Soy is not our friend

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FWD from Keith ExumBy Dr. Joseph Mercolawith Rachael DroegeIn recent years soy has emerged as a `near perfect' food, with supporters claiming it can provide an ideal source of protein, lower cholesterol, protect against cancer and heart disease, reduce menopause symptoms, and prevent osteoporosis, among other things. But how did such a `perfect' food emerge from a product that in 1913 was listed in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) handbook not as a food but as an industrial product?According to lipid specialist and nutritionist Mary Enig, PhD, "The reason there's so much soy in America is because they [the soy industry] started to plant soy to extract the oil from it and soy oil became a very large industry. Once they had as much oil as they did in the food supply they had a lot of soy protein residue left over, and since they can't feed it to animals, except in small amounts, they had to find another market."And another market was what they found. To put it simply, after multi-million dollar figures spent on advertising and intense lobbying to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), about 74 percent of U.S. consumers now believe soy products are healthy.If you're thinking the health claims surrounding soy sound too good to be true you just may be right. Soy has become another misunderstood food category, to be added to the ranks of coconut oil, saturated fats and vegetable oils. The two former have gained a negative reputation where a good one actually applies, but vegetable oil, along with soy, have emerged with sparkling reputations that cover up the truth.For just a brief look at what's really going on, consider that numerous studies have found that soy products may:Increase the risk of breast cancer in women, brain damage in both men and women, and abnormalities in infantsContribute to thyroid disorders, especially in womenPromote kidney stonesWeaken the immune systemCause severe, potentially fatal food allergiesSoy products also contain:Phytoestrogens (isoflavones) genistein and daidzein, which mimic and sometimes block the hormone estrogenPhytates, which block the body's uptake of mineralsEnzyme Inhibitors, which hinder protein digestionHaemaggluttin, which causes red blood cells to clump together and inhibits oxygen take-up and growthFurther, most soybeans are grown on farms that use toxic pesticides and herbicides, and many are from genetically engineered plants. When you consider that two-thirds of all manufactured food products contain some form of soy, it becomes clear just how many Americans are consuming GM products, whose long-term effects are completely unknown.Perhaps the most disturbing of soy's ill effects on health has to do with its phytoestrogens that can mimic the effects of the female hormone estrogen. These phytoestrogens have been found to have adverse effects on various human tissues, and drinking even two glasses of soy milk daily for one month has enough of the chemical to alter a woman's menstrual cycle. The FDA regulates estrogen-containing products, however no warnings exist on soy. Two senior toxicologists with the FDA. Daniel Sheehan and Daniel Doerge, have even come out saying "The public will be put at potential risk from soy isoflavones in soy protein isolate without adequate warning and information." Soy is particularly problematic for infants, and soy infant formulas should be avoided. It has been estimated that infants who are fed soy formula exclusively receive five birth control pills worth of estrogen every day.There are some redeeming qualities to soy, however these are found primarily in fermented soy products like tempeh, miso and natto and soybean sprouts. If you want to get some health benefits from soy, stick to these four forms and pass up the processed soy milks, soy `burgers', soy `ice cream', soy `cheese', and the myriad of other soy junk foods that are so readily disguised as health foods.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Soy Myth Exposed: Soy is Not a Health FoodNot too long ago, soy foods were on the fringes of Americans' grocery lists. They were thought of as "hippie" foods or even food for those in impoverished countries. So how, then, did soy foods grow from an $800 million industry in 1992 to a $4-billion one in 2003?Because, after a heavy marketing campaign from the soy industry, Americans are largely convinced that soy is the miracle food to fight everything from cancer to heart disease to hot flashes--and a slew of other illnesses in between. Some 200 million Americans, many who may have once turned their noses up at the mere thought of soy anything, are now eating soy in record amounts and in newly created, highly processed forms: soymilk, soy burgers, soy energy bars, soy ice cream, soy cereal, soy meat--you name it, there's probably soy in it.~~~~~~~SIDEBARhttp://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0967089751/optimalwellnesscThe Whole Soy StoryIn The Whole Soy Story, you'll find:The real reasons why soy is NOT a health foodShocking personal accounts of real people whose healthand lives were put at risk from eating soy productsHard evidence linking soy to malnutrition, digestiveproblems, thyroid dysfunction, cognitive decline,reproductive disorders, immune system breakdowns--evenheart disease and cancerThat soy has NEVER been proven safe, and learn thetruth about how misleading propaganda played a hugerole in how it became so popular in AmericaGet more critical advice about the dangers of soy as author Dr. Kaayla Daniel shares her insights in this exclusive interview with Dr. Mercola.The Whole Soy StoryIf the health claims surrounding soy sound too good to be true, it's because they are. This important issue is the premise behind Dr. Kaayla Daniel's groundbreaking book, The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America's Favorite Health Food. This powerful exposé reveals the truth about the soy myths that have infiltrated our culture. In it, you'll learn that:Soy is not a health foodSoy is not the answer to world hungerSoy is not a disease-preventive panaceaSoy has not even been proven safeIt's ironic that soy has become so accepted as a health food when, as Dr. Daniel states, thousands of studies link soy to malnutrition, digestive distress, immune-system breakdown, thyroid dysfunction, cognitive decline, reproductive disorders and infertility--even cancer and heart disease. But by the end of Chapter 3, The Ploy of Soy, you'll understand why the soy marketing campaign worked so well.Reading on you'll learn all about the different types of soy, the macronutrients in soy, the ANTInutrients in soy, heavy metals in soy, soy allergens, soy and cancer, and soy estrogens and the way they wreak havoc on your hormones.This latter issue is one of the most crucial and serious, as millions of Americans feed soy formula