Guest guest Posted December 9, 2004 Report Share Posted December 9, 2004 Hi, The reason I was asking about the Tofu is because I read that consuming Tofu may lead to chronic deficiencies in amino acid uptake. Has anyone heard this or this is false information. If so, it may be why so many of us are deficient in amino acids. After all, there are so many of us are consuming soy products for health benefits. The all-new My – What will yours do? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 9, 2004 Report Share Posted December 9, 2004 Hi, m m wrote: > The reason I was asking about the Tofu is because I read that consuming > Tofu may lead to chronic deficiencies in amino acid uptake. Every strong advantage has disadvantages. Yin Yang. As an example Tofu is known to be useful for treating diabetes, so there are implications for the body, but most people can ignore the implications with a balanced diet. Some claim that such chronic deficiencies from eating tofu lead to mental impairment. But I don't deal with mentally impaired chinese all the time. (Either that or they must have been pretty danged smart before clever westerners hoodwinked them into eating doufa/tofu millennia ago. <gr>) The Chinese diet is a dynamic living blend, and isolating one aspect of one food is a western nuttiness. It's like saying the amount of pure sugar that is in most catsup is okay, because it's not toxic. It's also like saying that eating whole meals of garlic or ginger or pepper might have adverse effects. bye, vic -- Vic Williams (604)433-5189 -- www.strategicprocess.com -- www.spiralwild.com Empowering personal & group ecology. KISS (Keeping It Simple and Sloppy). “That software which is flexible, simple, sloppy, tolerant, and altogether forgiving of human foibles and weaknesses turns out to be actually the most steel cored, able to survive and grow while that software which is demanding, abstract, rich but systematized, turns out to collapse in on itself in a slow and grim implosion.†-- Adam Bosworth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 10, 2004 Report Share Posted December 10, 2004 > The reason I was asking about the Tofu is > because I read that consuming Tofu may lead > to chronic deficiencies in amino acid uptake. > Has anyone heard this or this is false > information. If so, it may be why so many > of us are deficient in amino acids. After > all, there are so many of us are consuming > soy products for health benefits. Most of the claims about unfermented soy that Mercola makes I've long heard from other sources. There's a naturally occuring chemical in soy products that inhibits using an enzyme that assists us to digest protein. Is that the connection you're trying to make? The Jan.Feb. 2005 issue of " Well Being Journal " has a big VERY scary article titled " Soybeans: food or Drug? Reproduction and Soybean Cautions " . Penel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 10, 2004 Report Share Posted December 10, 2004 Soy it's virtues and it's weak points have been known for centuries. Soy is an extremely difficult food to prepare properly so that it can be easily digested. Traditional peoples solved this problem by developing techniques for making soy more digestable. Fermentation as an example solves many of these problems so many cultures have developed many food products from fermented soy. Soy is very cooling so the salt containing fermented soy foods create a completely different type of food that has a very different effect than non salt soy products. Of the non salt soy products tofu is a very popular one and although fermentation destroys such substances such as phytogens still it remains a potentialy harmful food. It is cooling - this might or might not be good. Traditionally people ate tofu in very particular ways. Example it was often eaten in summer to cool the body - the Japanese even serve very tasty dishes made from cold or iced tofu in the summer - another accomidation that was made is that in winter tofu is always prepared with garlic and ginger - frequently sauteed in the wok or baked in a clay pot so as to alter it's overly cooling quality. The modern research showing the thyroid and estrogen connections in soy explain in modern language why traditionaly people only ate fresh soy (such as sprouts or fresh shelled beans) or fermented soy products. These forms of soy have less of the offending agents. Other forms of soy were known to be harmful. It is the estrogen connection which is creating so much controversy in modern times. My suggestion is that tofu should be eaten with awareness of it's potential problems. If one is hypometabolic and the body tends toward being cold (including stomach weakness)then do not eat tofu - those with thyroid problems - thyroid defeciencies, Hashimoto's (thyroid autoimmune disease), thyroid resistance (reverse T3 syndrome) - should avoid tofu. Products made from unfermented soy powder - like soy milk - should be used with caution. Any with severe yin disorder including cancer should be careful with tofu especially the estrogen dependent cancers such as breast or prostate cancers. When eating tofu prepare with ginger and garlic. For healthy people with normal body heat tofu can be a good source of protein and can be taken in moderation. Tofu is not and never has been a staple food it has always been a side dish or accompaninment to vegetables, and or meat, and rice. If combined with ginger, garlic, and meat healthy people will not have problems even in winter. Moderation is a key idea here. If one is eating a lot of tofu and starts feeling cold then by all means cut back on tofu and that tofu which is eaten should be cooked with ginger and garlic. The problem of cold will be more relevant in non-meat eaters and in the winter. Vegetarians who tend toward cold body should be alert to any developing symptoms of cold when eating tofu - if this happens switch to other protein sources. Here are some points from the modern researchers that I found in the internet - 1. Soy products contain a number of " anti-nutrients. " Chief among them are enzyme inhibitors that block the action of trypsin and other enzymes that you need to digest protein properly. These enzyme inhibitors can cause gastric distress, interfere with protein digestion and, in animal testing, cause pathological conditions of the pancreas. These " trypsin inhibitors " are also growth inhibitors. 