybean plants. There are studies being done that indicate that the pesticides and herbicides in GM foods are becoming activated in the digestive process and causing various illness. Soybeans also have one of the highest percentages of contamination by pesticides of any foods we eat.
In conclusion, Soy is a very highly processed food. The dangers of soy far outweigh any claims of benefits. The only safe way to eat soy is to consume slow fermented soy such as miso, soy sauce, tempeh, and natto.

Thursday, September 4, 2008

Pro-soy vs Anti-soy

Pro-soy vs Anti-soy
by: Arnulfo Yu Laniba, Agape Foundation (Agasoft)

The long life & healthy bodies of soy eaters in Asia are proofs hard to dispute.
Now, we've got scientific news that soy or its products are causing a list of health problems among Americans who consume them in huge quantity to do some catch up or to drown the negative effects of eating non-healthy foods which their palate, stomach and genitals demand or patronize.
Let's put things on perspective.
Dr Daniels is telling the truth in the sense that she based her anti-soy reports on what has happened to those who are taking US soy products. So, i do not doubt her sincerity.
But let's put things on perspective, namely: FOR CENTURIES AND I THINK MUCH OF IT IS STILL NOW, THE SOY IN ASIA IS ORGANIC. ON THE OTHER HAND, THE SOY IN AMERICA IS GROWN BY CHEMICALS (FERTILIZERS, PESTICIDES), BRED BY CHEMICALS (GMO SOY SEEDS), PROCESSED BY CHEMICALS!
DOESN'T THAT LEAD YOU TO SUSPECT THAT THE ANGEL soy HAS TURNED DEvil?
"So What’s Wrong With Soy?
"Unlike in Asia where people eat small amounts of whole soybean products, western food processors separate the soybean into two golden commodities--protein and oil. There's nothing safe or natural about this,” Dr. Daniel says.
“Today's high-tech processing methods not only fail to remove the anti-nutrients and toxins that are naturally present in soybeans but leave toxic and carcinogenic residues created by the high temperatures, high pressure, alkali and acid baths and petroleum solvents," she continues.
To make matters worse, Americans are consuming soy in unprecedented amounts. Among the many health problems linked to a high-soy diet are:
• Thyroid problems, including weight gain, lethargy, malaise, fatigue, hair loss, and loss of libido
• Premature puberty and other developmental problems in babies, children and adolescents
• Cancer
• Brain damage
• Reproductive disorders
• Soy allergies
Most soy, perhaps about 80 percent or more, is also genetically modified, which adds its own batch of health concerns.”
So does Dr. Mercola wrote in his comments to Dr. Daniels report on soy.

COCOY777’S PRESENT POSITION ON THE SOY CONTROVERSY

COCOY777’S PRESENT POSITION ON THE SOY CONTROVERSY

MY OWN ANALYSIS OF THE TWO SIDES IN THIS SOY CONTROVERSY IS LEADING ME TO THE FOLLOWING CONCLUSION: CHEMICALS, GENETIC ENGINEERING (PLAYING GOD, ALTERING WHAT GOD HAS CREATED AND SO WISELY ARRANGED AT SUB-ATOMIC LEVELS) AND MODERATION AS WELL AS DR EARL MINDELL'S "YOU SHALL NOT LIVE BY SOY ALONE" ARE FACTORS THAT AFFECT THE GOODNESS OR THE HARMFULNESS OF SOY.
OK, WAIT A MINUTE. THERE'S STILL ONE FACTOR: ALSO THE PROFIT MOTIVE THAT DOWNTREADS THE LAW "YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR (E.G. CUSTOMERS) AS YOUR SELF."
TIME IS COMING WE RAISE OUR HANDS IN TOTAL SURRENDER AND TELL GOD: OK, YOUR WAY ALONE IS GOOD, WISE, SAFE AND LOVING.
THAT WILL INCLUDE THE MISGUIDED CHEMISTS!


CHELATORS -- OUT?

ONE LINE OF ATTACK VERSUS SOY IS ITS PHYTIC ACID WHICH IS COMMON IN SEEDS (GRAINS, NUTS, LEGUMES) AND IS A CHELATOR, THAT IS, BINDS METALS AND MINERALS AND FORCES THEM OUT OF THE BODY. THEIR FEAR IS CALCIUM DEFICIENCY, IRON DEFICIENCY, ETC.
GRANTED.
BUT LATELY I HAVE COME ACROSS TO AUTHORITATIVE STATEMENTS (IN BOOKS, ETC.) THAT NOWADAYS TOXIC CHEMICALS TO THE TUNE OF THOUSANDS, MILLIONS OR MYRIADS ARE ENTERING OUR BODY THROUGH ALL ENTRY POINTS: SKIN PORES, NOSE, EYES, MOUTH, GENITALS, ETC. I WAS EVEN SHOCKED TO READ THAT EACH OF OUR CELLS - READ: EACH OF OUR BODY CELLS - IS BEING BOMBARDED OR HIT BY CHEMICALS INCLUDING FREE RADICALS MANY TIMES EACH DAY!!! WAIT A MINUTE I FORGET THE FIGURE, BUT I AM CLOSE TO BE SURE IT IS MORE THAN A HUNDRED TIMES!
A DAY!

SO WE NEED EXPELLERS (CHELATORS) MORE THAN EVER. WE NEED PHYTIC ACID MORE THAN EVER. NATURAL CHELATORS, NOT CHEMICAL CHELATORS. EVERYTHING CHEMICAL NOWADAYS IS SUSPECT ESP IF YOU NOTE THAT THE 7 TRUMPETS (ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGES) AND 7 LAST PLAGUES IN THE BOOK OF REVELATION (NEW TESTAMENT) ARE ALL OR ALMOST ALL CAUSED BY CHEMICALS!!!! CHECK IT OUT.


SOY MILK – HARMFUL TO BABIES?

SOY MILK HAS POSED SOME BAD EFFECTS ON INFANTS BECAUSE INFANTS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE FED WITH THEIR MAMA'S BREASTMILK, NOT WITH SOY MILK, STILL LESS WITH COW'S MILK, ETC. IS IT NOT COMMON SENSE AND GOD'S SENSE?

CONTINUES THE PRO-SOY VS ANTI-SOY CONTROVERSY

Why Soy Is NOT the Health Food You Think it Is


Soy is no health food. In fact, it’s bad for your body, your thyroid, and your child’s development, as Kaayla T. Daniel, PHD, CCN, explains in this exclusive video interview.

Dr. Daniel earned her PhD in Nutritional Sciences and Anti-Aging Therapies from the Union Institute and University in Cincinnati, was board certified as a clinical nutritionist (CCN) by the International and American Association of Clinical Nutritionists in Dallas and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Weston A. Price Foundation.

As a clinical nutritionist, she specializes in digestive disorders, women’s reproductive health issues, infertility, and recovery from vegetarian and soy-based diets.

Dr. Daniel is the author of The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America’s Favorite Health Food (New Trends, March 2005), which has been endorsed by leading health professionals, including Kilmer McCully, MD, Doris J. Rapp, MD, Jonathan V. Wright, MD,Russell Blaylock, MD, Larrian Gillespie, MD, Joseph Mercola, DO, Debra Lynn Dadd and others.

Larry Dossey, MD, called it “science writing at its best” and William Campbell Douglass, II, MD called it “the most important nutritional book of the decade.”

Dr. Daniel has been extensively quoted in major newspapers and magazines, including the San Francisco Chronicle, Washington Post, Toronto Globe & Mail, Glamour, Oxygen, Utne Reader, Alternative Medicine, and other publications and has appeared as a guest on NPR's People's Pharmacy, the Discovery Channel's Medical Hotseat and ABC's View from the Bay.

A popular speaker at conferences, she appeared most recently at BoulderFest 2008. She has also appeared as an expert witness before the California Public Safety Committee and the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences. In 2005 she won the Weston A. Price Foundation's Integrity in Science Award.

In February 2008, Dr. Daniel joined Sally Fallon, president of the Weston A. Price Foundation, and leading scientists Mary G. Enig, PhD, Kilmer S. McCully, MD and Galen D. Knight, PhD, in presenting a 65-page petition to the FDA asking the agency to retract the currently allowed soy-prevents-heart disease health claim.


Dr. Mercola's Comments:
If you carefully review the thousands of studies published on soy you will reach the following conclusion:

Any possible benefits of consuming soy are FAR outweighed by the well-proven risks.

Yet, many Americans still believe that processed soy products like soy milk, soy cheese, soy burgers and soy ice cream are healthy. And many others eat soy whether they like it or not -- in the form of soybean oil that’s added to virtually every processed food.

