[Health&Healing] Soy's Thyroid Dangers

[Guest guest]

Here is another good site for " good " info........BlueWillow

 

http://www.nexusmagazine.com/soydangers.html

-

Misty L. Trepke

Monday, November 10, 2003 9:36 AM

[s-A] [Health & Healing] Soy's Thyroid Dangers

 

 

I especially do not like soy after reading, " Seeds of Deception "

which expounds on the dangers of GM foods. Soy is one of the most

genetically modified foods out there... Perhaps that is what is

causing all the problems???

Be Well,

Misty L. Trepke

http://www..com

 

Soy's Thyroid Dangers

 

http://thyroid.about.com/library/weekly/aa041202a.htm

 

Soy's Thyroid Dangers A Look at the Dangers of Soy to the Health of

Your Thyroid

by Mary J. Shomon

 

Health and nutrition magazines tout the benefits of soy as a cure-

all for women's health, hormonal problems, cancer prevention, weight

loss, and many other problems. The reality, however, is that

promotion of soy may be more a matter of business and marketing,

rathan than recommendations based on sound scientific evidence.

 

Isoflavones, the key components of soy that make them so potent as a

posible substitute for hormone replacement, mean that soy products,

while touted as foods and nutritional products -- often are used and

act as like a hormonal drug.

 

If you have a diagnosed or undiagnosed thyroid problem, or a history

of autoimmune disease, overconsumption of soy isoflavones can

potentially trigger a thyroid condition. Soy foods can worsen an

existing diagnosed thyroid problem in many people. In both cases the

symptoms such as fatigue, weight gain, and depression or moodiness

are often overlooked and hard to diagnose.

 

A recent study found that as millions of Americans -- perhaps as

many as more than 10 million -- have an undiagnosed thyroid

condition. The vast majority of thyroid patients are women over 40.

This is the same group that, responding to marketing claims that

promote soy as helping to prevent breast cancer, reducing the risk

of high cholesterol or heart disease, or as a treatment for symptoms

of menopause, are turning to soy foods and isoflavone supplements in

vast numbers.

 

Here is more information regarding soy and its relationship to the

thyroid.

 

FDA's Soy Experts Speak Out Against Soy

 

" there is abundant evidence that some of the isoflavones found in

soy, including genistein and equol, a metabolize of daidzen,

demonstrate toxicity in estrogen sensitive tissues and in the

thyroid. This is true for a number of species, including humans.

 

Additionally, isoflavones are inhibitors of the thyroid peroxidase

which makes T3 and T4. Inhibition can be expected to generate thyroid

abnormalities, including goiter and autoimmune thyroiditis. There

exists a significant body of animal data that demonstrates

goitrogenic and even carcinogenic effects of soy products. Moreover,

there are significant reports of goitrogenic effects from soy

consumption in human infants and adults. " Official Letter of Protest

to the FDA Letter of protest from researchers Daniel Doerge and

Daniel Sheehan, two of the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) key

experts on soy, to the FDA, protesting the health claims approved by

the FDA on soy products

 

America's Foremost Alternative Doctor Warns Re: Soy

 

America's leading alternative doctor, Dr. Andrew Weil, has said

about soy, at his Ask Dr. Weil website " .you're unlikely to get too

many isoflavones as a result of adding soy foods to your diet -- but

you probably will take in too much if you take soy supplements in

pill form. At this point, I can only recommend that you avoid soy

supplements entirely. " Study Shows That Too Much Tofu Induces Brain

Aging

 

From the Honolulu Star-Bulletin " A Hawaii study shows a significant

statistical relationship between two or more servings of tofu a week

and 'accelerated brain aging' and even an association with

Alzheimer's disease, says Dr. Lon White. " " ...these are not

nutrients. They are drugs. They will have some benefits and some

negative things. " Don't Go Overboard With the SoyFoods!

