Dangers of Soy?

thinclo

Hi everyone,

Whilst doing some general reading on nutrition etc I came across an article which claimed soy to be dangerous and associated with A LOT of health problems...such as low thyroid functions, growth disorders and even cancer. I googled this to get a bit more information and found there are lots of sites claiming soy is dangerous. I eat a lot of soy in the form of tofu, quorn and sometimes soy milk so this worried me alot! I was just wondering what other peoples views were on this matter because I had only ever heard of soy being promoted as a health food. I have posted a link to a website with all this information below and would love to hear what others think about this.

http://www.naturalhealthstrategies.com/dangers-of-soy.html


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LorinaLynn

Sounds to me like the typical fear-mongering of someone trying to sell you their snake oil. Or coconut oil, in this case.

Charlottejogs

I have seen some of this and have been meaning to do some research. I agree with the fear mongering thing...
I have seen that soy is highly genetically modified (shocking!) so I have heard finding a non gmo one helps. I am interested in what others know about this...

Thanks!

puggypatti

I only started to avoid soy when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Up till then I used it on a regular basis. Eating soy had nothing to do with my contracting cancer but there is some concer since it is a plant estrogen about using it once diagnosed. I would not avoid it if I were you. It is a great source of protein. If you look long enough you will find something bad about everything. Best of luck and enjoy eating. If you want to avoid soy you can find vegan frozen foods that are also soy free,and quite yummy.

PaleoPath4Lyfe

Yes, my Dr told me the soy I was eating when I was a vegetarian is what caused my thyroid issues.

I avoid it like the plague. It was one of my reasons for giving up vegetarianism and going to a very clean eating plan.

Soy eaten over in Asia is sprouted and fermented and takes out the anti-nutrients, so the soy the Asians eat is NOT what we eat in America.

And 90% of American soy is GMO.

pigwidgeon82

Yes, my Dr told me the soy I was eating when I was a vegetarian is what caused my thyroid issues.

I avoid it like the plague. It was one of my reasons for giving up vegetarianism and going to a very clean eating plan.

same here. i don't eat a lot of soy usually, but my doctor told me to really watch my soy intake as well as my seafood intake, due to my thyroid issues.

BrianSharpe

Without tracking down each research paper cited and reading them completely it's hard to say whether or not any of the observations are the result of statistical correlation (which does not prove causality) but I did notice that the the Weston A Price Foundation seems to be in bed with organizations promoting dairy farmers so there could well be a hidden agenda.

Personally I'm a little skeptical of their assertions but then I'm skeptical about pretty much everything I read on the Internet unless it's from a verifiable and trusted source.

PaleoPath4Lyfe

Yes, my Dr told me the soy I was eating when I was a vegetarian is what caused my thyroid issues.

I avoid it like the plague. It was one of my reasons for giving up vegetarianism and going to a very clean eating plan.

same here. i don't eat a lot of soy usually, but my doctor told me to really watch my soy intake as well as my seafood intake, due to my thyroid issues.

I never had thyroid issues until after consuming a LOT of soy and I am also infertile due to soy intake.

PaleoPath4Lyfe

Without tracking down each research paper cited and reading them completely it's hard to say whether or not any of the observations are the result of statistical correlation (which does not prove causality) but I did notice that the the Weston A Price Foundation seems to be in bed with organizations promoting dairy farmers so there could well be a hidden agenda.

Personally I'm a little skeptical of their assertions but then I'm skeptical about pretty much everything I read on the Internet unless it's from a verifiable and trusted source.

Weston A Price is an advocate of RAW dairy, not regular dairy found in the grocery stores.

pigwidgeon82

Yes, my Dr told me the soy I was eating when I was a vegetarian is what caused my thyroid issues.

I avoid it like the plague. It was one of my reasons for giving up vegetarianism and going to a very clean eating plan.

same here. i don't eat a lot of soy usually, but my doctor told me to really watch my soy intake as well as my seafood intake, due to my thyroid issues.

I never had thyroid issues until after consuming a LOT of soy.

i got that from your first post. i said "same here" referring to avoiding it like the plague.

thinclo

WOW..... some of this is shocking I'd never even heard of any possible health issues related to soy before today. Thanks everyone for your replies its very helpful, and interesting too .

thinclo

I only started to avoid soy when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Up till then I used it on a regular basis. Eating soy had nothing to do with my contracting cancer but there is some concer since it is a plant estrogen about using it once diagnosed. I would not avoid it if I were you. It is a great source of protein. If you look long enough you will find something bad about everything. Best of luck and enjoy eating. If you want to avoid soy you can find vegan frozen foods that are also soy free,and quite yummy.

Sorry to hear of your illness! I hope you are making a recovery now..thankyou for your reply

ElementalEscapee

I sometimes drink soy milk but I haven't lately...I just found this, I wouldn't doubt the things said in there to be true.

"Please understand that SOY is a terrible food that should not be in the food supply. There is a very comprehensive book written by a famous researcher on this subject called "The Whole Soy Story" by Kaayla Daniels. This book has been peer reviewed and is loaded with all kinds of documentation.

The soy industry is very powerful with lots of money and has promoted soybean oil for example as healthy. It is very unhealthy and when you buy it, the bottle is usually clear and this allows U.V. light to degrade the product, but what's worse is that when it is bottled it is usually already rancid from oxygen in the air. They add a deodorizer to mask the stench.

