Are claims by advertisers that soy is a healthy option true? Is it good for your health? Does it benefit your heart and lower your cholesterol? Is it a healthier option compared to meat and dairy? Or is soya bad for you?
Is Soy Bad For You – black mark no. 1
In common with other beans, the soya bean contains phytic acid, this is normal for beans but unfortunately it’s not very good for us. In fact soya beans contain very high levels of this compared to other beans.
With other beans you can largely get rid of this by soaking and rinsing before you cook and eat them. This doesn’t work with the soya bean, even after extensive processing this stuff is still present.
When humans eat phytic acid it reduces our ability to absorb and use things like calcium, magnesium, iron, zinc + other nutrients. This obviously isn’t healthy.
Is Soy Bad For You – black mark no. 2
The first step of processing soya beans involves soaking them in large vats of hexane (a chemical found in petrol/gasoline). Hexane is commonly used to extract oils from seeds and vegetables by large commercial oil processing plants.
The hexane helps with the separation of the oil, protein and fibre which makes up the bean.
The oil is destined for things like soya spreads. The protein will be used to make things like tofu and other meat substitutes.
How do you know if all of this hexane is removed before you eat it?
It isn’t, and it has been shown in independent labs that it can still be present in small amounts.
Is Soy Bad For You – black mark no. 3
Until recent times soy was considered unfit for human consumption. Modern chemical processing methods created by big business, and a fortune spent on advertising, has convinced many of us that soya is the healthy option.
But the fact is all soya products are highly processed. In common with all highly processed foods they contain numerous toxic compounds that cause disease in humans when eaten regularly for a long period of time.
What’s good about it?
The black marks could go on and on. But what’s good about soya products? They are cheap to make, and make the food industry tons of money, but that’s about as far as the good points go.
Do your health a favour and avoid this highly refined and processed abnormal chemical plant food – yuk!
Until next week
Uber (soya-free) Health to you
Dr Julie 🙂
Omg I’m so confused with this article now x
Hi Diana.
Tell me what you’re confused about so I can explain it better.
Hi Julie,
I’m also confused.
As I understand it, soya is used as an alternative. Does it depend on the reason it is being used as an alternative determine whether it is a healthy option?
In the question posed at the beginning of your article (Is it a healthier option compared to meat and dairy?), could you please provide details on this issue?
Please also quote the sources of your information (including that provided in this article).
Hi
Let’s use soya milk as an alternative to diary.
I used to think this was a healthier alternative and would only drink soya milk. But I started to question that when I looked at the ingredients. There’s all sorts in there, most of which I didn’t recognise, so that concerned me.
As I looked into it more I found out the soya bean has been hugely genetically modified, there are large health concerns here too (not just with soya).
It’s an interesting question if you ask what’s healthier between soya milk and cows milk, because neither are natural in the human diet. Humans didn’t have either before agriculture became common. However, one is a natural thing and the other is a highly processed product.
If you would like to find out more about this have a look at the info on The Western A Price Foundation’s site. Also Nora Gedagaudas is a brilliant resource to find out loads more.
There are benefits of soy! I learned about them in my plant bio class. Taiwanese people drink SO much soy. It’s a classic breakfast drink. My grandma owned her own breakfast shop and made soy milk fresh for her customers. But I don’t get soy that’s highly processed. The soy milk we get is fresh. It is made like any other bean/nut milk. You soak the beans in water for hours to induce sprouting and release the acids, then you drain it and wash it, then you use the soymilk machine which is pretty much like a masticating juicer or something similar. Or you blend it up and strain it with a soymilk bag which is the same as a nut milk bag. I don’t believe it’s bad for you! Though I refuse to drink those carton soy milks, because of how delicious and fresh it is in Taiwan. But I also refuse to drink those carton almond milks after making my own. I love tofu too..silky beautiful tofu. I think what you wrote about soy doesn’t really hold in Asian countries!