SOY - friend or FOE? Maternal exposure in pregnancy increases female breast cancer risk?

Quite the discussions, they are getting rather heated sometimes. More than that, lots of research. The best forms for health are the fermented forms, used for thousands of years. However not so valuable ayurvedically we can undertand, right after birth or when "sattwa" is particularly important to build. Reviewing studies on this or that my awareness tends to go also to the pieces they did not control for or eveluate in some way which Ayurveda recognizes - temperature of the soy used, freshness, digestive factors in individual system or body type, amount eaten, food combining habits in general (many natural foodists like I did, explore some not so healthy food combining as part of our freedom from old ways and practices, as part of finding a lifestyle that may work better for us and fit our belief structures). So that said, I believe we can still gain from this kind of discussion below -

Dr. Mercola's recent posts on his website bring much interesting discussion. Check this out if you are into the science side of it:

What’s So Wrong With Soy?

Unlike the Asian culture, where people eat small amounts of whole soybean products, western food processors separate the soybean into two golden commodities--protein and oil. And there is nothing natural or safe about these products.

Says Dr. Kaayla Daniel, author of The Whole Soy Story,

“Today's high-tech processing methods not only fail to remove the anti-nutrients and toxins that are naturally present in soybeans but leave toxic and carcinogenic residues created by the high temperatures, high pressure, alkali and acid baths and petroleum solvents."

Dr. Daniel also points out the findings of numerous studies reviewed by her and other colleagues -- that soy does not reliably lower cholesterol, and in fact raises homocysteine levels in many people, which has been found to increase your risk of stroke, birth defects, and yes: heart disease.

Other common health problems linked to a high-soy diet include:

* Thyroid problems, including weight gain, lethargy, malaise, fatigue, hair loss, and loss of libido
* Premature puberty and other developmental problems in babies, children and adolescents
* Cancer
* Brain damage
* Reproductive disorders
* Kidney stones
* Weakened immune system
* Severe, potentially fatal food allergies

Most soy, perhaps about 80 percent or more, is also genetically modified, which adds its own batch of health concerns.

Despite these findings, many people still want to believe the hype, thinking that these studies must somehow be wrong. But the content of soy itself should be a clue. For example, non-fermented soy products contain:

* Phytoestrogens (isoflavones) genistein and daidzein, which mimic and sometimes block the hormone estrogen
* Phytates, which block your body's uptake of minerals
* Enzyme Inhibitors, which hinder protein digestion
* Hemaggluttin, which causes red blood cells to clump together and inhibits oxygen take-up and growth
* High amounts of omega-6 fat, which is pro-inflammatory

excerpt from 10/06 or 07/08 www.mercola.com article on problems with Soy.

Oncol Rep. 1999 Sep-Oct;6(5):1089-95. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10425307?dopt=Abstract
Related Articles, Links

Maternal exposure to genistein during pregnancy increases carcinogen-induced mammary tumorigenesis in female rat offspring.

Take care,
Ysha