Benefits of Soy
Soy Product Information

Informative articles are provided you below on the benefits of Soy, soy relative to weight management, clinical studies on soy in the diet, and more.

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Soy & Your Health
Weight Loss & Soy
Clinical Studies on Soy
Harvard Study: Soy Counteracts Metabolic Syndrome

Soy & Your Health Soy foods have played an important role in the traditional diets of many regions throughout the world for many centuries. Soy contains protein, calcium and isoflavones. Soy protein is extracted from soy bean. The soy bean is one of the very few plants that provide a complete protein source (40% protein). Soybeans contain the essential amino acids that form what is known as a complete protein. The body cannot synthesize essential amino acids, they must be obtained from food. Soy foods have become more widely available in the Western culture. Extensive research has confirmed that we need to consume less fat and more fiber. The soy bean provides high-quality protein and is relatively low in fat content. It also contains other macronutrients carbohydrates, fats and micronutrients, fiber, minerals and vitamins which make soy beans an excellent and complete source of food for human consumption. Soy is also a unique dietary source of many phytochemicals (naturally occurring compounds in plants), the most well known and thoroughly studied of them are isoflavones. Regular consumption of soy in Southeast Asian populations is associated with the reduction in the rates of certain chronic health conditions like cardiovascular disease. Recent experimental evidence suggests that phytochemicals, i.e. isoflavones in soy are responsible for its beneficial effects which may also help in enhancing bone health. Soy foods can also be a great source of nutrition for women, children and simply a good food for all ages to enjoy both its taste and health benefits. Important Note From DrSoy: This website is meant to educate and help you eat well to achieve optimum health. The information in this website should not be used as an alternative to appropriate medical care. - article courtesy of drsoy.com   Weight Loss & Soy Weight Loss And Weight Management Soy protein snacks are popular weight loss alternative. They are known to be an effective and healthy meal replacement. The fact is that soy protein is healthy and it is effective at lowering cholesterol. Soy protein should be consumed in food format to be effective. Snacks made out of soy protein are a convenient way of adding soy to your daily diet. The facts about soy protein By nature soy is a low-calorie, low-carbohydrate food. Iowa State University’s recent research has identified two key properties of soy protein that are effective in weight loss independent of calorie content. Soy has natural occurring phytochemical that contribute to the weight loss. Consumption of soy protein containing these naturally occurring Isoflavones decreases fat accumulation while increasing muscle mass. Research has indicated that soy helps reduce the amount of fat that is stored in your body. Soy helps your body to convert fewer calories into fat from the food that you consume. Soy protein can also control insulin levels therefore reducing the frequency of sugar cravings. Soy is a low-glycemic index food. Soy reduces the insulin fluctuations keeping the sugar craving to a minimum. The body will feel more satisfied and less hungry. This will also reduce the overindulgent eating due to sugar cravings and give the dieters an opportunity to succeed in their goal of losing weight. Soy enhances building muscle mass. Muscles burn energy during daily activities and exercise. Increased muscle mass burns more calories. Soy can enhance energy levels. Soy increases the speed at which the fat cells burn the fat stored in the body. Soy protein affects your metabolism. · Isoflavones in soy will help reduce the body stored fat · Consumption of soy protein helps build muscle mass while reducing body fat · The build-up muscle mass burns more energy (calories) · Soy is a low-glycemic index food · Soy balances the insulin level and reduces sugar cravings · Soy provides the body with more energy Many Clinical Studies in the past 20 years including one recent from The New England Journal of Medicine indicate: • People with increase body-mass index (BMI) with different levels of excess weight and obesity, have an increase risk of heart failure. • Soy protein may help with obesity and heart health. • Soy has inherent weight management benefits. • Soy has Food and Drug Administration (FDA) - supported heart health benefits. • Including Soy foods and beverages in consumers' healthy diets is one simple change that may help lower body weight and overall BMI to prevent health risks associated with heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol. • When consumed as an alternative to foods high in saturated fat (i.e. meat and other animal protein), soy can be helpful in maintaining a healthy weight and reduction body fat in people who exercise, stated Belinda Jenks, Ph.D., sports nutrition and obesity research expert at DuPont Protein Technologies. • The National Institutes of Health, The National Heart, Blood and Lung Institute, and the North American Association of the Study of Obesity recommend that diets for weight loss should contain plant-based (i.e. soy) and lean animal protein. As a nutritionally rich plant-based protein, soy fits well with this recommendation. Soy is an excellent protein to eat when trying to manage weight.   - Belinda Jenks, Ph.D. • Research shows overweight or obese individuals whose diets are rich in soy protein have a reduced level of blood LDL (bad) cholesterol. • Lower LDL cholesterol is associated with a reduction in risk of coronary heart disease. • In 1999, the U.S. FDA approved a health claim that links consumption of soy to improved heart health. • "The positive news related to the health benefits of soy in the past few years have set the stage for conitnued popularity of soy foods. However, what has truly made soy so popular today is the availability of so many great tasting soy foods and snacks familiar to American taste and lifestyle. After all, very few of us are willing to sacrifice the experience and pleasure of eating for health, as a child once taught me, when it comes to food, taste is not negotiable. If you have not tried this new generation of great tasting soy foods, give it a chance; you are in for a pleasant surprise", says Ari Babaknia, M.D. the Chairman of DrSoy Nutrition. - article courtesy of drsoy.com     Clinical Studies on Soy It is crucial that the health claims attached to these products be substantiated in well-designed, double-blind clinical trials that have well constructed placebo-controlled parallel designs. Products containing soy protein and isoflavones are currently involved in multiple clinical studies evaluating their effectiveness in all aspects of health benefits of soy. DrSoy brand of soy foods and snacks are the products of choice in 8 of such clinical trials. DrSoy products have been chosen for these trials because they are tasty and the volunteers in these studies are willing to eat them on a regular basis for a long period of time (2 to 3 times a day and sometimes for a period of 2 years or more). These studies are as follows: •Dietary soy protein and breast cancer risk factors reduction. •Dietary soy protein and lean body (muscle) mass formation. •Soy as a preferred protein in patients with diabetes and kidney disease. •Soy and menopausal health (cardiovascular, bone, symptoms). •Soy's isoflavones potential role in uterine fibroid size reduction. •Soy's role in serum lipid regulation. •Soy the right protein for long term weight loss. •The use of soy protein in patients on kidney hemodialysis. - article courtesy of drsoy.com     Harvard Study: Soy Counteracts Metabolic Syndrome 2007-03-29 - United Soybean Board - ST. LOUIS, March 28, 2007 /PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Obesity. High blood pressure. Abnormal cholesterol levels. Most of us intuitively recognize these as warning signs for health problems. Combine these risk factors in individuals with insulin resistance, however, and the cluster becomes metabolic syndrome -- a precursor to heart disease and type-2 diabetes. Now, new research co-authored by the Harvard University School of Public Health shows that adding soy to the diet may improve many problems associated with the metabolic syndrome above and beyond that of a healthy diet without soy. The study evaluated both soy protein and soy nut consumption among postmenopausal women living with metabolic syndrome. Soy protein and soy nuts each exhibited a beneficial effect on components of the syndrome, but soy nuts had the strongest impact, perhaps because they provided soy protein as well as polyunsaturated ("good") fat and contained a higher amount of soybean isoflavones. How much should we worry about metabolic syndrome? The condition afflicts up to 30 percent of the industrialized world's population, and will likely affect 50 to 75 million Americans by the year 2010. Alarmingly, this syndrome increases risk of heart disease by two to four times that of the normal population, and increases risk of type-2 diabetes by nine to 30 times. Research also suggests the metabolic syndrome may play havoc with the kidneys, liver, ovaries, ability to sleep and even dementia. Published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the Harvard study, which was co-authored by researchers at Shaheed Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in Iran, used a randomized crossover design involving 42 Iranian postmenopausal women. All subjects consumed each of three different diets for eight week periods: a healthy diet that had previously been demonstrated to lower blood pressure, the same diet in which soy protein replaced the original protein source or the same diet in which soy nuts replaced the protein source. The results showed that all three diets lowered LDL ("bad") cholesterol but the decreases were significantly greater in the diets containing soy. Even more impressive, the soy-containing diets markedly improved insulin resistance, a hallmark of the metabolic syndrome. In this case, soy nuts had a greater effect than soy protein. Dr. Mark Messina, a nutritionist and noted soyfood expert, commented, "The results of this study confirm the well-recognized role of soyfoods in reducing cholesterol levels and provide new evidence that soyfoods can potentially help millions of individuals with the metabolic syndrome by improving insulin resistance." About the United Soybean Board: The United Soybean Board is a farmer-led organization comprised of 64 farmer-directors. USB oversees the investments of the soybean checkoff on behalf of all U.S. soybean farmers. For more soy and health information, please visit: soyconnection.com Soy Glossary You might be interested in the Soy Glossary & Terminology which explains: Soy Health & Nutrition Benefits Soybean Oil Soyfoods Soybean Processing Techniques Food Biotechnology URL: http://www.talksoy.com/pdfs/Soy%20Glossary.pdf - courtesy of The United Soybean Board

