Not a recipe but I hope this is OK - Soy Dangerous?

[Guest guest]

If this is not OK to discuss please just let me know.

 

Since I became vegan I have started to eat soy. Soy is not a HUGE part of my diet but we eat it. I have been harrassed by a so called friend who is warning everyuone on the dangers of soy. You read it everywhere. Does anyone know if these claims are true and if not can they direct me to non-biased web sites? Should I stop eating soy??

 

If this should not be on the list PLEASE email me OFFLIST and help me. Thank you!

[Guest guest]

I've read the articles too and been 'warned ' by well meaning friends and family so I checked it out online and talked to my DR about it so for what its worth here's what I learned .... my understanding is that basically the problem with soy is its ability to interfere with pituitary function - primarily in people with existing low / abnormal thyroid production and also for people who have digestion problems since soy can be very difficult to digest ( in addition to being 1 of the most common food allergies ! ) . Soybeans are also high in phytic acid or phytates my Dr was concerned about this because it can block the bodies absorption of calcium , zinc and magnesium - since I have low bone density at 38 due to years of high dose prednisone treatment I take a daily Calcium , magnesium and zinc supplement (its 1 tablet that contains the 3 )

soy is taking such a big bite out of the dairy industry these days the concern medically seems to be for these risk groups and for people who consume large amounts of soy daily -I'm allergic to dairy and cannot imagine giving up soy !

 

http://thyroid.about.com/cs/soysdownsides/

 

teresa

 

If this is not OK to discuss please just let me know.Since I became vegan I have started to eat soy. Soy is not a HUGE part of my diet but we eat it. I have been harrassed by a so called friend who is warning everyuone on the dangers of soy. You read it everywhere. Does anyone know if these claims are true and if not can they direct me to non-biased web sites? Should I stop eating soy??If this should not be on the list PLEASE email me OFFLIST and help me. Thank you!

[Guest guest]

GeekGoddessMama wrote:

>Since I became vegan I have started to eat soy. Soy is not a HUGE part of

>my diet but we eat it. I have been harrassed by a so called friend who is

>warning everyuone on the dangers of soy. You read it everywhere. Does

>anyone know if these claims are true and if not can they direct me to

>non-biased web sites? Should I stop eating soy??

 

I've found conflicting information about this. I did some digging a few

weeks ago after a nutritionist warned me that soy is not a good source of

protein (even though it contains a lot of protein). I was focusing on

digestibility, rather than other possible problems. The nutritionist (very

hostile to vegetarianism, for what it's worth) said that protein from soy

is not easily digested and absorbed by the body, and that animal protein

(from eggs or whey) is better. But when I researched this for myself, I

found that some sources said that soy was easily digestible. For example,

it scores well on the Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score

(PDCAAS) standard for evaluating protein, which is used by the US Food and

Drug Administration and the WHO. On the other hand, several web sites

reported that it is a relatively indigestible food. I finally gave up when

I realised that both sides were basing their arguments on the results of

animal experiments. If I ever need to decide whether to feed soy to rats,

I'll go back and read their papers, which will then be of some value to me.

 

One thing to be aware of with soy is that it is very often genetically

modified if purchased in the USA. As I currently live in the US, I always

buy organic soy products in order to avoid GM soy.

 

Gerry

[Guest guest]

Lady Dragonfly, thanks for the info! I guess I should have been more specific. This particular person was talking to me about soy as a danger to kids because high levels of estrogen and she believes the soy caused her to have a thyroid problem and a vaginal cyst on her daughter because she consued soy while pregnant. I tell her I consumed soy while preg with my last daughter and we both are fine.

[Guest guest]

There are things about soy that you may or may not be aware of.

 

Yes, soy is digestible, very and in a form like tofu or soy milk. In the

bean, beans being beans, it can be a gassy problem (though nothing like a

pinto bean) and some people have difficulty with digestion of them.

 

Tofu is a great source of protein, BUT it takes larger quantities than meat,

about three to one. An ounce of meat contains about the same protein as

three ounces of tofu. This is great if you are in your middle years and

love to eat and want to avoid being overweight, but if you are a child, this

is problematic for you. Children need a greater number of calories,

especially protein, to grow on, but their stomachs are smaller than an

adults.

 

So many parents will feed their children vast amounts of empty starch in the

preschool years, impairing brain development, energy levels and calm

behaviors. You know, Cheerios, crackers, cookies, toast, noodles. They

fill up on things that are not going to help them achieve their potential.

If you have a vegetarian child, you have to be very careful. Yes, they need

soy, especially liquid soy because it is quickly processed and the protein

is available and it is not as likely to " fill up " their stomachs for long.

They need loads of fruits and vegetables, WHOLE grains like whole wheat

pasta (never white refined grains) and homemade whole wheat bread. Beans

are a wonderful choice for a child with a high concentration of protein and

vitamins that can be mashed, put in soups, stews and chilis, burgers and

yes, even just plain!

 

There is nothing wrong with tofu for meals and it is so versatile, it is

just a gift to the vegan diet, but as the only source of protein in daily

meals, no, not a good idea.

 

Now, please remember that silken tofu can make puddings, salad dressings,

ice creams and can be used to replace eggs in baked goods like whole wheat

banana bread and dessert bread with vegan chocolate chips. I serve silken

tofu ranch dressing to my kids with a platter of raw veggies. You can make

a fruit dipping sauce with maple syrup and vanilla. You would not believe

how fast apple slices will disappear with this treatment.

 

I am writing a vegan cookbook " Great American Cooking " with the word " vegan "

pointing up between the American and the Cooking.

 

The Lady Dragonfly

www.geocities.com/dragonflypaper

www.geocities.com/mtshoebox

[Guest guest]

That is a scream! There are HIGH LEVELS of estrogen in flesh, especially

beef and poultry, they feed it to them!!! Plant estrogen is very different.

