Soy - pros & cons?
Posted by NancyLee on Nov 28, 2009 · Member since Nov 2008 · 9 posts
Hi Everyne. I'm neither a vegetarian or vegan but I'm open to anything and if I can at least substitute it's a start, right? One of my big concerns is soy. I used to buy alot of soy milk but then I heard how soy can contribute to breast cancer. I also had a friend with stage 4 and she had to stop eating/drinking soy because of it's effect on her healing. (she's still with us ;)b ). I don't have breast cancer but my mother passed from it so I'm afraid to go the soy route. Anyone have any health info on this topic? Thanks
You can be vegan/vegetarian without using soy at all. I do that because it interferes with a thyroid medicine I take. I may have a soy product once a month or so. It means switching to a more whole foods diet because a lot of the analogues have soy in them. I eat: seitan, Almond or Rice milk, home made vegan cheeses, fresh/dried fruit, fresh/frozen veggies, tinned tomatoes, beans and legumes, rice/pasta/whole wheat bread/other grains, and make occasional use of nuts/seeds, vegan sweets, and oils. ~^_^~
What fufu said.
Plus, there has been no overriding conclusion by researchers and medical professionals. I've asked doctors and nutritionists and, in summary, I was told that if you eat soy, keep eating it, and if you don't eat soy, continue to not eat it. I rarely eat soy and find being vegan is easy, so being soy-free is definitely not a hindrance to a healthier diet.
There's some good info from when soy was discussed in the 'Food Fight' forum, a little while back:
http://vegweb.com/index.php?topic=18933.0
My general understanding is that unless you have specific health concerns (thyroid problems/ some types of cancer treatment), or eat only/ excessively heavily processed/ prepackaged soy foods (with lots of additives, etc.) then there don't appear to be health concerns related to soy consumption.
There have been a lot of statements thrown around about soy concerns, but less hard science supporting them... I think a lot of that comes from the meat & dairy industries, talking trash about a competitor.There's a lot of info out there-- I'd say read all you can about this, but look at who's doing the talking (i.e. who funded the research)... most soy danger claims seem to have been debunked, except maybe regarding specific health problems mentioned above.
I found this interesting reading:
http://www.bryannaclarkgrogan.com/page/page/3476771.htm#children
I take the "everything in moderation" view. I suspect soy milk on my cereal and the odd tofu dish are not going to kill me any time soon.
If you are concerned about soy, use almond milk or hemp milk. There is also coconut creamer now. There is no way I will believe that it is healthier to eat dairy, especially conventional daiy!- than to eat a soy product now and then.
If you are concerned about soy, use almond milk or hemp milk. There is also coconut creamer now. There is no way I will believe that it is healthier to eat dairy, especially conventional daiy!- than to eat a soy product now and then.
coconut creamer is the shit. stuff is so good, wish i could afford to buy it regularly. and what you said about conventional dairy is absolutely true
i have no idea if there's soy in it but i love blue cotton candy
I take the "everything in moderation" view. I suspect soy milk on my cereal and the odd tofu dish are not going to kill me any time soon.
I believe Catski just said everything I wanted to. :)
Personally I like to keep soymilk, rice milk, hazelnut milk (when I have access), and almond milk handy. I just switch between them. I really don't eat much soy anymore... except for dinner when I had some really good edamamae mmmmm
Just saw this, & thought I'd share...
http://www.webmd.com/breast-cancer/news/20091208/soy-appears-safe-for-breast-cancer-survivors.
When my mum had breast cancer, her doctors recommended that she start eating soya foods... Their rationale was that phytoestrogens might crowd out the real ones and 'starve' the cancer or something along those lines. I didn't know that the opposite was also being given as medical advice.
coconut creamer is the shit. stuff is so good, wish i could afford to buy it regularly. and what you said about conventional dairy is absolutely true
I'm practically living on So Delicious coconut milk beverages and creamer. You can get $1-off coupons for them and all of Turtle Mountain's other coconut milk products here: http://turtlemountain.com/products/coupon.html
Oh, and the best article I ever read about soy is by John Robbins. It talks about soy and breast cancer. You can read it here: http://www.foodrevolution.org/what_about_soy.htm