What are the benefits and harms of soy for men and women? Effect on the body and contraindications

SOY: BENEFITS AND HARMS FOR MEN

Due to its low price and ease of cultivation, the use of soybeans in food products has increased significantly. However, large amounts of soy foods in the diet can harm men's hormonal health.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS AND HARMS OF SOYA FOR MEN?

What harm or benefit can soy give to a man? There is no convincing evidence yet that soy products can actually have a significant effect on a man's endocrine system. But the fact that they are estrogenic has already been proven.

Soy contains so-called isoflavones: genistein, daidzein and glycitein. They are classified as phytoestrogens - plant substances similar to female hormones.

Eating isoflavones can activate estrogen receptors, and androgen receptors (male hormones) will, on the contrary, be suppressed at the same time. Soy also contains equol, which is a strong androgen antagonist. This compound has been linked to decreased testosterone and DHT levels.

Due to their composition, soy products reduce testosterone, this is their harm and lack of benefit for men. However, this has not yet been fully proven. Some studies show that soy actually lowers testosterone levels, while other studies refute this.

However, given that soy is an estrogenic and goitrogenic (affects the thyroid gland) substance, and also contains PUFAs (polyunsaturated fatty acids), many experts are still inclined to believe that it negatively affects testosterone levels, increases estrogen and doesn't do any good.

1. Antithyroid effect and high PUFA content

What is the harm of soy for men? Another concern is its effect on thyroid health and metabolism.

Soy is considered a goitrogenic food, which means that it disrupts the production of thyroid hormones by interfering with the absorption of iodine in the thyroid gland.

Reduced thyroid hormone levels lead to:

• slowing down the metabolic rate,
• reducing heat and energy production in the body,
• slowdown in hormone synthesis and associated symptoms.

In addition, soy products have a high content of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). These types of fatty acids have multiple carbon-carbon bonds that become unstable in the body and quickly break down into free radicals, resulting in oxidative damage in the body's cells.

Because of this, high PUFA intake leads to lower testosterone and decreased thyroid hormone levels.

At least two of these factors make soy products potentially dangerous and harmful to men's health and hormonal systems. If reducing androgens and increasing female hormones is not the goal of a man, then it is better to avoid excessive consumption of soy.

muzhskie-gormony.info

If you are overweight

When you are overweight, the body tends to accumulate its own, real estrogen. When consuming soy products, weak estrogen is formed, an imitation of the real thing, but it takes on the functions of the real one. Phytoestrogen acts as a dummy.

Thus, phytoestrogen blocks the production of present, promotes the removal of this powerful hormone from the receptors, and also stimulates the rapid breakdown of all estrogen in the liver. When the liver sees so much estrogen, it increases the activity of its enzymes.

If you are overweight, eating soy products will be beneficial.

The benefits and harms of soy meat or endless contradictions

The benefits of soy meat are inflated by advertising companies. But the product is so often criticized that it can become confusing. And yet, is such a dinner dangerous or healthy?

Photo: Depositphotos.com Author: TeodoraD

Myths about soy

First of all, unimaginable properties are attributed to soy by irreconcilable opponents: vegans and meat-eaters. Each side is trying to win an endless argument, sometimes appealing to unverified and distorted information.

Today, almost everyone eats soy, willingly or unwillingly. Even convinced meat eaters, when they feast on sausages and sausage sandwiches.

Many people are annoyed by the imposition of this product, so people compensate for the irritation by writing legends in their spare time. On the other hand, manufacturers who add soy to their meat products try to justify that it is incredibly healthy.

If you think about it, the harm of “plant-based meat” is somewhat exaggerated, as well as the benefits. Asians have long included soy products in their diets. At the same time, Asia has a high birth rate and many centenarians. This means that soy cannot cause any harm to health if taken wisely. On the other hand, in the East people also suffer from cancer and other serious diseases, albeit to a lesser extent. Therefore, soy cannot be declared a panacea for all ailments known to science.

Mechanisms of action

Relationship with fertility

As scientists established in August 2020, it is better not to consume large amounts of soy products if you are planning a pregnancy.

