| Soy Science: Studies and Speculations |
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| Written by Kiki Hubbard | |
| Wednesday, 16 July 2008 | |
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Now here’s something I’ve always been curious about: Does eating too much soy pose a risk to your health? I’ve read theories that soy causes brain damage and cancer; it can lead to kidney stones and pregnancy problems. But is the science there? A new study from Britain and Indonesia made me think about this again. It found that eating a lot of tofu led to worse memory (dementia), while eating a lot of tempe (fermented soy) could improve memory. What’s unclear is whether the harmful effects are due to soy isoflavones or toxic additives used as preservatives, like formaldehyde (used in Indonesia). Isoflavones are phytoestrogens that have “weak estrogen-like action” in the human body. Like many studies, this one seems to leave researchers with more questions than answers. For example, tempe has high levels of phytoestrogens, but because it’s fermented, it has high folate levels that may express protective properties. Oh, and did I mention that fruit was also positively linked to dementia? I’m not concerned just yet. Source: Food Quality News |
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