NutritionGeeks - Supplements at the prices you want, with service you wouldn't expect. 100% Soy Isolate Chocolate a Best Seller from Sci Fit Soy Isoflavone's have many astounding health benefits: Epidemiological data indicate that consumption of soy (isoflavones) is particularly associated with reduced risk of breast, lung and prostate cancers, as well as leukemia.1 Problems associated with menopause, including osteoporosis, also appear to be favorably affected by higher intakes of soy products and by soy isoflavones specifically. The "hot flashes" that some menopausal women experience are significantly reduced in some who consume soy products and/or soy isoflavones. These benefits have been demonstrated in randomized, double blind studies.2 Animal, in vitrio and human studies have provided further support for the epidemiological studies. Soy proteins were shown to lower blood plasma levels of cholesterol in animal models of hypercoleterolemia, and, subsequently, a meta analysis of human studies has more recently established that soy (isoflavones) consumption is significantly associated with reduction in plasma cholesterol levels in humans, as well. These effects are largely attributed to the isoflavone components of soy.3 1. Physicians' Desk Reference for Nutritional Supplements, p420 2. PDR, p420 3. PDR, p420 Healthy Diet Meal Plans Bay Bridge Fitness NutritionGeeks Soy Protein Isolate Unflavored from NOW a Best Seller Ingredients: Soy Protein Isolate (yeilding 90% protein) Other Ingredients: None Contains No: sugar, salt, starch, yeast, wheat, gluten, corn, milk, egg or preservatives. Suggested Use: As a dietary supplement, mix 1/4 cup of soy protein powder into at least 8 ounces of water, milk or juice. Add fruit and ice, if desired, and blend.