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 […]

Soybeans play a critical role in the U.S. food supply but not in a way that is often thought. Some soyfoods are consumed directly. But mostly Americans consume soy-derived ingredients that are found in hundreds of commonly-consumed foods. Soybeans also are important in the diets of livestock on American farms. Soybeans are classified as oilseeds […]