One of the components of the plant analogue of meat - genistein - causes harm to the female body, as it disrupts the process of maturation of eggs and leads to disruption of the menstrual cycle. Doctors tested the effect of this substance in an experiment with laboratory mice, but in the future they are going to study in detail exactly how it affects women’s health.

Relationship with cholesterol levels

In 2001, American scientists found that daily consumption of 25 g of soy products leads to a gradual decrease in blood cholesterol levels and has a beneficial effect on the cardiovascular system. The information was double-checked and confirmed by researchers from Britain.

On the other hand, soy contains hemagglutinin, which causes red blood cells to “stick together.” In theory, it may promote the formation of cholesterol plaques in blood vessels, especially if other risk factors for atherosclerosis are present.

Soy and cancer

Science has confirmed that genistein contained in soy reduces the risk of development and recurrence of breast cancer. The study found that women with breast cancer often do not take soy-based meat or soy-based supplements. Experiments were also carried out on mice. As a result, scientists came to the conclusion that genistein is able to “switch on” immune antitumor responses.

On the other hand, some pundits argue that soy consumption provokes the development of certain types of tumors.

Harm during pregnancy

Experts are increasingly saying that soy should not be eaten during pregnancy. There is evidence that it negatively affects both the course of pregnancy and the health of the fetus.

Soy products can cause miscarriage or premature birth, as well as cause pathological changes in the child's body.

Medical experts note that it is advisable for women planning to have a child to avoid such foods 3 months before the expected conception. According to some reports, soybeans also slow down growth processes. Therefore, nursing mothers should also avoid it.

Dietary product or another scam?

Soy meat has no fat, but is very nutritious. In addition, it contains a large amount of protein, although it is not very well absorbed by the human body. Therefore, soy meat cannot serve as a substitute for beef or chicken.

People who want to lose weight should not completely switch to such foods. But you can alternate boiled turkey and chicken breasts with “vegetable meat”. In general, the product cannot be considered the basis of dietary or sports nutrition. After all, its use does not particularly affect weight.

Soy and menopause

Many women claim that soy meat helps them endure menopause more easily. But the big question is whether it’s due to the high level of the plant analogue of estrogen or the power of the placebo.

On the one hand, phytoestrogens are designed to normalize the level of female hormones and calm hot flashes. They must support a woman’s desire to make love. But so far, numerous studies have not revealed the ability of soy meat to alleviate the symptoms of menopause.

Harm to men

What doctors are sure of is that men should not eat a lot of soy meat. It was found that it:

• reduces sexual desire;
• promotes the appearance of fat deposits in the waist area and the formation of female breasts;
• interferes with erection and ejaculation;
• reduces testosterone levels;
• provokes mood swings.

And all this is caused, again, by the presence of plant “female hormones”.

Soy and the thyroid gland

The harm of soy meat for people with thyroid diseases is obvious. It negatively affects the functioning of the thyroid gland, disrupts hormonal levels, and interferes with the absorption of iodine.

Healthy people also do not need to eat soybean products in large quantities or compensate for their frequent consumption with high levels of iodine in the diet.

Drawing conclusions

While scientists are publishing absolutely mutually exclusive conclusions about the properties of soy meat, it is extremely difficult to “catch” grains of truth from this information noise. The following points are known for sure.

Soy should not be consumed:

• women who have problems with women's health but are planning to become pregnant;
• pregnant women;
• with urolithiasis;
• for diseases of the thyroid gland;
• persons with iodine deficiency;
• men with poor sperm motility and low testosterone levels who experience sexual problems.

Soy meat should be eaten with caution:

• people with a genetic predisposition to developing cancer;
• men who have a tendency to develop a feminine body type;
• children and teenagers.

Main secret

In all the heated debate about the properties of soy, people forget one important point. Soy meat is not a medicine, not a poison, but a food that people eat to get pleasure and cope with hunger, and not at all to cure a tumor. Eating soy for purely gastronomic purposes will bring you benefits and joy.

Do not forget that any food - soy, meat, salt, sugar, even apples - can harm the body. This can happen if one food crowds out others from the diet.

After all, nutrition should be varied and balanced. That is why you should not be overzealous in eating soy, as well as replacing meat or other sources of protein with it.

You need to understand that soy meat has a plant base. Both its benefits and harm depend on where the plant grew. If in unfavorable conditions, the beans could absorb a lot of toxins.

