Myth??: Soy

I think there are a lot of people out there who blindly believe what is being said about the 'health benefits' of soy. I am not convinced. Years ago, while reading The Maker's Diet by Jordan Rubin, I came across an interesting paragraph on soy. He was breaking down the benefits (extremely few) and downsides of the Vegetarian Diet.

"In Asia, soy products are never used as a primary food! There are used as condiments or in traditionally fermented forms. Unfermented soybeans and soy products are high in phytic acid, an antinutrient that carries minerals out of the body. Vegetarians are known for their frequent mineral deficiencies. The high phytate content of grain and legume-based diets is to blame. Processed soy products are rich in trypsin inhibitors, which inhibit protein digestion! Some recent researtch indicates that soy's phytoestrogens (or isoflavones) could be causative factors in breast cancer, penile birth defects, infantile leukemia, and depressed thryoid function. They have caused infertility in every animal species studied so far!"

Interesting, isn't it?? All of the research I can find supports and adds on to this. I have found other research claiming that soy can cause brain damage, lower sperm count, memory loss, and more. I strongly believe that it's wrong to feed infants soy formula. I can't even begin to comprehend why people would think that soy would be a great alternative just because their infant is allergic to dairy (which is another story all in itself). I found some research on that as well and was surprised to learn that an infant exclusively fed soy formula receives the estrogenic equivalent (based on body weight) of at least five birth control pills per day. Five!!! Per Day!!! Are you getting this people!! Add to this the alarming amount of estrogen and growth hormone found in the human body due to the meat industry and you are looking at disaster most commonly found in the form of cancer!!

Soy was only ever used by the Orient when fermented. The Chinese did not eat the soybean as they did other legumes because they knew that soybeans contain harmful substances.

Do a little research of the history of the soybean (I found this website by Thomas McPherson Brown M.D. helpful among others) and how it was used and why there is so much hype about it. You might be surprised to learn that it's all for money - as most everything in the 'health' industry is. Decide for yourself. Is the soybean for your health? There is so much information out there and I encourage you to go find it. Other resources you might find interesting on this subject are:
The Hidden Dangers of Soy by Dianne Gregg
The Whole Soy Story by Kaayla T. Daniel