In fact, Dr. Joseph Hibbeln at the National Institutes of Health told CNN.com he estimates that soybeans, usually in the form of oil, account for 10 percent of the average person’s total calories in the United States!

Not surprisingly, ever since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a health claim for soy foods in 1999 that said diets low in saturated fat and cholesterol that include 25 grams of soy protein a day may reduce the risk of heart disease. soy sales have skyrocketed.

From 1992 to 2006, soy food sales have increased from $300 million to $3.9 billion, according to the Soyfoods Association of North America.

This is a concerning increase because processed soy is not something that most anyone should be eating.

As Dr. Daniel said, “I started looking into the research, found thousands of studies, many which seriously questioned the safety of soy, not even that it’s not a health food but that it’s not even safe.”

So What’s Wrong With Soy?

"Unlike in Asia where people eat small amounts of whole soybean products, western food processors separate the soybean into two golden commodities--protein and oil. There's nothing safe or natural about this,” Dr. Daniel says.

“Today's high-tech processing methods not only fail to remove the anti-nutrients and toxins that are naturally present in soybeans but leave toxic and carcinogenic residues created by the high temperatures, high pressure, alkali and acid baths and petroleum solvents," she continues.

To make matters worse, Americans are consuming soy in unprecedented amounts. Among the many health problems linked to a high-soy diet are:
• Thyroid problems, including weight gain, lethargy, malaise, fatigue, hair loss, and loss of libido
• Premature puberty and other developmental problems in babies, children and adolescents
• Cancer
• Brain damage
• Reproductive disorders
• Soy allergies

Most soy, perhaps about 80 percent or more, is also genetically modified, which adds its own batch of health concerns.

If Soy is so Bad, How Can it be so Widely Promoted as Healthy?

This is due to marketing spin at its finest. Dr. Daniel explains:
“One of the most effective things they [the soy industry] did was, some years ago, they recognized that they had a whole lot of soy that they wanted to sell, but they didn’t have a market for it because most people perceived soy products as something that was a communist food or fascist food. Or soy was perceived as a hippie food …

So either way soy did not have a good image and they got to thinking, “Well how can we make soy into an upscale food that people will want to buy and want to pay well for?” And what they did was absolutely brilliant. They came up with the idea of turning it into a health food. And that way rich people and upscale people would start to popularize it and the image would improve and then middle class and lower class people would want to eat it as well.

And that’s exactly what happened. And they began funding studies and publicizing studies and they hold huge symposia where they announced all the latest findings on soy and health -- and then they publicize all those and so it goes.”

Never mind the fact that studies reviewed by Dr. Daniel and colleagues have found that soy does not reliably lower cholesterol, and in fact raises homocysteine levels in many people, which has been found to increase your risk of heart disease, stroke, and birth defects. Meanwhile, according to Dr. Daniel, soy can increase your risk of heart disease.

As a result, she and other experts have sent a 65-page petition to the FDA asking them to retract the “soy prevents heart disease” health claim, and let’s hope they do the right thing and comply.

Babies and Children Should Not Eat Soy

Soy is bad enough for adults, but children and babies who are still developing are particularly vulnerable to soy’s hormone-mimicking effects. This means avoiding soy infant formula like the plague, and also not eating soy products if you are pregnant, is a health necessity.

Not only does soy infant formula have profoundly adverse hormonal effects, but it also has over 1,000 percent more aluminum than conventional milk-based formulas. Many soy foods also have toxic levels of manganese. Soy formula has up to 80 times higher manganese than is found in human breast milk.

In terms of the hormonal dangers, a Lancet study showed that the daily exposure to estrogen-imitating chemicals for infants who consume soy formulas was 6-11 times higher than adults consuming soy foods.

And the blood concentration of these hormones was 13,000 to 22,000 times higher than estrogen in the blood. An infant exclusively fed soy formula receives the estrogenic equivalent (based on body weight) of up to five birth control pills per day.

If you are a new parent, breastfeeding is the best choice to feed your baby, but if you can’t breastfeed you can make this healthy infant formula at home using raw milk.

Which Soy Foods Should be Avoided … and How do You Avoid Them?

Because soy is so pervasive in the U.S. food supply, avoiding it is not an easy task.

“The best -- and maybe the only -- way to completely avoid soy in the food supply is to buy whole foods and prepare them ourselves,” Dr. Daniel says. “For those who prefer to buy readymade and packaged products, I offer a free Special Report, "Where the Soys Are," on my Web site. It lists the many "aliases" that soy might be hiding under in ingredient lists -- words like "boullion," "natural flavor" and "textured plant protein."

As always, sticking to unprocessed, whole foods is best, but if you do purchase a packaged food, those that contain soy should be clearly marked as a result of the Food Allergen and Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (which requires that products that contain any of the top eight allergens, including soy, clearly state it on the label).

There is one final caveat that I’d like to mention, and that concerns the few types of soy that are healthy; all of them are fermented. After a long fermentation process, the phytic acid and antinutrient levels of the soybeans are reduced, and their beneficial properties -- such as the creation of natural probiotics -- become available to your digestive system.

It also greatly reduces the levels of dangerous isoflavones, which are similar to estrogen in their chemical structure, and can interfere with the action of your own estrogen production.

So if you want to eat soy and not ruin your health … and in fact gain health benefits, the following are all healthy options:
1. Natto, fermented soybeans with a sticky texture and strong, cheese-like flavor. It's loaded with nattokinase, a very powerful blood thinner. Natto is actually a food I eat regularly, as it is the highest source of vitamin K2 on the planet and has a very powerful beneficial bacteria, bacillus subtilis. It can usually be found in any Asian grocery store.
2. Tempeh, a fermented soybean cake with a firm texture and nutty, mushroom-like flavor.
3. Miso, a fermented soybean paste with a salty, buttery texture (commonly used in miso soup).
4. Soy sauce: traditionally, soy sauce is made by fermenting soybeans, salt and enzymes, however be wary because many varieties on the market are made artificially using a chemical process.

Related Articles:
Weston A. Price Foundation to FDA: Soy is No Health Food

Soy No Help to Women With Heart Disease Prevention

The Truth About Soy

Community Comments ( 55 )

Please or to continue.

FunRun [ Joined on 07/08 ] [ Posted on August 22, 2008 ] 16 Points




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Stop and think for a moment.

Who are the leanest, healthiest people in the world? Look around you. Is it your burger-chomping, tofu avoiding friends and family members? Trust your intuition. It tells you what is true despite what others tell to believe.

Look at the Asians who eat much of their protein from tofu... (and please, do not try to tell me that they don't. In October I returned from a one-year bicycle trip through China, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore... they eat a lot of tofu! Not miso. Not Tempeh. Tofu.) ...and they are neither obese, depressed, fatigued, nor moody as this interview suggests they should be.

In fact, Asian women are exactly the opposite. Not obese but lean. Not depressed but joyful. Not fatigued but energetic. Not moody but serene. They are the opposite of everything that the interview above says they should be.

How can this be?

Could the answer be other factors? Could it be that soy infant formula is not bad because of the soy but because it is replacing the food nature designed for infants, mother's milk?

Could it be that obese women produce more estrogen as a result of their high fat diet and their large amount of belly fat, both estrogen promoters? Is it possible that they enter a cycle where their increasing fat feeds their increasing estrogen feeding increased fat....?

Could it be that young girls mature earlier because we have far more abundant food than before? Could their excess fat be feeding their estrogen?

Where are all the Chinese with goiters? And the Thais with thyroid problems, where are they hiding? Why do Asians not show these symptoms?

Trust your intuition.

A plant based diet may help... You might consider reading The China Study by T. Colin Campbell.
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_No_Name_ [ Joined on 04/08 ] [ Posted on August 22, 2008] -10 Points



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I'm not sure what you mean by "Asians". There are white, brown, and Oriental people who are from Asia.


FunRun [ Joined on 07/08 ] [ Posted on August 22, 2008] 9 Points



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No Name, I list specific countries and a specific diet... Asians from those countries who eat tofu.

Also, it is interesting that I have received several thumbs down but no one has refuted what I had to say.