Soy milk is loaded with lots of goitrogens that are in soy that slow your thyroid down that will cause you to gain weight. Soy inhibits good protein digestion, depletes the body of minerals, especially iron (over 50%) and is loaded with the heavy metal aluminum. Soy is used to remove aluminum from the soil. It was originally used as a nitrogen fixing plant to add nitrogen to the soil before growing other plants.

The estrogen you are speaking of is the phytoestrogen found in soy. There are three basic estrogens the body makes and the one in soy is NOT a good one. The soy milk is a disaster and anyone consuming that garbage will pay the price. Soy is brown in color, so they add Titanium Dioxide to the mix to turn it white. That is White Oil Paint. Then they have to add lots of sugar in various forms that are disguised on the label to keep you from being aware of how much sugar is required to get rid of the bitter taste of soy. Babies that are fed soy formulas get the equivalent of 5 birth control pills being consumed with each bottle of that junk.

You do NOT want to drink the typical pasteurized milk you find in stores either. RAW MILK from grass fed cows is VERY HEALTHY and you should be consuming that and drinking the WHOLE MILK, not the low fat garbage. The drug companies are not yours or my friend in any way. They are using the synthetic ethinyl estradiol form of estrogen in birth control and hormone therapies. This is the most breast cancer risk form of estrogen. It is efficiently absorbed by mouth and slow to be metabolized and excreted by the body. The longer a synthetic estrogen stays in the body, the more opportunity it has to do damage.

The rbGH hormones you are talking about in 70% of the pasteurized milks being sold in grocery stores is genetically modified. Read the book "Seeds of Deception" by Jeffery Smith to learn all the gory details of why this hormone is very bad for humans and the cows they are feeding it too. Just know that cancer is one of the problems associated with consuming that garbage."

WickedGarden

I cannot drink regular milk so I drink Organic soy (organic is non-GMO)

I did read up on soy and really, the concern is more with soy milk (GMO) and the soy they use in pre-packaged, processed foods, like soy protein.

Tofu is made from a different type of soy, so that is considered safe. All the articles on soy are very confusing, so to play it safe, go with organic, you are guaranteed non-GMO.

Cait_Sidhe

Actually, soy raises estrogen, which then can trigger breast cancer and other cancers in women. I have a family history of cancer, so although I do occasionally eat tofu for the protein, I try to avoid soy if I can. Especially soy milk.

veggievixen79

I thought that the danger comes from the GMO aspect of soy products as opposed to the soy itself?

Also to the OP, Quorn is made of something called mycoprotein, not soy, so fill yer boots!

thinclo

I thought that the danger comes from the GMO aspect of soy products as opposed to the soy itself?

Also to the OP, Quorn is made of something called mycoprotein, not soy, so fill yer boots!

thats good to know about quorn i eat loads of it lol!

bio_fit

I thought that the danger comes from the GMO aspect of soy products as opposed to the soy itself?

What's wrong with GMO?

RemDogzMa

Yes, my Dr told me the soy I was eating when I was a vegetarian is what caused my thyroid issues.

I avoid it like the plague. It was one of my reasons for giving up vegetarianism and going to a very clean eating plan.

same here. i don't eat a lot of soy usually, but my doctor told me to really watch my soy intake as well as my seafood intake, due to my thyroid issues.

Another person here told to avoid soy due to thyroid issues. And yes, the soy that is considered so healthy in Asia is NOT what what we get here in the U.S. It's almost all GMO (genetically modified).

estelle74uk

Actually, soy raises estrogen, which then can trigger breast cancer and other cancers in women. I have a family history of cancer, so although I do occasionally eat tofu for the protein, I try to avoid soy if I can. Especially soy milk.

wow is this really true? I have it in my family, so shoudl I stop drinking it?

bio_fit

Actually, soy raises estrogen, which then can trigger breast cancer and other cancers in women. I have a family history of cancer, so although I do occasionally eat tofu for the protein, I try to avoid soy if I can. Especially soy milk.

wow is this really true? I have it in my family, so shoudl I stop drinking it?

Some studies also state that the phytoestrogens in soy can have no effect, or indeed decrease the risk of breast cancer. It's one of those things where doing your own research and coming to your own conclusions might be best!

hdlb123

There is no clear answer on this topic. There is research that shows its safe to consume, thee is research that shows its ok to consume in moderation, and then more research that shows you should never consume it. Everyone is going to have a different experience/perspective on it.

For our family personally, it is used in cereal and nothing else. Our pediatrician told us that no one, especially children should ever drink soy milk, but because its hard to digest, not because of the other issues attached to it. But then on the other side of things our regular family doctor says its fine and that my son should be on it over rice milk.

SoDamnHungry

I've heard that soy can promote breast cancer by increasing your estrogen levels. Not sure how true that is...

chocolate_moose

My thyroid issues started well before I started eating tofu. Unless you're buying local, grass fed, non medicated meat and chicken, the meat you're eating isn't any better for you. Most of the food we get these days isn't the same as what we had growing up. Even the grains are frankengrains.

Health_Gal

I am not sure what to think about the soy controversy, but am using coconut milk as much as possible instead of regular milk now. It tastes really good and as far as I know, there is no controversy about it being unsafe