Tips for eating soy meat

1. If you don’t eat meat, you shouldn’t give up soy after reading horror stories about its dangers.
2. If, on the contrary, you love meat and cannot live without it, do not forget to sometimes replace beef and pork dishes with soy products in order to “unload” the body a little.
3. You should not eat this product in quantities greater than 100 g per day. Moreover, in the daily portion it is necessary to take into account not only the weight of the dish made from cooked soy meat, but also the “hidden” soy - in sausage, pates, sausages, etc.
4. Even for vegans, it is not recommended to consume soy daily; it is better to alternate it with other sources of high-quality protein, such as lentils, nuts and chickpeas.

We also recommend reading: About the benefits of (vegetable) soy milk.

www.poleznenko.ru

Reasons for decreased potency when taking products

Erectile dysfunction is caused by a variety of issues, but the biggest influence is diet.

What problems can there be with erection?

Many men do not even suspect that foods harmful to potency make up the vast majority of the food they consume daily. The high content of GMOs, food additives, sugar, yeast, flavors, dyes, and flavor enhancers turns ordinary food into incredibly harmful ones.

Another disadvantage of the life of modern representatives of the stronger sex is the emphasis on fatty, fried, salty, smoked foods, and pasta made from white flour. The main emphasis is on satiety, not usefulness. This provokes an increase in bad cholesterol, the formation of plaques, and poor blood circulation, including the genitals. A man begins to get tired quickly, gains extra pounds, and becomes powerless in bed.

The second mistake is violating the drinking regime. Many people, instead of regular drinking water, drink soda, energy drinks, and cocktails, simply to quench their thirst. An imbalance leads to a decrease in free testosterone, which is responsible for sexual activity. The last straw is products containing phytoestrogens. These female hormones change hormonal levels and dull attraction to the opposite sex.

Is soy harmful for men?

The dangers associated with soy consumption for men are a result of the presence of large amounts of the female hormone estrogen in soy and soy products. Soy predominantly affects the quality and concentration of a man's sperm, especially if it is consumed in large quantities or if exposure to soy occurred in the womb. A recent study by Harvard University researchers found that there is a clear correlation between men with low sperm counts and high consumption of soy products.

The study found that:

The average sperm count of 80-120 million per millimeter for an adult male is cut by about half when soy is part of a man's diet.

This fact is even more clear in studies of obese men, whose sperm count becomes even lower due to the ability of adipose tissue to produce estrogen.

Scientists believe that isoflavones (daidzein, genistein, and glycitein) contained in soy are to blame for the decrease in sperm concentration. These isoflavones act in the same way as estrogen and therefore suppress sperm production. Moreover, Professor Lynn Fraser from King's College London also warns that the isoflavone genistein is thought to contribute to the inability of sperm to fertilize an egg. However, these data were obtained in test tube tests, and the soy industry counters that the genistein found in soy products does not work as well as the pure form of the isoflavone used in the study.

The most significant amounts of soy are found in foods such as soybeans, tofu, tempeh, soy or tofu sausage, bacon, burgers, soy milk, cheese, yogurt, ice cream and nuts.

However, overall, soy and its derivatives are found in approximately 70% of all foods, so reducing your consumption can be challenging. For example, pork pies, breakfast cereals, mayonnaise and margarine, sausages, lasagna, beef burgers and chicken nuggets are just some of the products that rely on soy as a source of cheap protein. The soy derivative lecithin, due to its effectiveness as an emulsifier, is also widely used in the baking and confectionery industries.

It should be noted that soy is a staple of Asian cuisine, but no serious side effects have been found in Asian countries. However, it is helpful to remember that the Asian diet consists largely of fermented soy products such as miso soup and tofu. The fermentation process is believed to destroy chemicals considered harmful in the above studies.

Related link: Soy and tomatoes make prostate cancer easier to prevent and treat

Source: wisegeek.com

www.vitaminov.net

In what form of use is it dangerous?

You should not eat sausages or sausages - they are more than harmful and useless, regardless of whether soy is present in them or not. It is better to give preference to natural products - soy meat, soy cheese and milk. For example, tofu, the famous soy cheese, is a protein-rich, healthy, dietary product. The kilocalorie content per 100 grams of product will fit into any weight loss program - it is about only 60 kcal.

