Is soy dangerous?

Question

I found many answers to this general question, both postive and negative. However, if I keep my soy intake to a minimum (not eating it everyday, maybe once a week, but not every week), what are the dangers? Are they still as severe? Also, being a woman (no child yet, but planning in the few years), what are the risks about becoming pregnant?

Answer 1

Contrary to what people say about soy being bad for you it is actually very healthy. The soy scares were put out my the American Dairy Association. Soy is rich in vitamin B12, iron, and protien and is quite healthy. There are no risks involved with soy and pregnancy. The big misconception being brought out recently is that soy contains estrogen which makes men gay. This is far from true. Soy contains phyto-estrogen called isoflvanes which contribute to the prevention of cancer and heart disease. Isoflavanes help reduce the amount of estrogen in the body but have no negative effects.

Answer 2

A month ago I was having severe problems because of soy and no one PAID ME to have them.

I am getting a bit irked at the people who aay "Oh, soy is good for you, but of course not the processed stuff". Um, that's what most people are referring to when they ask about soy! FERMENTED soy stuff has been eaten for a long time in Asian countries. The stuff we have available in the U.S. and in other modern countries has NOT been consumed for long. Textured vegetable protein, soy meats, franks, etc. - I would ABSOLUTELY eat them sparingly. I won't even consume soy milk. Not when there's almond and rice milk out there.

If overdoing soy (eating at leat one meal a day with soy) can cause severe health problems for ME, then that's a big red flag that that food might not be such a good thing in my book. The dairy industry wasn't knocking at my door making me have hives every single day or causing a fricking goiter or making my thyroid nearly STOP functioning. That was the soy. I do not trust it and I do not trust those that would so easily dismiss the personal experiences people like me have had with soy and just write the whole thing off to some kind of conspiracy. Eat tempeh, eat natto, soy sauce, and miso - those are all soy foods that have been eaten for a long time and are fermented. Beware everything else (even tofu). That's the rules I've been living by and all my terrible health problems have gone away since I've eliminated soy from my diet.

Answer 3

It's not dangerous at all in moderation. Many cultures consume soy almost daily and are among the healthiest people in the world. The best thing is to eat soy foods that are organic and not heavily processed, like organic soymilk and tofu. Eating soy burgers or soy hot dogs everyday is not good for you though, just like eating regular burgers or hot dogs everyday would not be good for you. Soy supplements and protein powders are a bad idea too (these items are what those negative studies usually concern; they feed large amounts of isolated soy protein to rats). So don't worry so much and enjoy your soy!

Answer 4

There is no danger in soy products unless someone is allergic to them.

I am a 50 year old male vegetarian who has eaten many soy products for decades; I haven't turned into a hypothyroid girly man yet.

If there was any real risk, I'm sure my wife would have told me about it--she's a Registered Dietitian.

If it was a valid, proven, scientific fact--why don't we have warning labels on soy products like the ones they have for tobacco and alcohol?

Answer 5

Hi - the woman above me is absolutely correct. I've also had serious health repurcussions from soy in my diet, and I am certainly not affiliated with the dairy industry.

Soy foods have been around for ages, as people above have noted. However, if you're going to quote their history as evidence of their healthfulness, please quote it correctly. Soy foods are consumed as part of an omnivorous diet in Asian cultures - THEY ARE NOT USED AS MEAT SUBSTITUTES. They are part of a broad diet including fish, meat, grains, vegetables, sea vegetables, etc, all of which play important roles in the healthfulness of the diet.

I'm vegan and have been for fifteen years, so this is in no way an attack on a meatless diet. I'm also a thyroid cancer survivor who incidentally began consuming soy as an infant (my mother gave me soy forumla when I developed an allergy to dairy). I have a hard time believing there's no connection.

There are positive health benefits to consuming fermented soy - miso, tempeh, and natto, as was mentioned above. The rest of the unfermented and processed stuff, including soymilk and tofu, should be avoided. There are plenty of protein sources that don't carry soy's dangers, and nut and rice milks for creamy beverage choices. Good luck!

Answer 6

Soy is really good for you.
Recently, I've been concerned about news that soy is the most commonly GM-ed food.
Why? because as much as there are strict restrictions on GM foods to be correctly labelled, soy's largest producers are in east asia.
Having spent a large part of my life in that part of the world, I can tell you from 1st hand experience, it is difficult to regulate anything there. More so crop production...
Given that, everything in moderation nothing in excess is the best way to go.

Answer 7

The answer is "no".
If you do your research you will find that all of that anti-soy stuff out there is being generated by the meat and dairy industry. They pay people to write whole books, go on TV show, write papers, articles, ... they have billions and billions of dollars to throw around in order to protect their vested interests. Paying such people to generate propaganda for them is really cheap.

Soya beans are beans. They are good for you just like all other edible beans. People eat soybeans nearly every day in many countries and these are the countries which are just about 1000x times healthier than us here in the Americas, such as Japan, China, Korea... When I was in Japan, there's a bowl of soybeans on the table for snacking on... Soybean stuff is everywhere in Japan and are they dying from Soydisease? No. Sure, avoid processed foods, which may or may not contain soy derivatives or extracts, but whole soy products like soybean flour, soybean milk, soybean curd, etc. are totally good healthy stuff. Eat up.

Answer 8

soy is not dangerous in the least! soybean milk is actually a source of calcium for a lactose-intolerant person..and at 6g protein per serving, it's great as a protein replacementif you're a vegan.
i see absolutely no reason not to have soy (although i might be biased because i grew up with it) even if you're planning on having a child.
all the best.

Answer 9

I think it's generally agreed that eating soy that is less processed is OK (miso paste, tempeh, edamame, tofu), but the overly processed stuff is not so good (soy milk, boca burgers, soy cheese and deli slices). Read more here:
http://www.compassionatecooks.com/blog/2007_02_01_compassionatecooks_archive.html

Answer 10

The isoflavones act as potent anti-thyroid agents, and are capable of suppressing thyroid function, and causing or worsening hypothyroidism. Soy is a phytoestrogen, and therefore acts in the body much like a hormone, so it's no surprise that it interacts with the delicate balance of the thyroid's hormonal systems. High consumption of soy products are also proven to cause goiter.