ADM and Monsanto are evil. That does not make all tofu and soy food evil. Don't cut off your nose to spite your face.



ramsim [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008] 1 Points



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FunRun-
I whole-heartedly agree. I just returned from a 2-week trip in Vietnam and Thailand. Much tofu is consumed there and everyone looks very lean and healthy. I did not see one obese person (native to the country that is) during our time there. I was overwhelmed by a sense of happiness and kindness from the people in these countries. Serene - yes. My overall impression is that the health is good in these countries. So I agree it is confusing to read that Asian's don't eat tofu and that tofu consumption causes all these problems.
My opinion is eat everything in moderation. I am vegan and eat a mix of soy (tofu and tempeh), beans, hemp protein and nuts to get my protein. My opinion is that it is much healthier to stick to a plant-based diet than a meat and dairy-based diet. So if you have to eat some tofu in making that transition, its not going to kill you.
Oh and China Study...great book!


calitrainer [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008]



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ramsim - All things in moderation... and you're a vegan? That makes little sense to me. You clearly do not eat ALL things, moderation or not.


shashin101 [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008] 4 Points



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I've lived in Japan for 5 years and am married to a traditional, more or less, Japanese woman. Japanese eat heartily--meat, tofu, lots of veggies and tons of white rice. What they don't do so much is snack--potato chips, candy. Japanese, however, have begun to adopt "Western" eating habits of McDonald's, snacking, eating processed foods, etc. and they're showing it--more and more becoming obese. Some are thin, I think, because of body type, my wife included. They're just thin, eat like a horse, and don't gain weight, low blood pressure, etc. The longest-living people for over a decade, the Okinawans, eat lots of home-grown veggies, don't eat 'til they're full, get daily exercise, the basics. There is a high rate of diabetes, however, in Japan (white rice?).


Islander [ Joined on 03/07 ] [ Posted on September 5, 2008]



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NoName, better stick to criticizing big government. FunRun was specific about the Asians she observed. Further, the words "Orient" and "Oriental" are no longer in use (except perhaps for carpets); they are Eurocentric in that they delineate an area that is east only to a "Westerner." "Asia" and "Asian" are more accurate and free of cultural bias.


Gmax [ Joined on 06/06 ] [ Posted on September 5, 2008]



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This user is BELOW novice level and all their comments need to be reviewed with great caution.




Some pop nutrition experts claim today one thing and tomorrow another. Trust your intuition - I could not agree more. Same people who argue against soy make you even believe that eggs are so good for you. Do the test yourself: If you want to find out about any foods and what it does to you, do the following: eat it excessively. I do that. Eating 8 to 10 raw eggs a day, I got heart problems within a week. Eating 1-2 kg tofu a day, I have no negative impact and good digestion - in contrary to what is claimed here! Now imagine you eat 2 kg of meat a day! This might kill you within a week. By the way, after the experiment with 10 eggs a day, I ate 3 pounds of tofu and my heart went back to normal immediately - within hours! The FDA has a reason not to take Soy from the Heart Healthy List!
I always read this nonsense here: Asians eat little soy! Okinawans are the eldest living people on the planet and they eat lots of tofu each day, more then any other population in Asia. How come they get over 100 years old when tofu is that bad!
Trust your instincts and make your own tests, like I do.
Read the "Okinawa Program", a 25 year study on the eldest living population on earth and then you will know that Tofu is on top of their daily list. Some centenarians even claim when interviewed, that the reason for their old age must be a high daily tofu consumption. Genetics? No. That's why this study lasted for 25 years, to prove that when young Okinawans went to the US to work or study, they became the same health problems as anybody else in USA - as soon as they adopted US eating habits. Consider one thing: if everyone would substitute meat with tofu, that would be a big disaster for an entire industry. There are some legitimate concerns about soy foods for infants but most of the other things I read here is pure nonsense.
Eat chocolate excessively and you get fat. Any doubt? Try it. One kg of chocolate a day and look what happens. And with soy and Tofu you get lean.


cocoy777 [ Joined on 08/08 ] [ Posted on September 5, 2008]



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Pro-soy vs Anti-soy
The long life & healthy bodies of soy eaters in Asia are proofs hard to dispute (refute).
Now, we've got scientific news that soy or its products are causing a list of health problems among Americans who consume them in huge quantity to do some catch up or to drown the negative effects of eating non-healthy foods which their palate, stomach and genitals demand or patronize.
Let's put things on perspective.
Dr Daniels is telling the truth in the sense that she based her anti-soy reports on what has happened to those who are taking US soy products. So, i do not doubt her sincerity.
But let's put things on perspective, namely: FOR CENTURIES AND I THINK MUCH OF IT IS STILL NOW, THE SOY IN ASIA IS ORGANIC. ON THE OTHER HAND, THE SOY IN AMERICA IS GROWN BY CHEMICALS (FERTILIZERS, PESTICIDES), BRED BY CHEMICALS (GMO SOY SEEDS), PROCESSED BY CHEMICALS!
DOESN'T THAT LEAD YOU TO SUSPECT THAT THE ANGEL soy HAS TURNED DEvil?
"So What’s Wrong With Soy?
"Unlike in Asia where people eat small amounts of whole soybean products, western food processors separate the soybean into two golden commodities--protein and oil. There's nothing safe or natural about this,” Dr. Daniel says.
“Today's high-tech processing methods not only fail to remove the anti-nutrients and toxins that are naturally present in soybeans but leave toxic and carcinogenic residues created by the high temperatures, high pressure, alkali and acid baths and petroleum solvents," she continues.
To make matters worse, Americans are consuming soy in unprecedented amounts. Among the many health problems linked to a high-soy diet are:
• Thyroid problems, including weight gain, lethargy, malaise, fatigue, hair loss, and loss of libido
• Premature puberty and other developmental problems in babies, children and adolescents
• Cancer
• Brain damage
• Reproductive disorders
• Soy allergies
Most soy, perhaps about 80 percent or more, is also genetically modified, which adds its own batch of health conce

HealthCoachSandraG [ Joined on 03/08 ] [ Posted on August 21, 2008 ] 15 Points




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This country is obsessed with soy! Every time I see someone eating soy milk (or anything made with soy) they're not enjoying it, but eating it because they've been convinced that it's better for them. So sad!! The people that suffer the most are the ones that were actually trying to do the right thing. Kinda like the marjarine disaster!

We over-produce soy and Monsanto has thier hands in ..due to their lovely gm seeds. Since soy has been genetically modified, people have been suddenly allerigic to soy when they previously were not showing any immediate response. How can gm food be the same??

Soy should only be eaten when fully fermented (tempeh, miso), and organic, and should not be over used. In China & Japan they did not touch soy,until it was discovered that fermenting released the phytic acid (cooking and boiling does not), making the soy nutrients available. Even then, they do not eat much.
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BeeGirl [ Joined on 04/08 ] [ Posted on August 21, 2008] 1 Points



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Has anyone besides me noticed the increasing bisexuality of young women in their teens and twenties? Could this have to do with soy being so pervasive and its effects on testosterone levels in men? Or is it just the latest trend in experimentation or attention-getting? I find it rather strange.


stoic [ Joined on 03/07 ] [ Posted on August 21, 2008] 6 Points



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BeeGirl...don't know about that particular linkage...but the environment is absolutely loaded with oestrogenic compounds...girls today (& for a long time now) do not resemble the girls I went to school with, in terms of physical maturity...& in the competition for receptor sites, testosterone is virtually 'surrounded', which I think goes a long way in explaining the long-term decline in typical testosterone levels in men.....


BeeGirl [ Joined on 04/08 ] [ Posted on August 21, 2008] 2 Points



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Funny thing stoic, I always thought that the 60's generation grew up during the last of the 'good' times, (except for the air raid siren drills, but maybe that was just a west coast thing) yet when I mentioned this to my mother (born in '42), she told me she thought the same thing about herself, and had always felt sorry for my brother and me.
I think we might have finally passed that point for real.



All Under Heaven [ Joined on 02/08 ] [ Posted on August 21, 2008] 2 Points



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I think the 50s were the best of times, when life was simple. You know, laid back, rock and roll, muscle cars, countryside, the old fashioned diners. Where people actually talked to and trusted each other, and would sit on their porches to watch the sunset into the summer night. That time was the real American dream (besides the Cold War and nuclear raid drills-like hiding under your desk would save you from a nuclear bomb-and you know people actually built their own fallout shelters right in their own backyards underground)

The 90s when I grew up wasn't so bad. Then the commemoration of the new millennium, things went downhill fast after that.



_No_Name_ [ Joined on 04/08 ] [ Posted on August 21, 2008] 7 Points



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The best times were before 1913 (with the exception of the years 1860-1865 during the Second American Revolution) when Americans were regarded as rugged individuals. Low crime, people were prosperous, good food, taxes were almost unheard of. Of course modern government propaganda camps perpetrate the myth that those were the dark ages for America.