 

She has her head up a certain orifice....

 

 

The Lady Dragonfly

www.geocities.com/dragonflypaper

www.geocities.com/mtshoebox

[Guest guest]

Thanks to EVERYONE who is supplying me with this info. This friend of mine has convinced another friend of ours that soy is bad and I tried my hardest to tell her it isn't as bad as it's hyped but I wanted to be sure since there is so much bad about it. She pointed me to a site where this woman use to be a huge soy advocate and is now against soy to try to prove this theory but I am not convinced.

[Guest guest]

At 03:29 PM 7/19/2002 -0400, GeekGoddessMama wrote:

>

>Since I became vegan I have started to eat soy. Soy is not a HUGE part of my

>diet but we eat it. I have been harrassed by a so called friend who is warning

>everyuone on the dangers of soy

 

http://www.foodrevolution.org/what_about_soy.htm

 

Article by John Robbins on soy-bashing by the dairy industry and its shills (my

words, not his).

[Guest guest]

Actually, I've heard the concerns about soy and estrogen levels too.

It did make me wonder somewhat, considering soy products are used to

control menopausal symptoms in women and therefore must have a pretty

good effect on estrogen levels and hormones. I don't think you can

say how wonderful soy is for its effect on women's systems on one hand

and then on the other say that it would have no effect on us or our

children's bodies, KWIM? I've also heard concerns about cow's milk

being a concern for children (specifically girls) because the cows are

so pumped full of hormones that there have been theories that it is

speeding up puberty for girls.

 

Quotes like this didn't help: " And in fact, two glasses of soy milk a

day, over the course of a month, contains enough of the chemical to

change the timing of a woman’s menstrual cycle. " (From the ABC news

article linked below, talking about a chemical in soy that mimics

estrogen).

 

I personally decided that the key to anything is moderation. Soy is a

part of our diet but not a huge part. My girls drink fortified soy

milk but they also get calcium from other sources. We eat some tofu

but tend to rely more on beans and peanut butter and whole wheat bread

for protein. Too much of anything has the potential to throw things

out of whack.

 

Here are some articles on possible risks of soy and how credible they

may be. These are from different sources with different conclusions,

to balance things out. The last one has actual recommendations for

how much is appropriate.

 

http://nutrition.about.com/library/weekly/aa040700a.htm

http://abcnews.go.com/onair/2020/2020_000609_soy_feature.html

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A61649-2001Jan29?language=printer

 

There was also an article about what types of soy products are good

and bad in a vegetarian mag I get. I think it's " Vegetarian Times " ?

It's VT and the article appeared a couple of months ago. I found it

helpful. It talked about what to look for on the label and the

difference in what different types did for your body.

 

You may want to counter your friend with some of the very good

evidence on the link between dairy products and cancer, including

breast cancer. Check out the August 2000 issue of Discover magazine

for a really comprehensive study in some sobering links between dairy

and both cancer and osteoporosis (long term studies showed it

*increased* osteoporosis and fractures!). I'd also look into

notmilk.com for lots of anti-dairy stuff.

 

Unfortunately, there seems to be evidence out there that everything

has the potential to do something dire with the right set of

circumstances. It can get discouraging. I think the key is to

educate yourself on who's at risk with what and then just maintain a

balance in your family's diet.

 

--

Alicia

 

A Magical Childhood

http://www.magicalchildhood.com

 

" The best way to make children good is to make them happy. "

- Oscar Wilde

[Guest guest]

Change a woman's cycles????

 

Well, here is one for you. I drink in excess of that amount of soy milk

everyday. I am 42, facing a rather early menopause and doing VERY WELL. I

am the only woman I know who has no fibroids, no cramps, no irregularity.

This is in the face of changing levels of hormones on blood tests, but the

absence of problems. I have hot flashes some if I don't keep up on the soy

products, but that is IT.

 

Thank God because I already suspected what they have said about HRT this

week. On top of that, you all DO know that Premarin stands for pregnant

mare urine PRE MAR IN. That they keep a mare pregnant and confined so as to

retrieve her urine. They remove and destroy her foul on its arrival,

artificially inseminate ASAP and start the process all over again. After

three or four of these, they have to kill the mare because she is stressed

out and/or crazy. It is very, very ugly.

 

Pair this with the growing trend of castrating younger and younger women

(total hysterectomy IS castration)because their cycles are " inconvenient " or

uncomfortable and put them on hormones so that they feel well. Menopause is

a NATURAL occurrence. You have to know that a complete hysterectomy is the

#2 surgery in America and follows closely on the heels of the C section.

Both women's surgeries.

 

There is a time when these are necessary and I know that, but consider that

only about 5-10% of hysts are for cancer.

 

The Lady Dragonfly

www.geocities.com/dragonflypaper

www.geocities.com/mtshoebox

[Guest guest]

Hi,

 

I am not sure if we are allowed to dicuss things, or is it just

recipes here, anyway...

 

On Sat, Jul 20, 2002 at 10:08:08AM -0600, L Dragonfly wrote:

>

> Thank God because I already suspected what they have said about HRT this

> week. On top of that, you all DO know that Premarin stands for pregnant

> mare urine PRE MAR IN. That they keep a mare pregnant and confined so as to

> retrieve her urine. They remove and destroy her foul on its arrival,

> artificially inseminate ASAP and start the process all over again. After

> three or four of these, they have to kill the mare because she is stressed

> out and/or crazy. It is very, very ugly.

>

 

Thank you for bringing this terrible industry to the notice of the group,

I wish I could tell the whole world about it. Not only do they do

the things you say but also they stop the mares from drinking when

they are thirsty as they want the urine to be stronger.

 

May they rot in hell ( err is that vegan!

 

Persian