Remember that in any issue, including the issue of soybeans, it is necessary to adhere to reason and know why products are useful and why they are harmful. But you should not, with the fanaticism often inherent in adherents of a healthy lifestyle, attack this product and use it at every opportunity.

Soy: benefits and harm for men and women

Soy today is a fairly popular product, so it is necessary to know as much as possible about what the benefits and harms of consuming it can be for men and women.

Soybeans have gained great popularity over the past few decades. The fact is that this product of plant origin is extremely high in calories and nutritional value; it contains the protein necessary to maintain weight, and the cost of such a product is very low.

Today, soy is considered one of the main dishes of modern vegetarians who want to give up meat of animal origin and replace it with a plant-based analogue.

At first glance, it may seem that the consumption of soy is extremely limited, since all soy products that we know are limited to soy sauce, which is considered a traditional dressing for sushi and rolls, as well as soy meat, which are consumed by staunch vegetarians.

In fact, the presence of this product in the outside world is much wider. Soy, the harms and benefits of which are not known to everyone, is present in many dishes, and derivatives of this product are distributed throughout the world.

Oddly enough, despite the widespread use of soy throughout the world, many people still do not know about the origin of this type of food. Some are sure that soy is a type of regular meat of animal origin, others believe that it is an exclusively synthetic product created specifically to replace animal products.

However, the discovery for most is that soybean is a plant that belongs to the legume family, and all food elements produced from this plant are exclusively natural.

The popularity of the products is ensured by the fact that the plant grows on almost all continents except the coldest. Moreover, the plant contains a huge amount of valuable protein, and the cost of soy products is quite low due to the fact that growing the plant is quite simple.

Today there is a whole group of products made from a popular plant. They often provide an alternative to animal-derived elements that some people, due to health reasons or personal preferences, try to exclude from their diets. For example, soy milk is an excellent substitute for regular milk; it is often added to drinks, and the taste of such a substitute is not inferior to the original.

Popular products made from this legume include the following:

• Soy sauce, which is considered an ideal addition to sushi and rolls. At the same time, soy sauce is used in a huge number of other dishes - it perfectly enhances the taste of some products, and is also very nutritious and healthy.
• Soy meat is also considered an extremely healthy product. Soy meat is used both as a side dish for main dishes and as an independent dish. A special sausage is made from soy meat, the taste of which does not differ from the product familiar to most people.
• The famous tofu cheese is considered an extremely popular product. Few people know that it is also made from soybeans. Soy meat in combination with this product creates a unique taste and benefits for the body, and cheese is used in a variety of salads and dishes.

Not all people use soy sauce, soy milk and other similar products, since it is extremely difficult to get used to the specific taste.
Nevertheless, convinced vegetarians cannot imagine their life without soy milk and other legume derivatives, which is why the popularity of such nutrition is growing every day. Soy milk, like any other type of plant-based product, has become popular because of its composition with a high content of nutrients that are easily absorbed by the body and help it develop and function normally even without consuming animal meat.

Soy milk, soy sauce and other products can almost completely replace your usual diet if you give up animal products.

People began to use beans because they contained the following substances:

1. Soy for men, women and children is useful because almost half of its composition is natural vegetable protein. This was the reason for the high popularity of the plant among vegetarians, since the body needs the element, but cannot get it from meat.
2. The presence of oxidants is harmful to the body, so soy is also popular due to the vitamins contained in it and acting as antioxidants.
3. Soy also includes lecithin, which can reduce cholesterol and improve metabolic processes in the body.
4. Substances found in the plant cleanse the bile ducts, reducing the risk of many diseases. Exposure to the elements also reduces the risk of cancer.
5. Acids and other elements increase brain activity, improving brain activity, slow down the aging of the body, which is in demand among the fairer sex.

Soy, whose health benefits and harms are radically different, is an extremely popular product. It is used by people all over the world not only to get the necessary vitamins, but also to avoid animal products.

Despite these obvious benefits, there are many known factors that make soy harmful for men, women, and even a small child whose body is not ready for such changes.