 

David Zava, Ph.D., a biochemist and an experienced breast cancer

researcher stated in an interview: " In studying the literature on

soy I found there are about five types of plant chemicals

[antinutrients] in the soybean that can be toxic to humans if they

are not removed by special processing. the fifth antinutrient in

soybeans is called a goitrogen. This is a chemical that latches on

to iodine, preventing it from absorbing into the body from the

gastrointestinal tract. Iodine is needed to make thyroid hormone. Low

thyroid function has been associated with poor brain development.

Anyone who has been deficient in thyroid hormone understands quite

well what impact this can have on normal brain function, especially

at a time in life as we grow older and " fuzzy thinking " creeps into

our vocabulary. " North American Menopause Society Won't Endorse Soy

Products

 

In a press statement, the North American Menopause Society has said:

" Our review found that scientific data are inconclusive regarding

whether the observed health effects in humans are attributable to

isoflavones alone or to isoflavones plus other components in whole

foods. women may wish to consume whole foods that contain

isoflavones, especially for potential cardiovascular benefits.

However, scientific data supporting the use of isoflavones for hot

flashes are conflicting, and inadequate data exist to evaluate their

effect on breast and other female cancers, bone mass and vaginal

dryness. Our evaluation also pointed out that a level of caution

needs to be observed, especially in the use of isoflavone

supplements, powders and pills.More studies documenting benefits and

safety need to be conducted.''Research Shows Soy's Effects

 

 

American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 68, 1431S-1435S,

" Effects of soy-protein supplementation on epithelial proliferation

in the histologically normal human breast " -- Study showed that

short-term use of dietary soy stimulated breast cell proliferation,

which can increase the risk of breast cancer.

 

Anti-thyroid isoflavones from soybean -- November 1997 article from

Biochem Pharmacol in which " it was observed that an . extract of

soybeans contains compounds that inhibit thyroid peroxidase- (TPO)

catalyzed reactions essential to thyroid hormone synthesis. "

 

Breast and soy-formula feedings in early infancy and the prevalence

of autoimmune thyroid disease in children. -- April 1998 article

from the J Am Coll Nutr. that documents the association of soy

formula feedings in infancy and autoimmune thyroid disease.

 

Leading Expert Warns of Soy-Thyroid Connection in Bestselling Book

In the bestselling book Living Well With Hypothyroidism: What Your

Doctor Doesn't Tell You . . . That You Need to Know, leading soy

expert Dr. Mike Fitzpatrick was profiled. " Dr. Mike Fitzpatrick is

an environmental scientist and phytoestrogen researcher who has

extensively researched the issue of soy formulas, and the impact of

soy consumption on thyroid function. Dr. Fitzpatrick introduced me

to a little-known fact that can have substantial impact on people

with hypothyroidism and the population in general -- overconsumption

of soy products has the potential to impair thyroid function. Dr.

Fitzpatrick is so concerned that he is calling for soy formula

manufacturers to remove the isoflavones -- the agents that are

most active against the thyroid -- from their products. .. There are

also concerns for adult consumption of soy products. One UK study

involving premenopausal women gave 60 grams of soy protein per day

for one month. This was found to disrupt the menstrual cycle, with

the effects of the isoflavones continuing for a full three months

after stopping the soy in the diet. Another study found that intake

of soy over a long period causes enlargement of the thyroid and

suppresses thyroid function. Isoflavones are also known to modify

fertility and change sex hormone status, and to have serious health

effects -- including infertility, thyroid disease or liver

disease -- on a number of mammals. Dr. Fitzpatrick believes that

people with hypothyroidism should seriously consider avoiding soy

products, and predicts the current promotion of soy as a health food

will result in an increase in thyroid disorders. " Soy Researcher is

Even 'Very Concerned'

 

" 'There's a tendency in our culture to think if a little is good,

then a lot's better,' says Mary Anthony, a soy researcher at Wake

Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, N.C. 'But I

personally am very concerned about isoflavone pills and soy protein

supplemented with extra isoflavones.' Isoflavones, after all, seem

to act like hormones or drugs in our body--even if for regulatory

purposes they are classified as nutritional supplements. " (From " In

Light of Troubling Study on Soy, Moderation Seen as Key, " LA Times ,

Monday, March 27, 2000)