BeeGirl [ Joined on 04/08 ] [ Posted on August 21, 2008] 3 Points



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All Under Heaven - what do you suppose we drove in the 70's? Sixties muscle cars, that's what - it's all I could afford on my part-time $2.10 an hour (or maybe it was $1.90, I can't remember) job. I bought my cherry '67 Chevelle for $800 from the original owner. Those were the days!
Even now, if you get out of the city, life takes on a slower pace again. No one here locks their house, or cars, or even rolls up their windows. A handshake still seals a deal. Most people are friendly and wave at you on the road. I can go 250 miles in any direction and if I break down, I probably won't have to wait an hour before someone I know comes along,and even if they don't, someone else will. There's not much else to do around here, but socializing and porch sitting. Lots of musicians.
Thanks for reminding me that there's still a lot to appreciate.


PepperR23 [ Joined on 06/06 ] [ Posted on August 22, 2008] 4 Points



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I totally agree with your comments. I have lost more than 60lbs since trying to go soy-free and going all organic, as much as possible. If I eat anything with soy in it, I develop gas pains and bloating. It takes tremendous effort here in the USA to find food withour soy in it.


sdalfes [ Joined on 06/06 ] [ Posted on August 21, 2008 ] 9 Points




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I too am devastated that I gave both my children soy formula and soy milk as infants. At the time I thought I was doing the right thing and giving them a healthy alternative to milk. Now that I know better, I feel terrible in that I may have caused them irrepairable damage. Does any one have knowledge or any advice on anything I can do to help them overcome any damage ? They are age 4 and 5.
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_No_Name_ [ Joined on 04/08 ] [ Posted on August 21, 2008] 1 Points



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You have already done the most important thing by not giving it to them anymore.



samurai [ Joined on 04/07 ] [ Posted on August 22, 2008] 3 Points



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I rarely meet women that made no mistakes with their pregnancies.
I gave up drinking all forms of alcohol when I was pregnant and breastfeeding, and yet, I enjoyed cappuccinos on a daily basis. My rational was; "well, it's not like I'm drinking tequila!"


paulabob [ Joined on 10/07 ] [ Posted on August 24, 2008] 1 Points



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You just go forward and continue to feed them healthily. It's the same thing we do for ourselves...I mean, I grew up on formula and was fed solids starting at day 5.

All we have is this moment!



rdalchemy [ Joined on 01/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008]



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yeah, start by getting a grip on reality. you act like they don't have a chance at normal life. reading too much mercola can cause irrepairable damage.


lookingforproof [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008]



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I wouldn't worry too much. I gave both my 15 year old daughter and 13 year old son soy formula. They still use soy milk in their cereal every day. (Don't like the taste of cow's milk.) They both went/are going through puberty just fine.


samurai [ Joined on 04/07 ] [ Posted on August 20, 2008 ] 7 Points




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Thank you, thank you, thank you.
I hate soy!
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ruso9 [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ] 5 Points




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In 1974, the year the Federal Election Campaign Act passed, dairy interests gave only $100,000 for congressional races; in 1976, they gave $1.4 million. The dairy lobby overwhelmingly prefers incumbents, who are aided by reforms that have made it tougher for challengers to raise money. A December 1997 Money magazine analysis showed that dairy interests gave $2 million during the 1995-96 election cycle, getting $1.3 billion in price supports for their investment.
According to "The U.S. Dairy Industry" by Stillman, Blayney, Miler & Crawford, in 1974 the average milk cow produced 9,751 pounds of milk, by 1993 this had gone up to 15,554 pounds of milk per cow (per year).
Perhaps this increase has been achieved by the increasing use of hormones in the dairy industry?
According to CDC/NCHS, Health, United States, 2006 the steady increase in the percentage of overweight americans started around about 1976 - any connection perhaps?
If his book is as coherent as his letter to the editor of Mothering Magazine then it could be worth a look at
"The Food Revolution".... by John Robbins
A bit suprised by this article on Doctor Mercola's excellent site
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gracefulwriter [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008] 1 Points



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I have to agree that I am surprised by this article appearing on Dr. Mercola's site. There is far more overwhelming evidence regarding the damage done by meat and dairy to both children and adults, than there is about soy related health risks.

higher health [ Joined on 10/07 ] [ Posted on August 22, 2008 ] 4 Points




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Soy was introduced during the buildup for World War 1. They formed a company to continue pushing it named after the scientist who helped work it into the rations - Fearn Soya. It wasn't promoted as a health food until the 40's when Fearn was bought by the Richard family. Yes, the same family of NOW Foods fame. They helped saturate the health food market, and sold the company in the late 80's. I can't say they knew the dangers throughout, but it sure seems that way now.
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AdeoDifference [ Joined on 04/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ] 3 Points




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Not ALL soy is bad. Dr.Daniel explains why MOST of it is in the above article. I've pasted the snippet below my comments*.
There are, in fact, a small number of companies that produce high-quality soy-based products that have unmistakable, noticeable health benefits and have and continue to enhance the lives innumerable individuals world-wide. The differences in their processing include the following (in no particular order):
-Their processing is NOT of the "faster, cheaper, more" approach that causes the positive things about soy to be eliminated and any negative properties to be enhanced. Instead, the beneficial elements of the soy are left intact and the impurities are removed. Quality control far exceeds FDA standards and the product is tested multiple times by independent labs throughout the manufacturing process.
-The product is merely soy-based, NOT all about the soy. BALANCE is key in outputting ANY nutritional product that is going to be well-assimilated and efficiently utilized by the body.
-The product is derived from certified Non-GMO sources. Yes, there are a few left on the planet.
-"By their fruit ye shall know them..." Users of the final product experience IMPROVEMENT in thyroid problems, libido issues, cancers, reproductive problems, and with at least one of the companies, soy allergies are actually eliminated or at least improved as long as the product is used consistently.
Science can be used for wonderful good or horrific bad. I agree that in the vast majority of cases, technology has caused soy to be something we should avoid at all costs, but it is ignorant to assume that in every case a particular naturally occurring substance has been completely ruined.
*Why MOST Soy Today IS UNhealthy:The section begins "Unlike in Asia where people eat small amounts of whole soybean products ..." It is under the heading "So What's So Wrong with Soy?" I didn't paste the whole section here due to limited space so please refer back to the article
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Nils [ Joined on 04/07 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ] 3 Points




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A big problem with soy is that people who've switched to it often have an emotional stake in continuing to use it. They feel righteous (and self-righteous) because they're eating soy rather than an animal product. "Natural" foods (i.e., processed foods in health food stores) often have a huge amount of soy, which creates a strong economic pressure on the natural foods industry to downplay the dangers of soy consumption.
In my own case, I switched to soy a couple of decades ago... I drank two or three quarts of soy milk a day, made smoothies from it, used it on my breakfast cereal, ate cereal made of soy protein, added tofu to at least one meal a day, ate tofu hot dogs, ate tofu burgers, mixed it in with scrambled eggs and with smoothies .... I lived that way for several years, because I thought soy was a "healthy" alternative to dairy.
I found, during this period, that, "unaccountably," my allergies and food sensitivities got worse, I got cranky, I had low energy, I had intense emotional ups and downs (mostly downs), and I seemed to be always fighting off colds and flus. (When I'd get colds, they'd drag on forever). I stopped jogging because I no longer had the energy for it. The more soy I ate, the sicker I got, though I didn't connect the two at the time. I also felt mentally dull, and thought I must be "getting old."
When I stopped eating soy products, or cut way down (thanks, I think, to articles I had read on Dr. Mercola's web page), I experienced an immediate improvement in my health, energy levels, emotions and mental clarity. I feel better and "younger" now than I did in my soy eating years.... more energy, sharp and clear mentally, and life is usually fun. Removing soy from my diet wasn't the only change I made...I added more omega 3s, take a lot of fish oil and other supplements... but I think that removing soy was a large factor in the improvement. I experienced.
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GrnSmoothy [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ] 3 Points




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I'm not surprised that our processing methods ruin any benefits soy has, like everything else we process. So what is the alternative? Cows' milk? The corporate dairy machine pumps cows full of hormones to increase milk production. No only do those hormones get passed into the milk, but cows get chronic udder infections so small amounts of blood and puss get into the milk. Pasteurization breaks the hydrogen bonds in helpful enzymes, destroying their function. Furthermore the amino acid methionine, common in animal proteins, contains more sulfur than vegetable proteins, which in a complex chemical reactions, lowers the bloods pH because a weak sulfuric acid is formed. Ultimately out bodies use calcium in the buffering process to equilibrate our pH back between 7.35 and 7.45. This calcium is of course stored in our bones. So in the long run, cows' milk REDUCES the amount of calcium in our bones. See the bottom of this message for my reference.
I've found that homemade almond milk is the best alternative! Here's how:
1. Soak raw almonds in clean water overnight to activate the enzymes, otherwise almonds and other nuts contain enzyme inhibitors (enzymes are the catalyst for all chemical reactions in our bodies)
2. Blend the almonds with a few medjool dates and vanilla for some flavor in a Vita-mix or a food processor until it's liquified.
3. Drain the mix through cheese cloth. You'll be left over with pulp. Squeeze out any remaining liquid and save the nutritious pulp to make dehydrated almond bread.
Almond milk made in this way contains all the calcium you need, without the sulfur-rich amino acid methionine. In fact studies are showing that the best sources of calcium are from almonds, wild salmon, tofu (unprocessed), and lots and lots of greens like kale and spinach (raw of course).
Hope this helps!
Title: A High Ratio of Dietary Animal to Vegetable Protein Increases the Rate of Bone Loss and the Risk of Fracture in Postmenopausal Women
Author(s): Sellmeyer DE
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Nils [ Joined on 04/07 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008]



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Hi Joergesen, you may want to try eliminating the boiled soybeans from your diet for a few weeks, and seeing if you notice an improvement. (In my own case, my allergies, mood and mental clarity improved once I cut out the soy) (However, be aware that some other beans also have isoflavones and high estrogen... garbanzo beans cause some of the same problems as soy beans). You say you "occasionally" eat boiled soybean; but even a small amount of soy can be damageing. A recent study showed that consuming as little as one serving of Tofu a week, triggered Alzheimers.