2. Soy is not a complete protein. It is missing methionine, which is an essential amino acid. If soy is your main source of protein, you will almost certainly not be getting enough vitamin B-12, which is hard enough for adults to absorb in any case, even from animal foods. 3. Soy contains phytic acid, which results in the reduced bioavailability of iron and zinc. 4. Soy contains goiterogenic compounds, which undermine the healthy functioning of the thyroid gland. As Dr. Harold Kristal points out, " Sub-clinical hypothroidism is already such a common health problem that caution is certainly warranted. " In addition, three further points need to be made. One: Most of the soybeans produced in the U.S. are genetically engineered, the implications of which have not yet been fully understood. Two: The healthiest soy foods are the fermented ones such as tempeh and miso, which don't have any of the problems mentioned above but aren't necessarily the ones we're eating the most of. Three: Probably most importantly, the phytoestrogens in soy -- those very compounds so touted for their health benefits -- are actually a mixed blessing. Yes, they are weaker than " real " estrogen, and yes they bind to the estrogen receptors in your body, which partially prevent the body's own estrogen from binding to those sites and possibly causing mischief. But they can theoretically help reduce the downside of estrogen (breast cancer, for example). Doesn't it make sense to consider whether that benefit might be washed away by consuming so much of the phytoestrogens that you might as well be taking the " real " thing? -- In Chinese Traditional Medicine , " hyldemoer " <hyldemoer> wrote: > > > > The reason I was asking about the Tofu is > > because I read that consuming Tofu may lead > > to chronic deficiencies in amino acid uptake. > > Has anyone heard this or this is false > > information. If so, it may be why so many > > of us are deficient in amino acids. After > > all, there are so many of us are consuming > > soy products for health benefits. > > Most of the claims about unfermented soy that Mercola makes I've long > heard from other sources. > > There's a naturally occuring chemical in soy products that inhibits > using an enzyme that assists us to digest protein. Is that the > connection you're trying to make? > > The Jan.Feb. 2005 issue of " Well Being Journal " has a big VERY scary > article titled " Soybeans: food or Drug? Reproduction and Soybean > Cautions " . > > Penel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 11, 2004 Report Share Posted December 11, 2004 > Soy it's virtues and it's weak points have been known for centuries. > Soy is an extremely difficult food to prepare properly so that it can > be easily digested. Traditional peoples solved this problem by > developing techniques for making soy more digestable. Thanks for the info on soy and tofu. It's a good post to save and study. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 11, 2004 Report Share Posted December 11, 2004 Actually, I was wondering if consumption of Tofu blocks amino acid uptake. Also, in his article he mentions that people that consume Tofu start to loose their memory because the brain starts to shrink. hyldemoer <hyldemoer wrote: Survey Please help us to improve . Take the survey now! > The reason I was asking about the Tofu is > because I read that consuming Tofu may lead > to chronic deficiencies in amino acid uptake. > Has anyone heard this or this is false > information. If so, it may be why so many > of us are deficient in amino acids. After > all, there are so many of us are consuming > soy products for health benefits. Most of the claims about unfermented soy that Mercola makes I've long heard from other sources. There's a naturally occuring chemical in soy products that inhibits using an enzyme that assists us to digest protein. Is that the connection you're trying to make? The Jan.Feb. 2005 issue of " Well Being Journal " has a big VERY scary article titled " Soybeans: food or Drug? Reproduction and Soybean Cautions " . Penel Post message: Chinese Traditional Medicine Subscribe: Chinese Traditional Medicine- Un: Chinese Traditional Medicine- List owner: Chinese Traditional Medicine-owner Shortcut URL to this page: /community/Chinese Traditional Medicine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 11, 2004 Report Share Posted December 11, 2004 Thanks for yours response. I was very worried after reading about Tofu on Dr. Mercolas' site that I have been consuming it for so long and that it could cause the problems with amino acid uptake and also lead to mental impairment thus have problems with anxiety as a result as well. Maria Vic Williams <vic wrote: Hi, m m wrote: > The reason I was asking about the Tofu is because I read that consuming > Tofu may lead to chronic deficiencies in amino acid uptake. Every strong advantage has disadvantages. Yin Yang. As an example Tofu is known to be useful for treating diabetes, so there are