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friend AND foe

Introduction

Soy can be found in almost every product on your grocery store shelves -- corn chips, ice cream, canned tuna and every packaged food you can think of. It goes under names like yeast extract, soy protein, soybean oil, soy lecithin and soy flour.

But soy is one of the top eight allergens that cause immediate reactions such as coughing, sneezing, runny nose, hives, diarrhea, difficulty swallowing and anaphylactic shock.

Delayed allergic responses can also occur several hours to several days after the food is eaten.

According to Mannie Barling and Ashley F. Brooks-Simon on the Blogger News Network:

"To make soy more appetizing, the manufacturers add sugar, synthetic sweeteners, genetically modified high fructose corn sugar, refined salt, artificial flavorings, colors and MSG. So the soy isn't really soy. It is a Frankenfood created for the sole purpose of making a profit from health conscious people trying to live a healthier life.".

VIDEO AT END OF ARTICLE

What You Need to Know About Unfermented Soy

First and foremost, unfermented soy -- the type found in soymilk, soy burgers, soy ice cream and even tofu -- is not a health food.

If you were to carefully review the thousands of studies published on soy, I strongly believe you would reach the same conclusion as I have -- which is, the risks of consuming unfermented soy products FAR outweigh any possible benefits..

Dr. Kaayla Daniel, author of The Whole Soy Story, points out thousands of studies linking soy to malnutrition, digestive distress, immune-system breakdown, thyroid dysfunction, cognitive decline, reproductive disorders and infertility -- even cancer and heart disease.

Reasons to Avoid Unfermented Soy

If you're eating soy because you believe it is healthy, please do yourself and your family a favor and read through the list that follows, and click on some of the links below at the end of this article. Watch the video (only 12-min). You'll quickly see that soy, in its processed form, is not a food you want in your body.

91 percent of soy grown in the US is genetically modified (GM)

The genetic modification is done to impart resistance to the toxic herbicide Roundup. While this is meant to increase farming efficiency and provide you with less expensive soy, the downside is that your soy is loaded with this toxic pesticide. The plants also contain genes from bacteria that produce a protein that has never been part of the human food supply.

GM soy has been linked to an increase in allergies. Disturbingly, the only published human feeding study on GM foods ever conducted verified that the gene inserted into GM soy transfers into the DNA of our gut bacteria and continues to function. This means that years after you stop eating GM soy, you may still have a potentially allergenic protein continuously being produced in your intestines.

Even more frightening is the potential for GM soy to cause infertility in future generations, which has been evidenced by recent Russian research.

Soy contains natural toxins known as “anti-nutrients”

Soy foods contain anti-nutritional factors such as saponins, soyatoxin, phytates, protease inhibitors, oxalates, goitrogens and estrogens. Some of these factors interfere with the enzymes you need to digest protein. While a small amount of anti-nutrients would not likely cause a problem, the amount of soy that many Americans are now eating is extremely high.

Soy contains hemagglutinin

Hemagglutinin is a clot-promoting substance that causes your red blood cells to clump together. These clumped cells are unable to properly absorb and distribute oxygen to your tissues.

Soy contains goitrogens

Goitrogens are substances that block the synthesis of thyroid hormones and interfere with iodine metabolism, thereby interfering with your thyroid function.

Soy contains phytates

Phytates (phytic acid) bind to metal ions, preventing the absorption of certain minerals, including calcium, magnesium, iron, and zinc -- all of which are co-factors for optimal biochemistry in your body. This is particularly problematic for vegetarians, because eating meat reduces the mineral-blocking effects of these phytates (so it is helpful -- if you do eat soy -- to also eat meat).

Soy is loaded with the isoflavones genistein and daidzein

Isoflavones are a type of phytoestrogen, which is a plant compound resembling human estrogen. These compounds mimic and sometimes block the hormone estrogen, and have been found to have adverse effects on various human tissues. Soy phytoestrogens are known to disrupt endocrine function, may cause infertility, and may promote breast cancer in women.

Drinking even two glasses of soy milk daily for one month provides enough of these compounds to alter your menstrual cycle. Although the FDA regulates estrogen-containing products, no warnings exist on soy.

Soy has toxic levels of aluminum and manganese

Soybeans are processed (by acid washing) in aluminum tanks, which can leach high levels of aluminum into the final soy product. Soy formula has up to 80 times higher manganese than is found in human breast milk.

Soy infant formula puts your baby’s health at risk

Nearly 20 percent of U.S. infants are now fed soy formula, but the estrogens in soy can irreversibly harm your baby’s sexual development and reproductive health. Infants fed soy formula take in an estimated five birth control pills’ worth of estrogen every day.

Infants fed soy formula have up to 20,000 times the amount of estrogen in circulation as those fed other formulas!

The best way to eliminate non-fermented soy from your diet is to avoid all processed foods and instead purchase whole foods that you prepare yourself. If you do buy packaged foods, you can check the label to see if it contains soy.

Here is just a sampling of the health effects that have been linked to unfermented soy consumption:

• Breast cancer.

• Brain damage.

• Infant abnormalities.

• Thyroid disorders.

• Kidney stones.

• Immune system impairment.

• Severe, potentially fatal food allergies.

• Impaired fertility

• Danger during pregnancy and nursing.

Veg Soy Alternatives:

You can still eat some tofu and soy products---just do it in moderation. Switch-up a bit, and use some other food alternatives instead of relying only on soy as the bedrock of your veg-alternative diet. As we often need those quick and delicious Veg alternatives, like milk, cheese, chicken nuggets, pizza, etc..., there are non-soy products out there to fill the gap.

• Almond Milk is closest to soy. If you like it lighter, like skim milk, try Rice Milk, if you like it bolder, try Hemp Milk or Oat Milk.

• Daiya® Cheeseis made from the Tapioca plant, not soy. It is used in the better restaurants as a veg cheese because it melts, stretches, and tastes the most like 'real' cheese.

• Quorn® productsfor alternatives to chicken, turkey, meatballs, burgers, and roasts --Quorn® products are made from mycoproteins (think mushrooms), not soy, and actually match the real thing even better than their soy alternatives. (NOTE: Quorn® products are vegetarian, but not Vegan, as they use a small amount of egg and dairy in their products)

• Tofurky® Pizzas now use Daiya® cheese, look for the label with a cheese wedge that says MELTS! (see pic above)

• Add more FERMENTED SOY products to your diet, such as:

NATTO--a fermented 'loose' soy bean(see pic above)

TEMPEH-- fermented 'caked' soybean (see pic above)

MISO--fermented soybean paste that can make a broth. available in dark or light color, and strong or light flavor.

BRAGGS LIQUID AMINOS®--soy sauce with extra amino acids

NAMA SHOYU®--totally RAW and unadulterated soy sauce --the absolute king of soy sauces and flavor!