Adverse effects of Soy

[Zack]

Do you have any? I'm not allergic, but I bought some soy protein powder to test how it affects my body. I have noticed trouble remembering things, and decreased mental acuity, especially today at work. I'm not a big consumer of soy, but wanted to test it out. I've read about that happening. Do you have any negative effects?

Edited February 25, 2007 by Zack

[Trev]

Some granulated soy protein messes my stomach right up - almost like I ate dairy accidentally, but not quite as bad physically or emotionally. I've never had a problem with soy milk, tofu or miso tho. I don't eat very much soy at all. Kinda' scary that it's affecting your brain. Could also be the source of the soy product - is it organic? GMO? Soy is one of the biggest GMO crops in the world, most of it going to animal feed and soy lecithin which is in nearly every highly processed "food" product.

 

I just stick with Vega, or organic hemp protein.

[Jessifly]

When I stopped eating meat and started eating meat alternatives about 5 years ago or so I used to have tons of negative effects from eating soy, mostly digestive issues/stomach pains but the worst was getting shaky and jittery with problems breathing after consuming soy products. I talked to a doctor about it and obviously I has an intolerance/allergy to it. He advised me to slowly work soy into my diet. I tried doing that and now I can eat soy with almost no problems (except in really large quantities). Funny thing is after all that work to be able to eat it I'm now trying to work soy products out of my diet because I just don't feel my best after a soy meal plus I don't even care for meat alternatives anymore. I guess I should have listened to what my body was saying from the beginning!

Edited February 25, 2007 by Jessifly

[Odidnetne]

I personally prefer hemp protein. I've never tried soy protein powder, but I definitley think hemp is the superior product and I feel good using it.

[CollegeB]

How long did it take to start affecting your memory zach?

[Zack]

How long did it take to start affecting your memory zach?

 

Not long, a week or so? Could have been something else, but as soon as I started doing the isolates, it happened, didn't really experience it with tofu or whole food soy products, but I still don't want to habitually consume them.

[bighead]

soy beans leach aluminum from the soil. in fact all beans do this. but soy is unique because the plants don't cycle it back out the way that other beans do. so soy has one of the highest levels of aluminum of any edible plant.

 

and aluminum affects memory. it goes straight across the blood brain barrier and takes months to leave the system. it has been linked to alzheimer's in several european studies.

 

granted, eating soy will not give you the kind of dose of aluminum that drinking from aluminum cans or cooking in aluminum pans will, but it is still a likely cause of you're noted decrease in mental acuity.

 

or you could be allergic. the symptoms you describe happen to me if i eat anything with egg in it. i'm pretty damn allergic to soy, too, but my allergy is different. i break out in a rash and get acne (which i otherwise never have). i get a lot of phlegm and mucous. and i also often get cold-like symptoms.

 

you shouuld also be aware of the phytoestrogens in soy. they will work against your own natural hormone balance. google this, as there are numerous websites that explain what happens to the hormones. you will find those that say the opposite. that the small amount of phytoestrogens in soy is not enough to cause a change, the way taking an actual estrogen supplement might. but there are also the theories that in small enough amounts, your body doesn't notice it and, therefore, doesn't do anything to stop it. (the same theory has been proven true of pesticides and petrochemicals)

 

and that is my tuppence.

[Guest]

I seriously doubt soy does this in terms of aluminum as I have eaten so much soy I should have a block of aluminum in my head...these studies are done in rediculous inedible concentrations...basically if I stopped eating anything else and ate 8000calories worth of soy a day I may have these side effects...also if your not alergic the side effects would take long periods of time to kick in...the same way as smoking causing cancer

[andgbr]

I seriously doubt soy does this in terms of aluminum as I have eaten so much soy I should have a block of aluminum in my head...these studies are done in rediculous inedible concentrations...basically if I stopped eating anything else and ate 8000calories worth of soy a day I may have these side effects...also if your not alergic the side effects would take long periods of time to kick in...the same way as smoking causing cancer

 

maybe you just don't remember that you had these side effects..

[wannalift]

you shouuld also be aware of the phytoestrogens in soy. they will work against your own natural hormone balance. google this, as there are numerous websites that explain what happens to the hormones. you will find those that say the opposite. that the small amount of phytoestrogens in soy is not enough to cause a change, the way taking an actual estrogen supplement might. but there are also the theories that in small enough amounts, your body doesn't notice it and, therefore, doesn't do anything to stop it. (the same theory has been proven true of pesticides and petrochemicals)

 

and that is my tuppence.

 

 

okay, so why hasn't this theory been proven true of soy? people have been saying this for years and no one ever produces any sound evidence to support it. hormones levels aren't that difficult to measure. of course this could be beyond the threshold of measurement and that should give you answer right there. if its a question of funding the study, i'm sure meat lobyists would write a blank check to take this from theory to fact. stop spreading trash theories about soy that are not backed up by sound medical studies or definitive scientific evidence.

[CollegeB]

It has been said on the forum that if indeed this phytoestrogen theory is true the body only has so many estrogen receptors for these estrogens to tie up. You must also account for the fact that phytoestrogens are estrogen mimicers and not actual estrogen so the effects are most likely different than if you were on some hormone therapy.

