Soy… Should I?

By Elizabeth Zabel, Dietetic Intern, August 25, 2010

Soy is a subtropical plant that originated in Southeast Asia. Soy provides protein, isoflavones (antioxidants), and fiber, all of which generally are associated with increased health benefits, right? Research studies have been conducted and demonstrate the beneficial uses of soy and thus as consumers it’s okay to continue to purchase and eat these products, or so were told, right? Well, let’s consider all the facts before making this kind of judgment .

Soy and soy-based products (such as oil, flour, and lecithin) comprise a large food group in the United States known as “Genetically Modified Foods” or “GM” for short. Although the FDA holds strict standards for most food products packaged and sold within the US, GM foods are not required to conduct any federal sanctioned safety tests before going on the market. Thus, the food products that contain this “GM soy” product could very well be the culprit of the hard-to-detect allergy, toxin, new disease or nutritional deficiency you may be experiencing. In addition, because the product is GM, there is no guarantee that companies can reproduce the same exact molecular strand of soy for each product it is used in. This problem further increases the dangers associated with soy due to the inability of safety testing to be performed as the composition of the GM soy is constantly changing!

Studies appear in the mainstream media that both support and refute the use of soy in one’s diet to protect against heart disease and other health conditions. However, which ones should you believe? What are the facts? Well, in society today, big food companies constantly bombard consumers with health messages that intend to steer the individual in the right direction for their health yet frequently misinform. It’s important to look at the funding source to decipher where the information came from to tell if it’s reputable or not. However, this can get tricky and difficult for the lay consumer to interpret.

Thus, want to know our stand? GM soy and GM soy based products should not be consumed! Fewer than 20 published studies, none of which involve humans as subjects, have been published that explore the biological effects of GM soy on major body organs such as the gut, kidney, and liver. The first study that has even attempted to examine the effects GM soy has on the body’s organ systems was made about six years ago by Irina Ermakova, a Russian scientist. She explored the addition of GM soy to the diets of rats in order to investigate the influence it had on offspring. Ermakova found that female rats fed the GM soy produced offspring that not only were pre-mature, but also underweight. Furthermore, the rats born from mothers fed the GM soy demonstrated a significantly higher death rate three weeks after birth (55.6% of GM soy fed vs. 16% of non-GM soy fed and control groups).

If this isn’t enough to encourage you to say NO to soy, then consider this. The American Dietetic Association, one of the most esteemed and credentialed source of nutrition information, has noted no significant effects were seen in decreasing one’s risk of heart disease through the incorporation of GM soy protein into one’s diet.

Millions of Americans are consuming GM soy on a daily basis but may not even be aware. Due to its presence in processing and a lot of commercial pre-packaged foods, it’s important for consumers to become aware of dangers lurking behind the unregulated product called “GM soy”. Eating foods that are presented as nature intended in their natural and fresh forms is the best way to live a healthy and happy life! Thus, if you do enjoy soy, it’s okay on occasion to indulge and incorporate naturally found soybeans or fermented soy in your diet.

So… morale of the story, “No! GM SOY SHOULDN’T YOU!”