DizzyIzzy1 [ Joined on 06/07 ] [ Posted on August 21, 2008 ] 3 Points




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Thank you! This is so timely for me, I have a friend who's having a little girl in a few weeks and I'm trying so hard to convince her away from soy formula. She plans on breastfeeding for 6 months and then switching to formula, but if she can't for whatever reason feed then formula it'll be. She's starting to see sense but has a midwife telling her soy is the best thing for it, blablabla... ugh. I'll pass this on to her asap. I don't want to see the girls growing breasts by age 3!
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wiggler [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ] 2 Points




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Very interesting article.
Yes, soy has been a part of the Asian diet for years. Yes, Asians tend to be a rather healthy bunch. And I don't think that this correlation is a direct result of eating soy.
Take a good look at the Asian diet and the forms in which they eat soy....They eat it as a compliment to their diet, not as a main component of it. Yes, they eat a lot of tempeh and tofu but they're not having a glass of soy milk to wash down their soy energy bar which they eat a few hours after downing their soyburger after which they have soy ice cream for dessert. The tofu they ARE eating is only a small part of a diet that consists of lots of rice, fish and meat, and veggies. They exercise and eat REAL food. Maybe THAT's the healthy lifestyle habit we can learn from Asia....not add more soy.
It's like pouring ketchup on everything because lycopene is good for you......
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shashin101 [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ] 2 Points




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You know, there's so much to consider when it comes to diet. I think staying as natural as possible is the best, mixed with daily exercise because we are attached to a physical body (engine) and exercise keeps the fluids moving (lymph?). I recently lost 30 pounds, dropped my cholesterol from near 300 to 170 with all the good levels at or below recommended numbers. Blood pressure dropped also to a healthy level. What did I do? I exercised almost every day (1 hr. treadmill), cut my calories, ate only fish, veggies and steel cut oatmeal with raisins and cinnamon and local honey. Avoided as much as possible sugar, carbs (other than veggies and fruit) and didn't eat past 7 pm. Very difficult at times but I was on course for a early demise before. Now, I'm back on track. Sorry for the long post. Not selling anything here.
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jrgossett12 [ Joined on 04/07 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ] 2 Points




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FunRun, I agree with you. I have questioned Gary Null, leading natural health activist, regarding his findings about soy. He wrote me back stating that that he has at least 5,000 documents supporting the health benefits of soy and that all this propaganda coming out about the negative aspects of soy is merely smear campaign. Gary offers most of his information for FREE unlike Mercola and others. One should never have to pay to find out truth! Go to www.garynull.com and listen to his free radio show daily. Gary has scientists, doctors, leading authorities on health who must be able to back up what they tout. I believe that Americans, in general, know little about moderation thus problems occur from even the healthiest of foods over time when they are over consumed. Moderation is always key. I definitely believe a plant-based diet is the healthiest. Have you ever seen a weak elephant, rhino, hippo, gorilla? These animals do not eat meat and for those of you who believe in Jesus.....He didn't eat meat either!
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muen [ Joined on 07/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ] 2 Points




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Hmmmm..this is the first time an article from your site gave me the propaganda hebejeebees! first , I think a lot of us us soy products as a substitute for conventional milk and other dairy product that are not so healthy to be nice. Additionally as a meat substitute ....why??? because methodes of corporate meat production are very suspect....hence soy
also fermented soy has proven health benefits, phyto estrogens have been used with current chemotherapy treatments to successfully treat breast cancer...(Haelin, waignright)
yes i have a hard time with the gmo soy
times have changed...do your homework before you put it in your body..
Dr Daniel sounds like a fraud
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AdeoDifference [ Joined on 04/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008] -1 Points



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I don't believe that Dr. Daniel is a fraud, but I do believe that she is depriving persons of the whole truth with her failure to point out that not all whole soy or soy-based products have been corrupted and that not all soy is going to be unhelpful in improving a person's quality of life.

annkees1 [ Joined on 06/06 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ] 2 Points




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I have been hypothyroid for over 15 years due to autoimmune problems....the only time i had to increase my meds was when I started drinking soy milk, eating tofu and soy burgers in the late 90's. it only took several months of soy to effect my thyroid. I made the connection, did some more research and immediately quit eating soy. I've never had to increase my meds since then, however, the damage that was done did not reverse. I've often thought i would like to become a vegetarian, however, all of the vegetarian diets i have seen include tons of soy so that it out.
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gracefulwriter [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008] -2 Points



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annkees1, a vegan diet does not have to include 'tons of soy'. I invite you to do more research regarding a soy free vegan diet before giving up on this healthy lifestyle. Meat and dairy will do far more harm to your health in the long run.

Labtech, S [ Joined on 06/07 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ] 2 Points




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Glad this topic has been raised. Soy has been touted as a natural estrogen-like food source but natural does not equate with safety. We know that some natural growing mushrooms will wreak havoc with your liver if ingested, and some very effective insecticides originate in nature, in dandelions. I am NOT suggesting that soy is in the same catagory, but am suggesting that any food touted as having effects similar to hormones, should be suspect of causing hormonal upsets as described here.
When farmers are alternating crops, soy is often grown. I have often wondered if a surplus of soy beans created a "market" for research of the health benefits of soy.
As Dr. Mercola's guest shared how some women have eaten much and found it seemed to have caused certain health problems, I thought about my own short-lived illusion with the benefits of soy. I never went crazy with it but a few years ago I DID start drinking soymilk and eating a few other soy sources, which was new to me. This was followed, within a month, by one of the worst gynecological problems I've ever had. I will not say that the soy caused the problem because I cannot be certain of that. I did suspect it had something to do with it, and stopped eating soy for that reason. And yes, the problem cleared itself..
I then visited my local health food store to ask those-in-the-know about my problem (that followed the recent introduction of soy into my diet). The answer I received confirmed (in my own mind) an aspect of my suspicions. I was told that some (emphasis on some) physicians believe that because of its estrogen-like properties, soy should be avoided by women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer (though that was not my issue). Sorry about all the parentheses..
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AdeoDifference [ Joined on 04/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008] 1 Points



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I love your statement that "natural does not equate with safety." People should consider this whenever being sold on ANY product. Also, NOT everything that doesn't qualify as "all-natural" is UNhealthy.


cocoy777 [ Joined on 08/08 ] [ Posted on September 5, 2008 ]




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MY OWN ANALYSIS OF THE TWO SIDES IN THIS SOY CONTROVERSY IS LEADING ME TO THE FOLLOWING CONCLUSION: CHEMICALS, GENETIC ENGINEERING (PLAYING GOD, ALTERING WHAT GOD HAS CREATED AND SO WISELY ARRANGED AT SUB-ATOMIC LEVELS) AND MODERATION AS WELL AS DR EARL MINDELL'S "YOU SHALL NOT LIVE BY SOY ALONE" ARE FACTORS THAT AFFECT THE GOODNESS OR THE HARMFULNESS OF SOY.
OK, WAIT A MINUTE. THERE'S STILL ONE FACTOR: ALSO THE PROFIT MOTIVE THAT DOWNTREADS THE LAW "YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR (E.G. CUSTOMERS) AS YOUR SELF."
TIME IS COMING WE RAISE OUR HANDS IN TOTAL SURRENDER AND TELL GOD: OK, YOUR WAY ALONE IS GOOD, WISE, SAFE AND LOVING.
THAT WILL INCLUDE THE MISGUIDED CHEMISTS!
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cocoy777 [ Joined on 08/08 ] [ Posted on September 5, 2008 ]