[bighead]

everything you guys say is true. (though veganpotter's claim about aluminum blocks in his head isn't true. )

i don't see where the argument is.

i even said that other foods contain phytoestrogen.

 

the thread was started because someone wass asking about adverse effects of soy, so i listed a bunch possible side effects with their possible causes.

 

you can eat all the soy you want. but if you wouldn't drink cow milk with hormones in it, why do you drink soy that has phyto-hormones in it?

 

 

honestly, why can't we just hook pregnant women up to milking machine, bottle their human milk, and sell it at the store. they could even offer milk from vegan women who only ate organic and certify it as organic!

[wannalift]

you can eat all the soy you want. but if you wouldn't drink cow milk with hormones in it, why do you drink soy that has phyto-hormones in it?

 

probably because mammal estrogens and plant "estrogens" have a completely different biochemical makeup. one of them actually has effects on one's body (suspected early onset of menstruation for young girls, and others) and the other has never (and i mean ever) been proven to have any negative effects (estrogen related).

[Last of the Sane]

I eat lots and lots of soy, including isolates, and I feel great. Both physically and mentally

[Rob]

Soy is one of the top food allergies so a lot of people are sensitive to it. But you'll have to differentiate that with other things that you are consuming with the soy. For example, if you're eating processed soy products (soy meat, soy milk) with carrageenan in it, and you're getting a stomach ache, it's most likely the carrageenan which lines the stomach and is linked to stomach discomfort and certain cancers. But if you're eating edamame, and you feel sick, then there's a good chance it's the soy.

[Zack]

Didn't notice it until I started using soy protein isolate.

[HealthyElijah]

Here is a quotation from John Robbins website. http://foodrevolution.org/what_about_soy.htm

 

 

The Okinawa Japanese, the longest living people in the world, average 1-2 servings of soy each day. They have traditionally eaten regular but moderate amounts of whole soyfoods such as tofu, soymilk, and edamame, as well as the fermented versions, tempeh, tamari, and miso. These are the soyfoods that I prefer to eat - rather than the soy products made with soy protein isolates, soy protein concentrates, hydrolyzed soy protein, partially hydrogenated soy oil, etc.. Whole soyfoods are more natural, and are the soyfoods that have nourished entire civilizations for centuries.

 

Stick more to the whole food and we will all be fine!

[divadolce]

I agree with Elijah...the Western market has been bombarded with various soy products along with a general assumption that soy is a miracle food and that soy=healthy. Any benefits of soy come in moderation and from unprocessed natural whole food sources like the actual edamame pods.

 

Taken from Natalia Rose's Raw Food Detox book: "Soy is the most mucus-forming plant food on the planet. It creates mucoid matter - a sticky, sludge-like substance that holds up the body's flow and productivity. It accumulates and creates respiratory distress in asthmatics, creates common digestive problems like IBS, and by slowing down the body's digestion and circulation systems, ultimately triggers weight gain and premature aging."

 

I have stopped drinking soymilk and switched to occasional raw nutmilks instead. Also, after doing some digging, I made it my own personal choice to eat less protein. (Also, at the time, I was doing Body For Life, which IMO suggests super-excessive protein.) Even if you are building muscle, we are led to believe that we need far more protein than we actually do. (Go check out The China Study.)

 

If you're looking for more protein there's always nuts,seeds, fruits, and veggies...or try some sprouts. The best source of protein will always be the simple natural whole food kind.

[Guest]

I think soy in mass is fine if you take it well just like anything else. I used to eat 5-10 blocks of tofu nearly every single day and never felt ill from it. If I weren't trying to keep losing weight I'd still be doing that today. Lots of people in Asia eat large amounts of soy(processed and unprocessed) and don't suffer ills from the soy they eat...with maybe high sodium as the main problem from MSG and soy sauce.

[sugapablo]

Soy has concerned me for quite some time. I've read some VERY scary stuff about it. Obviously, I've used lots of soy in my diet for years now (been vegetarian for over 10 years) but I've decided to treat it as a "sometimes" food for now until I can find more definitive information.

 

This article was the first to catch my attention:

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/author25.htm

 

But a quick Google search for "soy danger" brought up a ton of results.

 

Seitan has become a great new friend of mine.

[Guest]

I think the fact that the Chinese have been eating soy for thousands of years without ill is fact enough...more fact than the studies paid for by the pro-meat lobby...as for the seitan you'll find a ton of studies saying how bad gluten is too but lots of people have been living on lots of gluten for very long periods of time.

[wannalift]

i'll echo what potter said. why can't we just stick with the facts instead of pondering over unproven theories. i've gotten super strong (near 500 lb squatter and deadlifter @181) by getting a vast majority of my protein from soy. 'nuff said.

[cubby2112]

I agree with Potter on this. It has been eaten for so long without negative effects, so a few new studies are rather inconsequential. There isn't much reason to be afraid of consuming a couple servings of soy in whole form. Supplemental form I can see how one might be concerned over, as they are new; but really, unless you have thyroid problems or fall under a few other specific categories, there isn't much evidence to any ill effects of consuming soy even in isolated protein form.