Lifestyles Ideas Management - Good or bad?

When it comes to soya beans, tons and tons of studies being published on the effects of soya beans on human health in the last few years, it has been both celebrated and vilified.

Reduced breast cancer risk
A recent study found that eating a serving of soya bean curd or drinking a glass of milk every day reduces the risk of breast cancer in Chinese women.

Male fertility unaffected
Recent reports claiming that eating half a serving of soya-based foods a day could lower a man’s sperm count. Soya food intake was unrelated to sperm quality and male fertility
review from the Soy food Association of North America. Instead, obesity may be a cause for the low sperm concentration found in the men with high soya intakes.

Increased risk of gout and kidney stones
Soya contains oxalates which cannot be absorbed by the body and are excreted only through urine. Oxalates bind to calcium to form kidney stones which can block the urinary system. Gout is caused by the build up of uric acid in the blood stream, which occurs when the body breaks down substances called purines, found in foods like liver, soya beans, tofu and meat. Doctors recommended that those with kidney problems to take less of these soya products, as oxalates may increase the risk of developing kidney stones.
Soya is not the culprit; it is the total intake of purines including those from protein foods like meats, milk, seafood and organ meats.

Good for the heart
Soya can lower cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of heart disease. Soya protein helps to reduce the LDL (or bad) cholesterol. The presence of soluble fiber in soya also helps to reduce cholesterol in the blood.

Higher risk of memory loss
From the recent study released suggested that eating high levels of some soya products – including tofu may raise the risk of memory loss. Tofu is made from coagulants including salts and acids which could be contributory factors to memory loss. However, further studies are needed.

Post-menopausal women reap benefits
Soya intake helps to prevent bone loss in post-menopausal women but doe not improve hot flashes or other menopausal symptoms.
People of all ages, races and both genders benefit from eating soya. However, most studies that indicate the benefits of soya were skewed towards post-menopausal women in terms of lowering blood pressure, cholesterol and breast cancer risk.