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ONE LINE OF ATTACK VERSUS SOY IS ITS PHYTIC ACID WHICH IS COMMON IN SEEDS (GRAINS, NUTS, LEGUMES) AND IS A CHELATOR, THAT IS, BINDS METALS AND MINERALS AND FORCES THEM OUT OF THE BODY. THEIR FEAR IS CALCIUM DEFICIENCY, IRON DEFICIENCY, ETC.
GRANTED.
BUT LATELY I HAVE COME ACROSS TO AUTHORITATIVE STATEMENTS (IN BOOKS, ETC.) THAT NOWADAYS TOXIC CHEMICALS TO THE TUNE OF THOUSANDS, MILLIONS OR MYRIADS ARE ENTERING OUR BODY THROUGH ALL ENTRY POINTS: SKIN PORES, NOSE, EYES, MOUTH, GENITALS, ETC. I WAS EVEN SHOCKED TO READ THAT EACH OF OUR CELLS - READ: EACH OF OUR BODY CELLS - IS BEING BOMBARDED OR HIT BY CHEMICALS INCLUDING FREE RADICALS MANY TIMES EACH DAY!!! WAIT A MINUTE I FORGET THE FIGURE, BUT I AM CLOSE TO BE SURE IT IS MORE THAN A HUNDRED TIMES!
A DAY!
SO WE NEED EXPELLERS (CHELATORS) MORE THAN EVER. WE NEED PHYTIC ACID MORE THAN EVER. NATURAL CHELATORS, NOT CHEMICAL CHELATORS. EVERYTHING CHEMICAL NOWADAYS IS SUSPECT ESP IF YOU NOTE THAT THE 7 TRUMPETS (ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGES) AND 7 LAST PLAGUES IN THE BOOK OF REVELATION (NEW TESTAMENT) ARE ALL OR ALMOST ALL CAUSED BY CHEMICALS!!!! CHECK IT OUT.
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cocoy777 [ Joined on 08/08 ] [ Posted on September 5, 2008 ]




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SOY MILK HAS POSED SOME BAD EFFECTS ON INFANTS BECAUSE INFANTS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE FED WITH THEIR MAMA'S BREASTMILK, NOT WITH SOY MILK, STILL LESS WITH COW'S MILK, ETC. IS IT NOT COMMON SENSE AND GOD'S SENSE?
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nanamegan [ Joined on 02/08 ] [ Posted on September 5, 2008 ]




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Thank you for bring out the risks of soy products! I am in remission from cancer and do my best to eat natural and stay healthy.
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Pilts [ Joined on 01/07 ] [ Posted on September 5, 2008 ]




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I find the article confusing and also hard to believe at best. For the past 2 years I've avoided eating animal products and switched to tofu and other soy based products instead and have noticed nothing but benefits. I used to suffer from insomnia, fatigue, mood swings and lethargy but since changing my diet, I lost 15kgs, sleep soundly, have boundless energy and elevated mood. My inspriation to avoid animal products was generated by a trip to Indochina where I can honestly tell you, I did not see one single person that was overweight in 4 countries in 4 weeks! Whilst I do enjoy reading Dr Mercola's articles, I found this one to be offputting and frightening and from my experience, unfounded.
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DeeSW [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 5, 2008 ]




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The information echo's my experience entirely : Switched to Soy milk in Jan 2008 as a 'good thing to do for menopause'. By April 2008, I believed I had hypo-thyroidism - all the classic symptoms. INSTINCT rather than any medical or other information or intervention made me stop the Soy milk - and continue with an otherwise 'normal' well balanced diet with lots of fruit & veges. (I've had pregancy like cravings for e.g. paw paw, and broccoli). Energy level improvements were perceptable within the first week of dumping the Soy milk - but it took 3 months to shake off the sluggishness - and shedding the Girth-gain still in progress.
I've also lived / worked in Taiwan, China, Thailand and travelled extensively in Asia for the past 10 years - and ate alot of their tofu with no ill effects. BUT I KNOW switching to Soy Milk at home in South Africa made me very ill - and glad to have seen this video to confim my self-diagnosis.
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highvibe [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 5, 2008 ]




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Wiggler, I agree with you. I think that food in excess without balance of other nutritional foods can be unhealthy. My own rule is if over 30% of my diet contains one kind of food it is too much with the exception of fresh organic vegetables. Maybe this is one reason why I have not had any problems from eating soy. I very rarely (maybe twice a month) eat the textured vegetable protein soy products or processed soy foods, and drink as much rice milk as soy milk, neither everyday. The soy that I eat is organic non GMO. The tofu is the same brand that I have been buying since the 1970's, it is processed with quality care the old fashioned way from a company that only makes tofu and in order to keep the tofu fresh the water it is packaged in has to be drained everyday and replaced with fresh water. It only lasts for about a week.
Something to remember is that soy and many other food ingredients are hidden in things that we do not expect to find them in. Unless one eats only organic fresh non-processed foods and/or becomes an avid label reader and learns what all of the ingredients that can't be pronounced are we are getting more of a certain food, additive, preservative or if one is a vegetarian/vegan animal product than we realize.
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highvibe [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ]




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I want to add there are other products that have the same estrogen like effect as soy, chic peas and lavender being 2 of them how come we are not bombarded with information about how bad these products are. On another note, the national meat and dairy associations spend millions of dollars a year to campaign for their products and publish propaganda. I think it is important to know what organizations are financing the research for their own and independent research studies and publishing the results on soy. For example, the National Dairy Council funded it's own research project on milk and osteoporosis, women who were susceptible to osteoporosis drank 3 extra glasses of low fat milk everyday for a year. The results of the project showed that an excess of protein in the body directly contributes to osteoporosis. This is because too much protein causes the blood pH to become too acid and the body withdraws calcium from the bones (calcium is an alkaline mineral) to balance out the blood pH, causing a negative calcium balance. Yet these results were intentionally kept from the public so the National Dairy Council could continue to advertise and profit from the sale of milk. The purchase of soy products could be a loss of profit for the meat and dairy industries. Just an added note, fruits and vegetables contain various amounts of protein, they also yield an alkaline ash therefore calcium does not need to be taken from the bones for the blood to maintain a neutral pH.
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spysgrandson [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ]




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Fun Run--good post. Before we become plagued with guilt about all the harm we have done our children or personally begin avoiding soy, we might want to research the topic more ourselves. The brief film we have been allowed to watch and the information presented is limited and does not provide substantiation that the claims made are unequivocally accurate.
I have a progressive incurable disease and frequent a website with 3000 plus members--we constantly discuss diet and its relationship to wellness (my masters thesis 23 teays ago was on the relationship between nutrition and behavior). The contentious or controversial discussions at the website to which I refer inevitably lead to one or two conclusions:
all things in moderation and or something requires further investigaton or research before definite conclusions can be reached. Google stuff to death!
Also, I read most of what I get from Dr. Mercola and these "sound byte" type headlines, although interesting and sometimes valid, generally tell only a small part of the story and are often related to some attempt to further a commercial enterprise.
Again--google stuff to death before making assumptions that lead to dramatic changes in behavior.
Be well.
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joergensen [ Joined on 02/07 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ]




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For years now I've occationally boiled some soy-beans to eat in salads or with a bit of olive oil.
In England, during WWII people were in a large degree dependant on soy-beans for protein.
Is just boiled soy-beans all that damaging?
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rdalchemy [ Joined on 01/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008] 1 Points



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I'm sure it's the main reason they aren't a superpower anymore.

highvibe [ Joined on 09/08 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ] -1 Points




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Funrun and ramsim I agree with you. Ruso9 mentions John Robbins book I have read all of his books, well worth the read he gives a different perspective. I have been vegetarian for 35 years starting at age 18 for the last 5 years I've been vegan. After becoming vegan I discovered that I have an allergy to dairy. Even as a child I never liked milk and rarely ate it, dairy has always given me GI discomfort. I started using soy in my diet at 18 and I still use soy along with organic vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts and grains in balance. I rarely eat the processed soy substitute meat products, I do eat organic tofu, tempeh, miso and occasionally organic vegan cheese (by the way I enjoy the taste of soy). I am healthy and never had a serious health problem or illness. My cholesterol is low, my thyroid is fine, my heart is good, my bone density is great and I have enough physical energy to spare, I have not even caught a cold in 4 years. Maybe it's not the soy itself that is bad but the way it is processed as Dr. M. discussed, the additives that are put in the soy products and if it is not organic it is grown with pesticides and probably is GM. As for soy oil many oils when heated cause health problems. Dr. Daniels in the video stated that often there are other causes for a health problem as well as the soy. I understand this to mean that eating soy may be a contributor to the cause of a problem but is not the only cause, so if someone does not have another cause or a problem to begin with maybe eating soy would not be a health problem. I think to say that soy is bad for us is an understatement, I think the reasons should be explained in more detail than I have seen on this site. Is soy bad because of the way the soy is processed and what is added to it? does the way it is cooked contribute? what about real organic soy? What if a person made their own soy milk using organic soy? Everyone has to do what they feel is best, I would never give up soy for meat and dairy.
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Fanny (FIL) [ Joined on 06/06 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ] -4 Points




