Tofu is evil?

cheshirechic

Hello, my dear MFPers.

I keep reading about how harmful soy products are. Is this true? I feel like all of the research contradicts itself. I'm defaulting to your expert opinions. So:

- Do you eat soy products? If so, what and why?
- Do you avoid soy? If so, why not?
- Is there any real evidence for ethnicity based food preferences? For example, certain food allergies are prevalent in certain ethnic groups-- does this ever go the opposite way? Like, having a body that's engineered to better process rice versus wheat? (I'm part Japanese and absolutely crave tofu at least every couple of months. I'm probably just crazy, though.)

Thanks for the help!

deesjourney2fit

I avoid soy products. It's especially bad for people with thyroid problems. In other cultures that eat more soy, they eat naturally fermented soy. And they eat smaller quantities. We eat non fermented soy and in larger quantities.

Here's some information I read in a book called The Diet Solution:

Fermented soy products such as miso, tempeh, natto, shoyu (soy sauce), and tamari are fine to eat occasionally; fermentation deactivates some of the anti-nutrients in soy that cause digestive distress and mineral loss in bones. However, the majority of soy products sold in the United States are unfermented, so the naturally occurring toxins are intact. Unfermented soy products also are processed in a way that makes their proteins impure and increases the amount of carcinogens (Daniel 2005, 156).
Some people argue that Asians have been eating soy for thousands of years and have an incidence of cancer far lower than Americans, and small amounts of natural fermented soy in the average Asian diet (9.3–36 grams [2–4 teaspoons] of soy per day as a condiment) may well have a protective effect. Unfortunately, Americans have taken this information and applied it incorrectly to highly processed, unfermented, low-quality soy products like tofu (a single cup of which weighs 252 grams). Many Americans eat several cups of soy products daily.
In adults, soy consumption may disrupt normal hormone levels, affecting the reproductive system in women (resulting in heavier menstrual flow, increased cramping, and infertility) and decreasing testosterone levels in men (which decreases libido and lowers sperm count). In fact, a Japanese old wives’ tale says that women punish straying husbands by feeding them a lot of tofu!

Hope this helps

amyoliver85

Well, I'm no expert but I wanted to answer your questions so you can get an idea of what someone of a different ethnicity has to say:

1- I'm white, but am mixed Mediterranean, Irish and Slavic.
2- The only soy based product I eat is Soy Sauce.
3- I avoid all other soy-based products.

Why I avoid soy-based products: first of all, I avoid soy for health reasons; soy protein (too much of it) has a tendency to create fat deposits. If I gain weight and analyze what I've been eating, I typically find soy products and then weed them out. Additionally, soy protein is not a whole protein like a meat protein, and even though I'd like to be a vegetarian, I just can't swing it because I have an auto immune disease.

As to your other question, I can tell you that you're absolutely right. Yes, just as people can have a food sensitivity, they may also digest others foods better than people of a different ethnicity.

lausa22

I'm vegetarian, so I can't really steer clear of soy products, otherwise I'd hardly have protein.
I really only eat quorn products, like veggie sausages or mince. I don't think it's that bad, I'm a healthy person so I don't think soy has a hue effect on me.
However, I will not touch soy sauce. It's full of salt.

Oishii

I stopped eating tofu when I found out I was anaemic because I read it contains ridiculously powerful iron inhibitors.

I'm very glad to see nattou on the list of what's ok, because I love it... But I know men in Japan are advised not to have it every day.

I bet I'll dream of nattou tonight :laugh:

cheshirechic

Thank you for the thoughtful, informative responses!

dees -- WOW, what a logical wealth of info! That definitely makes sense. Fermentation is such an amazing process, and now I know that at least my beloved miso is safe.

amy -- I had no idea about the fat deposits! Good to know.

lausa -- So true about the soy sauce. I was looking at low-sodium versions of that and tamari today, and wow, 28% of DV. Sad.

Oishii -- Didn't know about the iron inhibition either. VERY good to know.

yanicka

Wow all that info is very intersting. I barely eat soy products but I will not make more place in my diet for tofu

NewLeafEats

I eat soy once in a blue moon. While many say it's a good anti-cancer food, much research would argue that it's counterindicated for breast cancer issues because the phytoestrogens in soy may exacerbate the already high estrogen in hormone-induced breast cancer patients. My mom was diagnosed with hormone-induced breast cancer last year, so I try not to make it a major part of my diet. When I do choose to eat it, I eat organic, non-GMO, whole food soy.

I don't know if this has any scientific evidence or not, but I do know that when I rely on plant-based sources for my protein, I get moody, forgetful, and depressed. This may or may not be related to the increase in soy or lack of animal protein. Couldn't tell ya.

jea1668

I eat soy products every now and then as I dont eat much in the way of meat either, this is not because I want to be a vegetarian or because I dont think soy is great for you, but it all comes back to Moderation, it really seems to be the key to much in life. Most of the harmful side effects that happen with soy (or anything else food wise for that matter) you see from people who consume larger quantities of it more often, like every day as the main base for every meal or at least most of them. I would say if you were talking about adding it in to fill some gaps in your diet, then no worries, but like anything these days too much seems to be a bad thing