The Soy Nutrition Institute provides information, research, and discussion about the benefits of soy to your health.
There is good reason to encourage clinicians to recommend isoflavones for women who experience hot flashes and wish to avoid hormone therapy, despite the limitations of research, as noted below. Isoflavones may be more potent than selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) at alleviating menopausal hot flashes. That was the conclusion of a group of Chinese […]
Actress Blake Lively says she got in shape for her new movie The Shallows by giving up soy and gluten. The 28-year-old actress, best known for her role as Serena van der Woodsen on the CW network’s teen drama Gossip Girl, began filming her new bikini-clad surfer role just months after giving birth to a […]
The June 2016 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) includes a new meta-analysis of clinical trials on isoflavones and hot flashes.1 The study concluded that both “composite and specific phytoestrogen supplementations” were associated with modest reductions in the frequency of hot flashes and vaginal dryness. Past analyses in medical journals haven’t […]
Hundreds of studies published over the past 25 years have quantified soy intake among Asian populations using food frequency questionnaires and, to a lesser extent, dietary records. The research clearly shows that non-fermented foods like tofu and soymilk play as big a role as fermented soy products. In some parts of Asia, these non-fermented soyfoods […]
Next year will mark the 50th anniversary of the first clinical study demonstrating the hypocholesterolemic effect of soy protein. Although it was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, this study by Hodges et al.1 did little to draw attention to soy protein. The finding was actually serendipitous since the focus of that research […]
Despite their long history in Asian cuisine, there is plenty of confusion about how much soyfoods people in China, Japan and other Asian countries consume. A quick search of the internet brings up claims that soy is used condiment-style in this part of the world with most people consuming as little as a tablespoon of […]
A recent paper in Food Chemistry suggested that isoflavone intake in Western countries might be greatly underestimated because dietary intake assessments don’t capture the “hidden” soy protein in many foods.1 This soy protein isn’t exactly “hidden.” Soy protein appears on the ingredient lists of commercial food product labels and is specifically noted on the federally-mandated […]
Absorption of minerals from soyfoods is of considerable research interest. Because soyfoods often replace animal foods in the diet, there are questions about how they compare as sources of iron, zinc, and calcium. Milk and cheese are important sources of calcium in American diets, providing more than 40% of intake.1 Beef provides about 25% of […]
Genetically modified (GM) foods generate a lot of heated discussion about safety and product labeling. Given that 94% of the soybeans grown in the United States are GM, these discussions, not surprisingly, usually include soybeans.1 Opinion polls since 1992 show an overwhelming majority of the American public support GM food labeling.2 However, polls also show […]
Soybean isoflavone supplements have no adverse effects on the breast or uterus of postmenopausal women or on thyroid function according to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). The organization’s comprehensive report was published in October of 2015. The EFSA is comparable to the US Food and Drug Administration. EFSA’s conclusion is not surprising given the […]
Get the dish on trending topics, insights, & soy research from industry experts delivered to your inbox.