implications for the body, but most people can ignore the implications with a balanced diet. Some claim that such chronic deficiencies from eating tofu lead to mental impairment. But I don't deal with mentally impaired chinese all the time. (Either that or they must have been pretty danged smart before clever westerners hoodwinked them into eating doufa/tofu millennia ago. <gr>) The Chinese diet is a dynamic living blend, and isolating one aspect of one food is a western nuttiness. It's like saying the amount of pure sugar that is in most catsup is okay, because it's not toxic. It's also like saying that eating whole meals of garlic or ginger or pepper might have adverse effects. bye, vic -- Vic Williams (604)433-5189 -- www.strategicprocess.com -- www.spiralwild.com Empowering personal & group ecology. KISS (Keeping It Simple and Sloppy). “That software which is flexible, simple, sloppy, tolerant, and altogether forgiving of human foibles and weaknesses turns out to be actually the most steel cored, able to survive and grow while that software which is demanding, abstract, rich but systematized, turns out to collapse in on itself in a slow and grim implosion.†-- Adam Bosworth Post message: Chinese Traditional Medicine Subscribe: Chinese Traditional Medicine- Un: Chinese Traditional Medicine- List owner: Chinese Traditional Medicine-owner Shortcut URL to this page: /community/Chinese Traditional Medicine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2004 Report Share Posted December 12, 2004 m m <swes123> wrote: > Actually, I was wondering if consumption > of Tofu blocks amino acid uptake. Reread Vinrod's posting. Proteins are made of amino acids. Penel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2004 Report Share Posted December 12, 2004 Soy beans (dry) and soy flour have high levels of phytic acid which interferes with protein digestion - but tofu does not have much phytic acid. The last is rediculous as some of the most brilliant people in the world eat tofu regularly. Where in the world did you hear about tofu shrinking the brain? This is funny. By the way people with small brains do not have poorer memory than anyone else - if so men in general would have better memories than women or big people better memories than small people - size of the brain has nothing to do with memory. Tofu has been eaten by countless people throughout history and by millions now. Tofu is a food that human beings have great knowledge and experience of - it like many foods has it's down side but even with that people have learned to make an important element of diet out of it. In the Zen monasteries of Japan men and women of great spiritual and intellectual achievment eat tofu as a major protein source. Don't worry about tofu unless you have hypothyroid or estrogen problems. Chinese Traditional Medicine , m m <swes123> wrote: > > Actually, I was wondering if consumption of Tofu blocks amino acid uptake. Also, in his article he mentions that people that consume Tofu start to loose their memory because the brain starts to shrink. ] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2004 Report Share Posted December 12, 2004 <snip> > Don't worry about tofu unless you have > hypothyroid or estrogen problems. Perhaps not with tofu itself. There's a limit to how much tofu the average person is willing to eat. I can't say the same of soy milk. Some of that stuff is so sweet its more of a candy drink. Many products are fortified with soy isoflavoids. In that article in Jan/Feb 04 " Well Being Journal " they quote one researcher stating (back in 1984) they'd thought Asians were consuming 150-200 mg per day when really it was closer to 15-30 mg per day. He mentions a new cohort study in Japan where the average intake is 6- 8 per day. (it occurs to me that that more recent study might reflect a shift in culture.) Some soy beverages claim to offer 90-160 mg per serving. Penel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 13, 2004 Report Share Posted December 13, 2004 Thanks. I read about this while visiting the Mercola.com site. I regularly get email from them. vinod3x3 wrote: Soy beans (dry) and soy flour have high levels of phytic acid which interferes with protein digestion - but tofu does not have much phytic acid. The last is rediculous as some of the most brilliant people in the world eat tofu regularly. Where in the world did you hear about tofu shrinking the brain? This is funny. By the way people with small brains do not have poorer memory than anyone else - if so men in general would have better memories than women or big people better memories than small people - size of the brain has nothing to do with memory. Tofu has been eaten by countless people throughout history and by millions now. Tofu is a food that human beings have great knowledge and experience of - it like many foods has it's down side but even with that people have learned to make an important element of diet out of it. In the Zen monasteries of Japan men and women of great spiritual and intellectual achievment eat tofu as a major protein source. Don't worry about tofu unless you have hypothyroid or estrogen problems. Chinese Traditional Medicine , m m <swes123> wrote: > > Actually, I was wondering if consumption of Tofu blocks amino acid uptake. Also, in his article he mentions that people that consume Tofu start to loose their memory because the brain starts to shrink. ] Post message: Chinese Traditional Medicine Subscribe: Chinese Traditional Medicine- Un: Chinese Traditional Medicine- List owner: Chinese Traditional Medicine-owner Shortcut URL to this page: /community/Chinese Traditional Medicine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.