10 Reasons to Avoid Soy Products in Your Diet

Soy or Soya is probably the most controversial health topic and receives its fair share of supporters and haters.

But what is the reality? Should we consume Soy products in our diet or not? I'm here to clear the air about it from my experience and science-backed research.

The answer is not straightforward, but since we're dealing with science, the research shows both schools of thought are valid in some scenarios. We may want to look at both sides of things. Of course, you can follow any of the recommendations out there.

So without ado, let's learn ten reasons to avoid soy products in your diet.

1. Hormonal Imbalance:

Let's first consider the women's perspective. Soy is a phytoestrogen (estrogen from plants that are structurally very similar to human estrogen and can bind to the same receptors). The body thinks it is estrogen, so there is too much estrogen for the estrogen receptors.

As per a study, it is not healthy for women since there is an increased risk of breast cancer associated with high soy consumption. It is only one piece of information, but it's large and stands out.

For men, there was a study done that mentions soy protein consumption leads to a significant decrease in testosterone.

2. Sperm Count:

A follow-up study indicated that men consuming soy foods ended up having a low sperm count.

Why could this be happening? It is down to the estrogen binding with estrogen receptors, which is triggering the decline of testosterone. It is triggering more estrogen creation.

It goes in a circle and skews the ratio of hormonal balance in human beings.

3. Thyroid:

It is a tricky one. With soy, we see both massive increases and decreases in thyroid levels.

One study indicated that we see a decrease and T3 and T4 hormones. However, another study found that it triggers an increase. In some studies, no effects were seen with either T3 or TSH.

So what can we hypothesise? If you are hypothyroid, it can affect you negatively in that manner and if you are hyperthyroid, it can negatively affect you in that manner. The main point is that its triggering effects should not be occurring.

4. Saponins:

Soy is called an immunological adjuvant. It means that it triggers the activation of our immune system.

When this happens, we have pro-inflammatory cytokines and mediators that cascade through our bodies and cause all sorts of issues.

As per a study, it ends up increasing intestinal permeability, which means we can trigger more inflammation. The biggest problem is not they are not destroyed with heating, but that there will be an inflammatory response from the components of soy itself.

5. Soybean Oil:

Soybean oil has the highest omega-6 fatty acids. It is cheap and mass-produced. It is also hydrogenated to make it more stable (as it's unstable and pro-inflammatory) - which turns it into trans fats. You can find it everywhere - processed foods, peanut butter, chocolate, breakfast foods etc.

6. Oxalates:

Our liver naturally produces oxalic acid and it produces oxalates. What they do when they come in excess from food is that they chelate to the minerals like magnesium. They bind to them and create a bond which is unable to be broken down by enzymes. So we end up excreting them in our stool. That means that effectively we are not absorbing the minerals.

Although, it is not that bad. But when we combine it with saponins, omega-3, and other compounding effects of soy, it does create a toxic effect.

7. Phytic Acid:

It is very similar to oxalates in the way they bind to minerals strongly like magnesium, but it tends to bind to Vitamin b12.

But who is consuming an abundance of soy? It's the vegans and vegetarians.

There is already a significant deficiency of b12 in many people. So you are stuck in a situation where you are not getting enough b12 but the b12 you are getting is getting chelated by the phytic acid.

Fortunately, phytic acid is broken down in the fermentation process. So tempeh is not much of an issue.

8. Enzyme Inhibitors:

There are very powerful enzyme inhibitors within soy. They are a natural protection against parasites which they release to kill the parasite. This passes onto us too. They make it so that our enzymes are unable to do the job properly, so the pancreas has to make more enzymes to try to digest our food. It leads to added stress on the pancreas and on digestion. It can also lead to pancreatic hyperplasia (an enlarged pancreas as it's working too hard).

9. Unnatural Amino Acids:

When soy is processed, it creates a new amino acid which is unnatural - lysino alanine. It is not recognized by our bodies. Only 40% is digested and broken down. So 60% of unnatural protein is floating around in the body and could be triggering inflammation and causing digestive issues (we don't know exactly).

