Looking for reasons to add healthy soy to your diet? Here's the top 10 reasons:
- Antioxidant. Soy has two important antioxidant components; genistein and phytic acid. Soy also blocks the formation of nitrosamines, dangerous carcinogens leading to liver cancer, better than acorbate (vitamin C) which is currently added to cured meats to protect the consumer.
- Breast Cancer. Asain women who eat a great deal more soy than Western women also have a much lower incidence of breast cancer. Also, in lab studies soy compounds inhibit the growth of breast cancer cells.
- Cholesterol Lowering. A number of studies have shown that adding soy to the diet lowers cholesterol significantly, especially in people with elevated levels.
- Hip Fractures. Based on the 50 percent lower number of hip fractures in Japanese women, the reduced amount of calcium found in urine of soy eaters, and the weak estrogen effect of soy, it is hypothesized that some property of soy may help to retain bone mass.
- Hot Flashes. Japanese women don't have a word for hot flashes. It is proposed that weak estrogen effects soothe the symptoms of the withdrawal that characterizes menopause.
- Immunity. Studies show that peptides (amino acid chains) enhance immune response.
- Kidney Disease. Soy protein is thought to be easier on the kidneys than animal protein. Thus, substituting soy protein may slow down or prevent kidney damage in people with impaired kidney function.
- Lung Cancer. At least one study (1500 subjects) shows an inverse relationship between lung cancer incidence and soy consumption.
- Prostate Cancer. Epidemiological studies and in vitro studies with genistein, an iso-flavone found in soy, indicate that soy inhibits the growth of prostate tumor cells.
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