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How do you know that Jesus did NOT eat meat? Were you there? Or are you just saying something that someone told you? when someone tells me what Jesus did or did not do, that leads me to wonder where that person got their information from. I don't know too many people living that knows just exactly what Jesus really did or what he ate. There is more information coming out all the time, from different discoveries that tell different stories then what the powers to be wanted the common people to know about his life and the times, and what really went on. So please do not attempt to tell me what Jesus did or did not do, because you really don't know. You may think you do, but you don't really. Only what someone else told you. That is all any of us have at this point, but more and more information is coming out. We have been kept in the dark for so long, it is hard to see the truth when we finally may see it. The same is happening with diet. what we thought may be good for us at one time, we find out that it is not, the next time. Life is a process and it keeps going on . We can only do what we think is best at the time, until something else better may come along. Don't close yourself off and think that one has all the answeres now. You may grow from your coming experiences and your understanding may have grown also.
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Fanny (FIL) [ Joined on 06/06 ] [ Posted on September 4, 2008 ] -5 Points




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After reading most of the comment by the different writers, I am wonder if perhaps tofu in Asia is made different then the tofu in this country? Also, according to some doctors, the same diet is NOT good for everyone. What works for some may NOT be the best for otheres, as everyone's makeup is different.
I tried an all plant diet several years ago, and ate a lot of tofu for my protein. It seemed that I was always tired and got sick more then then I used to and that the illness hung on longer. I stopped eating an all plant food diet and started eating chicken and fish again. I also stopped eating tofu so much, just once in a while. I found my energy coming back and I was much healther and fun to be around.
From my own experience, I have decided for self, that not all individuals can eat the same diet with the same results.
If one found the people in Asia eating a lot of tofu and they were healthy, maybe that was because that kind of diet was what was best for their genetic makeup, that has developed over the centuries. Different foods for different people in differnent areas of the world. The different climats of the world could make for different needs in food and what is available for the people that occupy that area. Their bodies get used to that food after a long time of eating it. Besides, didn't Dr. M say that the same food does not fit everyone. The different blood types requrie different types of food, or something like that? JMO.
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Friday, August 29, 2008

Four Great Values of Soybeans

Four Great Values of Soybeans
by: Arnulfo Yu Laniba
Agape Foundation (Agasoft)

A. Superb Cancer-fighting agents or substances
B. Superior Quality Protein
C. Soybeans has been recognized as the main cause of health (disease-free) and longevity in Japan and China
D. Creates anti-cancer environment


A. Soybeans’ Superb Cancer-fighting Agents

“For centuries the soybean has been prized as one of the best sources of protein available in the world, but its most important attribute may be that it is a superb cancer fighting agent.”
- Dr. Jau-Fei Chen, U.S. scientist and nutritional immunologist, Nutritional Immunology, p. 72

Anti-cancer PHYTOCHEMICALS found in soybeans and soy products:

1. Isoflavones – help prevent the growth of hormone-dependent cancers such as breast and prostate cancers.
2. Genistein – superb cancer-fighting agent, is like a plumber who cuts the supply lines (that is, our capillaries or small blood vessels which are like pipes or tubes delivering nutrients and oxygen to every cell) – capillaries that the cancer cell had previously seized and installed upon itself, thus, Genistein starves the cancer cell, not just making it more difficult for cancer to spread but causing its eventual death;
-- promotes cell identification among cancer cells which means: healthy cells made cancerous forget their identity which makes it difficult for treatment or for these cells to get restored to health. Genistein ‘wakes’ them up and remind them of who they were (namely: as healthy useful cells) – that they were not cancer cells from the beginning, thus, leading them back to health.
3. Daidzein – another phytochemical that promotes cell differentiation and inhibit growth of cancer cells.
4. Protease inhibitors – is described as a ‘universal anti-carcinogen’ because it works to prevent or inhibit a wide range of cancers, from liver cancer to colon cancer to breast cancer;
-- blocks the action of protease, enzymes that may promote tumor growth;

5. Phytic Acids – is a chelator, that is, it binds with certain metals that promote tumor or cancer growth;
6. Saponins – kills colon-cancer cells.


B. Superior Quality Protein

What is soy protein?

1. It is as complete as animal protein but without the dangerous saturated fats and cholesterol in meat which cause cancer, diabetes, heart attack and stroke.
2. Soy is found to ‘one of the best sources of protein in the world,’ ‘an excellent source of protein,’ ‘the quality of soy protein is superior,’ the only plant protein classified as ‘complete proteins’.
3. ‘soy milk is a complete substitute for cow’s milk”
4. in a gram-for-gram comparison, soy protein is: twice that of meat;
5. soy protein is 4 times that of eggs, wheat and other cereals;
6. soy protein is 5 to 6 times that of bread;
7. soy protein is twice that of walnuts and other nuts;
8. soy protein is 12 (read: twelve!) times that of milk!


C. Soybeans: main cause of health and longevity in Japan and China

Comparison of Effects Japanese-Chinese ‘Soy Protein Diet’ vs. American Meat Protein Diet:

1. Japanese – longest lifespan of any nationality;
2. Japanese - lower rates of colon cancer and lung cancer than Americans;
3. Japan has the lowest rate of death from heart disease for men in the world and the 2nd lowest for women;
4. American women are 4 times more likely to die from breast cancer than Japanese women;
5. American men are 5 times more likely to die from prostate cancer than Japanese men;
6. Consistent No. 1 killer disease in America and also in the Philippines: CVD or Cardio-Vascular Diseases which includes heart disease, heart attack; hypertension, high blood pressure; sclerosis, stroke; etc. – due to saturated fats such as: a) animal fat, b) transfat (or so-called hydrogenated fat which was liquid plant oil hardened by the chemical process called hydrogenation) and c) synthetic (chemical) fat ;
7. The Chinese are said to be “singularly free from several of our most deadly disease such as CVDs, cancers and diabetes” ;
8. Chinese men have one-tenth (1/10th) the rate of heart disease as American men;
9. Chinese women die from breast cancer at one-sixth (1/6th) the rate of American women, while in the U.S., 8 out of every 10 Americans will suffer from heart disease (CVD) or cancer at some point in their lifetimes;


Comparison of Japanese-Chinese and American consumptions of protein:

1. The Japanese eat 50 – 80 grams of soy a day in different forms, e.g., soy milk, tofu, tempeh, natto, miso, soy sauce, kinnoko flour, soy oil, etc.;
2. Chinese diet is 95% vegetable protein esp. soybeans and only 5% animal protein (meat);
3. Americans eat only 5 grams of soy food daily, hidden or mixed in foods;
4. American protein is at least 55% animal protein (meat);


Conclusion: “A plant-based diet (especially soy) clearly leads to a stronger immune system…” that leads to disease-free or disease-less health and long life.
- Dr. Jau-Fei Chen, U.S. scientist, Nutritional Immunologist

Fact: Animal Protein found or mixed in animal meat is linked to CVDs, cancers and diabetes. Fats are feeds to cancer cells.
Nutrition and Diet Therapy, Sue Rodwell Williams
www.mercola.com

Solution: Replace your animal protein (found in meat fats) with soy protein.


What is Protein and how important it is to our health and life?

What is protein?

Protein is one of the 7 nutrient groups which are essentials of life. The other six are: carbohydrates, (including fiber and sugar), fats (including cholesterol), vitamins, minerals, water, and phytochemicals.

Like carbohydrates and fats, proteins have a basic structure of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. But unlike carbohydrates and fats, which contain no nitrogen, protein is about 16% nitrogen. In addition, some proteins contain small but valuable amounts of sulfur, phosphorus, iron and iodine.

Protein is made up of amino acids which carry nitrogen, an essential element needed for human life. There are 22 kinds amino acids. 12 of them are manufactured by the body. The remaining 10 cannot be, therefore, must be absorbed from food, animal and/or plant. The 10 are: methionine (plus cystine), threnine, tryptophan, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, valine, phenylalanine (plus tyrosine), histidine, taurine.

These 10 are called “essential amino acids” because the body does not manufacture them and must be absorbed from food.

What are the types of protein?

