RESEARCH IS PROMISING ON SOY�S BENEFITS
Orange County, CA Register

Some studies have hailed soy as the new miracle food. Others have touted it as a weapon in the war against breast cancer, while still others call it a powerful natural estrogen, able to help women weather the effects of menopause.

“Soy protein brings more to the table than any other food,” says David Heber, director of the Center for Human Nutrition at the University of California at Los Angeles, which recently had a seminar on the latest focus about soy -- the isoflavones found in soy protein.

Soy isoflavones may be a key mechanism in fighting diseases such as heart disease, breast cancer and prostate cancer, researchers believe.

What can be tough for consumers right now, Heber says, is that most soy products don’t list the amount of isoflavones in the nutritional breakdowns -- and from product to product, levels can vary widely.

As research continues, his advice is to work soy into a low-fat diet, one that is plant-based. (Soy, of course, is a plant-based food.)

He also recommends consuming two servings of soy a day.

For Mark Messina, a nutritionist and proponent of soy, the most promising of the soy studies are the ones showing its positive effects on menopausal symptoms.

Some studies have found women who consume a diet high in soy experience a reduction of hot flashes.

“I think we need bigger studies for the effects (of soy) on disease and bones,” Messina says, “but it would be reasonable for a (menopausal) woman to try soy and see if it’s effective.”

The best part about the growing interest in soy foods, he says, is that people want to try soy.

“There’s a real window of opportunity. More people are starting to ask questions, and even if it turns out the isoflavones are a bust, there�s the nutritional profile of soy -- it�s high protein and low cholesterol.�

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