to their infants. In The Whole Soy Story, Daniel explains how the estrogens in soy can irreversibly harm the baby's future sexual development and reproductive health. She exposes and discusses these important, yet little known, facts about soy that would have any parent up in arms (if, that is, they were to read this book to find out the truth):Soy impedes the sexual maturation of boys (p. 335)Soy accelerates the sexual maturation of girls (p. 339)In newborns, the hormonal effects of soy may be irreversible (p. 333)The average daily dose of soy estrogens in soy formula (38mg) is higher than the amounts that cause thyroid problems and endocrine disruption in adults (p. 334)You'll also learn that some soy products are, in fact, good for you--but only certain types and in limited quantities. Daniel discusses the steps a soybean must go through before it becomes edible, and then healthy, in Chapter 5.Some of my favorite parts in this book, aside from the extensive reference section at the end, are the revealing testimonials included throughout. You'll read about an avid runner who developed thyroid damage after adding more soy products to her diet (p. 322), a 9-month-old baby girl (fed soy formula) who showed signs of puberty (p. 348), and a natural bodybuilder whose libido plummeted after he switched his protein intake to pure soy protein isolate (p. 367), just to name a few.Who should read this book? Everyone who has the slightest interest in protecting and preserving their health, but especially those who:Buy into the myth that soy is healthyEat soy as their primary source of proteinAnyone who feeds soy to their infants with soy formulaIf you are a prospective parent who plans to take advantage of this opportunity to protect your child's future reproductive healthAlso, if you are considering using soy as a treatment or preventive measure for menopause symptoms, osteoporosis, cancer, heart disease or any other condition--read this book first! The information it contains is invaluable and something you won't find anywhere else.The Whole Soy Story sends a much-needed wakeup call to Americans: The highly processed soy foods we eat today are not natural or healthy, and they're harming our health--not helping it. This book is a necessity and an essential read before you take your next bite, drink or pill of soy (believe me, by the time you finish this book, you'll have lost your appetite!).~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Soy is making kids 'gay'worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=5332There's a slow poison out there that's severely damaging our children and threatening to tear apart our culture. The ironic part is, it's a "health food," one of our most popular.Now, I'm a health-food guy, a fanatic who seldom allows anything into his kitchen unless it's organic. I state my bias here just so you'll know I'm not anti-health food.The dangerous food I'm speaking of is soy. Soybean products are feminizing, and they're all over the place. You can hardly escape them anymore.I have nothing against an occasional soy snack. Soy is nutritious and contains lots of good things. Unfortunately, when you eat or drink a lot of soy stuff, you're also getting substantial quantities of estrogens.Estrogens are female hormones. If you're a woman, you're flooding your system with a substance it can't handle in surplus. If you're a man, you're suppressing your masculinity and stimulating your "female side," physically and mentally.In fetal development, the default is being female. All humans (even in old age) tend toward femininity. The main thing that keeps men from diverging into the female pattern is testosterone, and testosterone is suppressed by an excess of estrogen.If you're a grownup, you're already developed, and you're able to fight off some of the damaging effects of soy. Babies aren't so fortunate. Research is now showing that when you feed your baby soy formula, you're giving him or her the equivalent of five birth control pills a day. A baby's endocrine system just can't cope with that kind of massive assault, so some damage is inevitable. At the extreme, the damage can be fatal.Soy is feminizing, and commonly leads to a decrease in the size of the penis, sexual confusion and homosexuality. That's why most of the medical (not socio-spiritual) blame for today's rise in homosexuality must fall upon the rise in soy formula and other soy products. (Most babies are bottle-fed during some part of their infancy, and one-fourth of them are getting soy milk!) Homosexuals often argue that their homosexuality is inborn because "I can't remember a time when I wasn't homosexual." No, homosexuality is always deviant. But now many of them can truthfully say that they can't remember a time when excess estrogen wasn't influencing them.Doctors used to hope soy would reduce hot flashes, prevent cancer and heart disease, and save millions in the Third World from starvation. That was before they knew much about long-term soy use. Now we know it's a classic example of a cure that's worse than the disease. For example, if your baby gets colic from cow's milk, do you switch him to soy milk? Don't even think about it. His phytoestrogen level will jump to 20 times normal. If he is a she, brace yourself for watching her reach menarche as young as seven, robbing her of years of childhood. If he is a boy, it's far worse: He may not reach puberty till much later than normal.Research in 2000 showed that a soy-based diet at any age can lead to a weak thyroid, which commonly produces heart problems and excess fat. Could this explain the dramatic increase in obesity today?Recent research on rats shows testicular atrophy, infertility and uterus hypertrophy (enlargement). This helps explain the infertility epidemic and the sudden growth in fertility clinics. But alas, by the time a soy-damaged infant has grown to adulthood and wants to marry, it's too late to get fixed by a fertility clinic.Worse, there's now scientific evidence that estrogen ingredients in soy products may be boosting the rapidly rising incidence of leukemia in children. In the latest year we have numbers for, new cases in the U.S. jumped 27 percent. In one year!There's also a serious connection between soy and cancer in adults – especially breast cancer. That's why the governments of Israel, the UK, France and New Zealand are already cracking down hard on soy.In sad contrast, 60 percent of the refined foods in U.S. supermarkets now contain soy. Worse, soy use may double in the next few years because (last I heard) the out-of-touch medicrats in the FDA hierarchy are considering allowing manufacturers of cereal, energy bars, fake milk, fake yogurt, etc., to claim that "soy prevents cancer." It doesn't.P.S.: Soy sauce is fine. Unlike soy milk, it's perfectly safe because it's fermented, which changes its molecular structure. Miso, natto and tempeh are also OK, but avoid tofu.