10. Hexane:

The solvent used to dehull the soy is used in shoemaking and furniture making to help make the process easier.

There is no real FDA regulation on how much hexane is safe in soybean (oil). For example, fish is allowed to have 5 PPM hexane, whereas soy has 21 PPM.

FINAL VERDICT:

It is best to avoid soy given the above reasons. Why would you want to consume it, if given the option?

For non-vegetarians, it is easier to get many good sources of protein like eggs, chicken, and meat. So avoiding soy is not a challenge.

However, for vegetarians and vegans, due to limited protein choices soy may be considered a (good) option. I would still recommend avoiding it but if need be, it is better to have it in fermented form.

Fermented soy contains some health benefits and can help prevent cancer, reverse heart disease, promote anti-ageing, and promote immune and digestive functions because it contains beneficial bacteria and probiotics.

Soy to Avoid:

-Soy Milk

-Processed Soy Proteins

-Soy Milk Formulas

Soy to Consume:

-Natto: contains Vitamin K2 to promote bone health, prevent cancer, and prevent blood-clotting

-Miso

-Tempeh

Data:

Soy isoflavones and breast cancer risk:

https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/109/3/597/5369466?login=false

Effect of soy protein powder supplementation in healthy males:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17416779/

Soy food intake and semen quality:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2721724/

Effects of estrogenic xenobiotics on human and mouse spermatozoa:

https://academic.oup.com/humrep/article/21/5/1184/987275

Effect of soy protein on endogenous hormones in postmenopausal women:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11756072/

Effect of Soy Phytoestrogen Supplementation on Thyroid:

https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/96/5/1442/2833679

Endocrinological response to soy protein and fiber in mildly hypercholesterolemic men:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0271531705805901

Beneficial Effects of Soy Phytoestrogen Intake in Postmenopausal Women With Type 2 Diabetes:

https://diabetesjournals.org/care/article/25/10/1709/25520/Beneficial-Effects-of-Soy-Phytoestrogen-Intake-in

Systematic Review and Meta-analysis on the Effect of Soy on Thyroid Function:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6408586/

Effect of saponin on the transmucosal passage:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0300483X96035743

Study of Saponin and Isoflavone Variability in Soybean Cultivars and Soy-Based Health Food Products:

https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf047828f

Effect of industrial trans-fatty acids:

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00394-018-1810-2

The Effects of Hydrogenation on Soybean Oil:

https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/40484

An Increase in the Omega-6/Omega-3 Fatty Acid Ratio Increases the Risk for Obesity:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4808858/

Dietary fat and health:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16387724/

Importance of maintaining a low omega–6/omega–3 ratio for reducing inflammation:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6269634/

Essential fatty acids and the brain:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12728744/

Contribution of Dietary Oxalate to Urinary Oxalate in Health and Disease:

https://journals.lww.com/topicsinclinicalnutrition/Abstract/2002/03000/Contribution_of_Dietary_Oxalate_to_Urinary_Oxalate.10.aspx

Magnesium absorption and oxalates:

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/british-journal-of-nutrition/article/fractional-magnesium-absorption-is-significantly-lower-in-human-subjects-from-a-meal-served-with-an-oxalaterich-vegetable-spinach-as-compared-with-a-meal-served-with-kale-a-vegetable-with-a-low-oxalate-content/D44B642494EA1D2F55852C8D92A9F602

Phytic acid and magnesium absorption in humans:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14985216/

Vitamin B complex and fermented soy milk:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20477889/

Effects of antinutritional factors on protein digestibility and amino acid availability in foods:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16001874/

Impact of Antinutritional Factors in Food Proteins:

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/british-journal-of-nutrition/article/impact-of-antinutritional-factors-in-food-proteins-on-the-digestibility-of-protein-and-the-bioavailability-of-amino-acids-and-on-protein-quality/052B66B8F1BA8DBBCEE94E3607A63402

Nutritional and Health Benefits of Soy Proteins:

https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf0009246

Additional Reading:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16040411-behind-the-bean

Let me know your thoughts below.