1. Simple – example: serum albumin, insulin, and the enzymes;
2. Complex – is simple protein plus some other non-protein groups

Examples:
a. Nucleoproteins – one or more proteins plus acid, such as DNA, protein complex in cell nuclei;
b. Glycoproteins and mycoproteins – protein and carbohydrates, such as mucin, found in secrations from mucous membranes;
c. Phosphoproteins – protein and a phosphorus-containing radical other than phospholipids or nucleic acid, such as casein in milk;
d. Chromoprotein – protein and a chromophoric or pigmented group, such as hemoglobin in red blood cells;
e. Lipoproteins – protein and a triglyceride or other lipid, phospholipids, or cholesterol-lipid transport package traveling in the bloodstream;
f. Metalloproteins - protein and a metal (mineral) such as copper or iron, suich as heme, the iron-bonding portion of hemoglobin;

TISSUE PROTEINS: proteins classified in broad categories according to their role in body structure and metabolism, namely:

1. Structural proteins – ex. Collagen (connective tissue)
2. Contractile proteins – ex. Myosin (muscle)
3. Antibodies - ex. Gammaglobulin
4. Blood proteins – ex. Albumin, fibrinogen, hemoglobin
5. Hormones – ex. Insulin
6. Enzymes – all the enzymes


How important is protein? What is its relevance or role in the body?

1. TISSUE BUILDING – is the primary function of protein. No protein, no form or structure to pair with the skeletons. Of the traditional groupings of food into GO, GROW and GLOW foods, protein consists the GROW food group.
2. CALORIES or ENERGY. Protein sometimes provide energy. When carbohydrates (first source of energy) and fats (second source of energy) are exhausted as first sources of energy, such as during fasting, sickness, or in extended physical efforts such as marathon, protein provides energy through its residue, glucogen to be converted into glucose (body sugar) which the type the body insulin hormones convert into energy. Calories or energy comes from only 3 of the nutrients groups, namely: carbohydrates, fats, protein. Vitamins, minerals and water contain no calories.
3. PERFORMS VARIOUS SPECIFIC ADDITIONAL PHYSIOLOGIC ROLES – e.g., precursor of B Vitamins, hormones, etc.
4. IMMUNE SYSTEM. Protein makes antibodies, one of the body-produced “army” which help fight infection;
5. Transports nutrients and oxygen both in the blood and in and out of cells;
6. Regulates the balance of water, acids and bases (alkaline);
7. METABOLISM. Regulates the chemical and physical processes in the body (metabolism).
8. DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) - Inside the nucleus of every cell is deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), a tightly coiled molecule that contains genes. Genes determine all the features found in living things, such as eye color, the pattern on a butterfly’s wings, or the color of a flower’s petals. DNA is protein-based, carries the genetic “blueprint” of a living beings such as man passed from one generation to the next or characteristics of parents to children.


3 Myths & Deceptions about Protein:

Myth No. 1: Animal (meat) protein contains all of these essential amino acids (except taurine); therefore, animal protein (meat) is called complete protein and high-quality protein.
Fact/Truth: Complete does not necessarily mean high quality and safe. Animal (meat) protein is the single main cause of cardio-vascular diseases that claims the most number of lives in the U.S., the Philippines and other meat-eating countries.

Myth No. 2: Meat is the only source of protein.

“Many people, often under the mistaken assumption that meat is the only source of protein, eat too much of it. Two-thirds (2/3) of the (US) nation’s protein comes from animal sources and (only) one-third from vegetable. In 1909, half came from animal sources and half from vegetable.

“…the change in America’s dietary habits (from low-fat, high fiber diet before the 19th century to high-fat, low fiber diet) is unfortunate and undesirable for several reasons:

“1. Red meats high in fat (saturated fat) and cholesterol, both are mainly responsible for cardio-vascular diseases (CVDs), the No. 1 killer disease in the US, other advanced countries as well as in the Philippines;
“2. Meat protein is the most expensive protein to produce. Cows must be fed 21 pounds of vegetable protein to produce one pound of usable meat protein. An acre of cereals can produce 5 times more protein than an acre devoted to meat production. An acre of legumes produces 10 times more, and an acre of leafy vegetables produces 15 times more.”

Fact/Truth: Protein can be found in fish, seeds (grains, legumes, nuts) and vegetables.

Myth No. 3: Meat is the only source of high-quality protein.
Fact/Truth: Proteins from soybeans equal or even exceed the quality of protein in meat, not only because it is as complete as meat protein, but also soy protein does not have cholesterol and other saturated fats that are responsible for CVDs (Cardio-Vascular Diseases), one of which is heart disease, the consistent leading killer disease in the U.S. and the Philippines.


D. Creates anti-cancer environment
Soy has the unique ability to create a favorable hormonal environment that can help prevent cancer.

Here’s how it works.
Estrogen - useful
The hormone estrogen produced mainly in women’s ovaries controls the development of secondary sexual organs in women such as breasts, pubic hairs, etc. Estrogen is also a major player in the female menstrual cycle. In a delicate interplay with other hormones, estrogen stimulates the development of ovum (unfertilized egg) and helps grow the lining of the uterus, where the egg will implant if it is fertilized.

Estrogen turns harmful

But if cells in breasts or cervix have been damaged or wounded by free radicals (unstable oxygen molecule) and turned cancerous, estrogen becomes a traitor and takes a harmful role as feeds or stimulators or promoters to these cancer cells. Thus, the more estrogen a woman has, the greater that chances that cancerous cells can multiply and spread very fast. Here the free radical is the initiator or cause of cancer cells while estrogen becomes the promoter – read: feeds! – to cancer cells!

Solution: limit estrogen.

How?

Let soybeans supply phyto-estrogen, to replace estrogen!

How soybeans help in preventing hormone-dependent cancers?

Breast and prostate cancers are called “hormone-dependent cancers” because hormones like estrogen can stimulate their growth .

Soybeans contain abundant phyto-estrogen (plant estrogen) called EQUOL that can be converted to estrogen in the body. When equol is abundant, ovary-produced estrogen decreases. Phyto-estrogen like equol is anti-cancer; estrogen is pro-cancer!





BIBLIOGRAPHY:

1. Nutrition and Diet Therapy, Sue Rodwell Williams
2. Parents’ Guide to Nutrition, Dras. Susan Baker and Roberta Henry
3. Nutritional Immunology, Dr. Jau-Fei Chen
Posted by cocoy777 at 4:05 AM

Nothing beats mama’s breastmilk! What about the traditional use of soy in infant feeding?

Nothing beats mama’s breastmilk!
What about the traditional use of soy in infant feeding?
Source: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2000/01/09/truth-about-soy.aspx


Ever heard the industry line that 'soy formulas must be safe because Asian infants have been eating soy for centuries'? Just another piece of false advertising, a little like the claims that 'soy formulas are better than breast milk' that many parents that have fed soy formulas testify to. And to set the record straight, soy was seldom used in infant feeding in Asia.
Ernest Tso is credited with the development of the first soymilk diet that was able to sustain an infant for the first eight months of life. Writing in the Chinese Journal of Physiology in 1928, Tso noted that soybean milk is a native food used in certain parts of the country as a morning beverage but it is little used as part of the diet for children. Its nutritive properties as a food for young infants are practically unknown.
Eight years later, Tso's comments were still valid. Writing in the 1930's, Dr RA Guy of the Department of Public Health of the Peiping Union Medical College found it 'pertinent to note that we have never found soybean milk naturally used by Peiping women to feed their children. This beverage is not made in the home in Peiping, but is sold by street vendors, as a hot, very weak solution of soybean protein and is usually drunk by old people in place of tea. The milk, as reinforced for the feeding of young infants, is rather tedious and difficult to prepare. As dispensed recently by the various health stations, it is in demand, but is just as artificial in this community as cow's milk' (Guy RA. Chinese Med J. 1936; 50:434-442).
In a later publication, Guy reported on the use of soybean milk as a food for infants. The whole purpose of this report was to comment on the possible use of soymilk to address the problem of feeding those infants without sufficient maternal milk in a country where cow's milk was not native. He again noted that although a weak soy milk or 'tofu chiang' was 'sold hot in Peking by street vendors and was taken by old people in place of tea', that 'contrary to Western notions' it was not usual to feed soy milk to infants (Guy RA and Yeh KS. Chinese Med J. 1938; 54:1-30).
It seems those same Western notions that made Asians out to be greater soy consumers than they were are still prevalent. Why is that? Asia is a huge market for the soy industry and the soy industry efforts to convince Asians that their ancestors ate much more soy than they actually did are purely profit driven. We view the attempts of the soy industry to re-write the history books with the contempt it deserves.


COMMENTS: God made soy beans without the intention to replace mother's breastmilk. Each has its own place and time of use. No conflict and no usurpation! No interchange either, I'm sure.