Soy - it's good, might help with bitch tits too :)

[coolcolj]

I drink lots of Soy milk myself -
Soy has lots of phytoestrogens





found this

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The Goldbecks explain how most researchers believe this works: "The potency of phytoestrogens is just a fraction of that of human estrogen. While they’re close enough in structure to fit into the estrogen receptors, they’re too weak to stimulate them. By acting in a competitive manner, they block the entry of the more potent cancer promoting hormone."

Likewise, in men, soy estrogens may block the growth effect of testosterone on prostate tumors.

Testosterone is responsible for the development of numerous male characteristics, but once a man develops prostate cancer, testosterone can hasten its progression. Phytoestrogens may slow or prevent the cancerous growth by harnessing testosterone.

Again, the Goldbecks explain how this could work: "One theory is that estrogen slows down production of the male hormone testosterone, [and has been used successfully] to treat prostate cancer. If phytoestrogens act like estrogen, they can perhaps have the same effect.... In addition, there is good experimental evidence that isoflavones inhibit an enzyme that converts testosterone to a more proliferate form within the prostate itself."

These theories find support in the history of Asian men, who eat far more soy then we do in the West and have dramatically fewer deaths from prostate cancer. "It isn’t that Asian men aren’t afflicted with this cancer," the Goldbecks explain. "In fact, autopsies indicates similar incidence in both populations. But their tumors grow so slowly that the Asian men tend to die from other causes long before the tumors become lethal."

Happily for male bodybuilders, the Goldbecks add this important bit of information: "Men might be comforted to know that although phytoestrogens may altered testosterone’s activity, unlike hormone therapy, they do so without compromising masculinity."

For what it’s worth, you’ll find confirmation of this in Planet Muscle magazine (Volume 4, No. 4 2001) from the Vice President of marketing for a nutraceutical company. Nick Delgado, Ph.D., who is also President of the Asian Academy of Anti-aging and a former director of the Better Health Program at the Pritkin Longevity Center in California, says soy isoflavones don’t have a feminizing effect; to the contrary, he says they actually prevent estrogen from accumulating in the body by blocking estrogen receptors sites. According to Delgado, this can help both men and women reduce problems caused by having too much estrogen, which can include fat gain and loss of muscle. Delgado says he personally uses soy supplements and foods (tofu and soy milk) to guard against this problem.

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So it might help with bitch tits for roid users

 

[HumptyDumpty]

do any soy products have sero carbs?

 

[plornive]

I eat a lot of tofu. I don't know if it has affected my nipples, but it sure is a good, easy source of protein! I buy MoriNu "light" tofu. 4g carb, 20g protein, 2g fat (polyunsaturated, I believe). A good quick cutting breakfast is oats, tofu and grapefruit blended up.

Does anyone know how soy affects the thyroid? Dan Duchaine was always talking about how it is good to eat soy while cutting because it supposedly stimulates the thryroid.

 

[MS]

I suspect the antiestrogenic effects from soy stem more from the phytoestrogen's ability to inhibit aromatase than as a competitive inhibitor at the estrogen receptor. But either way soy appears to be more ANTI estrogenic than estrogenic.

Despite much heated debate you may read, there is no convincing evidence that soy protein has an adverse effect on thyroid function in healthy humans consuming adequate iodine, particularly at the moderate level of soy protein consumption (25 grams). I don't know about it actually STIMULATING thyroid, though it will stimulate TSH in some folks. There IS evidence that animals exposed to large amounts of soy protein (e.g., 40%) will develop goiter, particularly when fed an iodine deficient diet. The mechanism for this effect can be explained by the fact that the principal isoflavones in soy, (genistein and daidzein) have been shown to inhibit thyroid peroxidase, a key enzyme involved in thyroid hormone biosynthesis. The inhibition of these enzymes results in decreased levels of circulating thyroid hormones (e.g., T4 and T3) which leads to increased secretion of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) by the anterior pituitary. The increased levels of TSH provide a growth stimulus to the thyroid, resulting in goiter. It must be emphasized, however, that this occurs only with very large amounts of soy isoflavones in the diet and/or when the diet is low in iodine.

A recent human trial found no difference in thyroid function between 38 postmenopausal women given either a placebo or a supplement that provided 90 mg of isoflavones. Also dietary soy isoflavones are not the only dietary flavonoids that can inhibit thyroid peroxidase. A variety of other flavonoids have also been shown to be even more potent in inhibiting the activity of this enzyme, including kaempferol, naringenin, and quercetin. Such flavonoids are widely distributed in plant-derived foods and would be consumed daily at relatively high levels (possibly up to 1 gram or more per day) by vegetarians or semi-vegetarians, yet such individuals do not have a significant increased incidence of goiter.

One of the concerns that has been expressed about high soy intake is an increase in thyroid cancer. A recent population-based case-control study examined the effect of phytoestrogen intake on the incidence of thyroid cancer (Horn-Ross et al, 2001) in women ages 20-74 . Phytoestrogen consumption was associated with a reduced risk of thyroid cancer, not an increase in thyroid cancer. The authors identified possible mechanisms associated with the reduced risk of thyroid cancer in this study as antioxidant effects, direct effects on endogenous estrogen and/or thyroid hormone levels, or anti-estrogenic effects resulting from competitive binding to the estrogen receptor.

People who are predisposed to goiter or who are consuming marginally iodine sufficient diets, soy could conceivable be a risk factor for goiter. As many as 10 percent of postmenopausal women may have subclinical hypothyroidism, and this group may be sensitive to the adverse effects of weak goitrogens such as found in soy. Otherwise, enjoy your tofu!

 

[plornive]

Wow. No wonder there is so much misinformation about soy --- its effects are complicated and subtle.

So I guess Dan Duchaine's theory of eating soy to maintain metabolism is BS. Anyway, soy seems to be a good source of protein with a lot of glutamine.

 

[anthrax]

I think fermented soy products are way more healthy than regular soy - more vitamine B12, no phytic acid, no trypsin inhibitors, enhance protein and isoflavones absorption ....

ie Tempeh, miso and real tofu

 

[MS]

Tempeh is DA BOMB!!! Great source of high quality easily absorbed protein.

Miso and soy sauce are not good sources of protein both because of their high sodium content and the fact that you would have to eat crazy amounts of them to get one decent protein meal.

 

[Doktor Bollix]

I used to eat a lot of tofu. Gone off it now though, too many question marks. This is my latest one:
http://www.vegsource.com/harris/brain_aging.htm

I reckon I get a lot of the befefits of soy from the soy lecithin that goes into my bed time shake.

 

[plornive]

I think fermented soy products are way more healthy than regular soy - more vitamine B12, no phytic acid, no trypsin inhibitors, enhance protein and isoflavones absorption ....

ie Tempeh, miso and real tofu

The MoriNu Silken Tofu that I buy says soy protein isolate on the label. Is this fermented soy? Does it have the benefits you describe?

 

[anthrax]

I don't know the MoriNu Silken Tofu, but "industrial" tofu is just soy protein powder + water + a few other prervatives, colors, ...

try to find tempeh (in any "real" asian food shop)

BTW fermented soy products have a "special" taste