The multiple hazards of soy consumption

Now I've posted about this before, but more and more articles are coming out about the hazards of soy...soy is only safe for consumption when it is fermented. Here is another great article to share, read on....

    Another unsolved puzzle is whether soy foods play a different role in the body than do soy supplements. Some say straight soy beats supplements any day, while others point to the shocking prevalence of GMO soy. And if you follow anything GMO-related, you know that it never leads to good news or healthy outcomes. Several reports say as much as 99 percent of soy has been genetically modified, and most soybean plants are treated with a high level of pesticides.

    Does that mean organic soy is the way to go? Possibly, but here are some more soy-related facts that should give you pause.

• Soy is high in something called phytic acid, which blocks the absorption of minerals like calcium and magnesium. That's one reason third-world countries with grain- and legume-based diets (and thus high phytic acid levels) tend to have widespread mineral deficiencies.
• Soybeans have toxins that are so powerful, they're not destroyed during cooking. Many of the toxins are known as enzyme inhibitors, which complicate your ability to digest protein. In one study, animals that consumed enzyme inhibitors ended  up developing pancreatic problems, including pancreatic cancer. Yikes!
• Soy products tend to have higher-than-normal levels of aluminum, which is known to have negative health effects. It comes from aluminum tanks where the beans are washed and heat-treated. I don't think this is a major worry, but I toss it out there for your consideration.

    This brings us back to the Asia question, and why Asian cultures have been safely consuming soy for thousands of years. One theory is that they only began soy consumption after they figured out how to ferment it; before that, they avoided soybeans because of the toxins.

    Fermentation makes the nutrients in soy more available on a biological level while destroying their natural toxins. Fermented soy foods include natto, miso, and tempeh. But the downside to those foods is that they're high in sodium. Again, I don't feel this is a major worry, but if you think you're salt sensitive, you need to know it.

    The evidence I've seen for fermented soy is highly favorable. I see it as healthy food to eat, with benefits in treating and preventing a variety of diseases including cancer and heart disease.

When in doubt, don't eat it

    Other than fermented, soy is a minefield. I don't eat it — in defiance of my integrative doctor, a smart man who continues to believe soy is a healthy food. It's just about impossible to reach any definite conclusions about it. That's enough reason to avoid it.