soy

[fishcat]

Confused About Soy?--Soy Dangers Summarized

• High levels of phytic acid in soy reduce assimilation of calcium, magnesium, copper, iron and zinc. Phytic acid in soy is not neutralized by ordinary preparation methods such as soaking, sprouting and long, slow cooking. High phytate diets have caused

Comments

[evilbusdriver]

Ok, this is rather disconcerting. I've always considered soy to be a *good* thing.

[fishcat]

Soy being healthy has been a huge campaign of misinformation. And a lot of really good hearted health food providers have been taken in just as the american public has. Soy is actually a big part of the military industrial complex and most soy products are seriously processed byproducts. Even organic soy products should be avoided. Unfermented soy in anything more than very small amounts eaten occasionally can have some serious health ramifications. Though things like tempeh, miso and natto are great. Soy need a long slow fermentation process to neutralize the it's inherent "antinutrients" (constituents that leach vitamins and minerals from the body).

bleh.
:)

[evilbusdriver]

A lot of this is stuff I didn't know. However I have spent time living in Asia where soy is a big part of the native diet of people and the health benefits I've seen are good. So what's going on here?

bleh indeed.

on a side note, i've very much enjoyed your informative food posts.

[fishcat]

i'm glad you've enjoyed them. :)

mostly what seems to be going on (from what i've read) is that people in asian countries don't eat the same amount of unfermented soy as americans. and what they do eat is in much smaller quantities (not as a replacement for animal protein). if that is changing to be more like the current american diet then those health benefits will likely disappear. there is hardly a product out there in this country that doesn't have some vestige of soy (or corn) (and that seems to be in large part due to government farm subsidies and big agra business).

http://www.frot.co.nz/dietnet/basics/soy.htm

[almareal]

re: phytoestrogens
I heard on NPR that clear plastic water bottles release a chemical similar to the estrogen our bodies produce. This is information that was released after a panel of experts researched the issue. You can probably find the information at npr.org.

[fishcat]

I've heard that too. I've given up drinking out of plastic and have bought a great stainless steel water bottle that I refill. Glass or good metal rocks. :)