The elements contained in this battery can harm the child in the most radical way. The fact is that the components can affect the growth and development of the baby, as a result of which a lot of developmental pathologies can form, affecting both the health and quality of life of the little person in the future.

In girls, the use of the product in childhood affects the course of the menstrual cycle in the future and on possible childbearing, and in the stronger sex, maturation of this nature is significantly accelerated, which also has an extremely negative effect on the body.

It is not recommended to give small children soy in large quantities, even if the children are intolerant to certain animal substances. In this case, the use of the analogue should be minimal, and the child’s health condition should be regularly monitored by a medical specialist.

For representatives of the fairer sex, this element of the legume family is dangerous because it increases the risk of early aging of the brain, as a result of which dementia and Alzheimer's disease occur at a fairly early age. A large amount of food based on legumes leads to shrinkage of the brain, which significantly reduces the activity of the main human organ and negatively affects lifestyle and health.

Pregnant women are strictly prohibited from consuming such food, since such a meal can cause severe allergies in both the expectant mother and her unborn baby.

Video: the benefits and harms of soy.

Men's health also suffers from excess amounts of the nutrient. At a young age, the negative impact of consuming a moderate dose of the substance will not affect health, but after fifty years the product can accelerate the aging of the body, reduce sexual function prematurely and create additional health problems.

Hormonal changes occur in the body, contributing to rapid weight gain, due to which the number of diseases increases, and a normal lifestyle becomes unavailable.

Soy is a food that many people find difficult to eliminate from their diet completely. Nevertheless, it is important to pay attention not only to the benefits, but also to the harm that this plant and its derivatives cause. Only proper nutrition and compliance with all standards will allow you to receive all the important elements and go about your business without problems.

otravleniehelp.ru

A little history

If you look into historical works, you might be surprised, because soybeans are considered one of the oldest crops that began to be grown by civilized people. Soybeans first appeared in China, as evidenced by archaeological excavations.

Five hundred years later, soybeans began to spread to other eastern countries. Around the 17th and 18th centuries, soybeans migrated to the American continent. And after the hard work of breeders, such a crop began to be grown in large quantities.

But our country became acquainted with soybeans only at the dawn of the 20th century. Today, all kinds of dishes are prepared from soybeans, because they contain a high concentration of protein of plant origin, vitamins, minerals, micro- and macroelements. We will discuss the harm and benefits of soy protein further.

What is soy sauce made from?

Traditional soy sauce composition involves a long fermentation process that lasts about two or three months. The Chinese version is soy based. In Japanese, these are wheat grains, which give the sauce a slightly sour taste. The fermentation process occurs under the influence of koji yeast.

The longer the fermentation process lasts, the more intense and harmonious the soy sauce becomes. Of course, in modern conditions it will not be possible to spend a lot of time on its production. For this reason, many companies use another method - hydrolysis of soy protein. Then the process goes much faster and instead of months it only takes a few days until it is ready. This helps to significantly reduce the final cost of the product. However, the flavor will not be as intense as in traditional cuisine.

There are manufacturers who mix hydrolyzed sauce with a small amount of natural sauce. It costs a little more, but is more flavorful and tasty.

Thus, a classic Japanese sauce should only have four main ingredients:

• the main one is soybeans,
• wheat or barley,
• water,
• salt.

In the old days, these ingredients were made by hand from soy sauce . Currently, the fermentation process takes place in factories, and companies are trying to improve and automate production, even using traditional recipes.

The process looks like this:

1. Soybeans are soaked for a long time and then stewed or cooked.
2. The wheat grains are lightly roasted and then ground to begin the fermentation process.
3. Salt is added to the water until the solution reaches the desired consistency.

But you can’t make classic soy sauce without aspergillus - microscopic fungi. They are added to a mixture of ground wheat and cooked soybeans. These mushrooms create ideal conditions for the fermentation process.

In the old days, this process simply could not produce a predictable result because the mixture was simply left in vats under the sun. Nowadays, the sauce is produced in factories that have strictly defined environmental parameters to ensure that the process is carried out correctly and the product has the same taste and aroma regardless of the production batch.

When the wort (called koji) is considered ready, it is placed in containers and a brine solution is added. Mix all this well. In Japanese tradition, the resulting wort is called camouflage, and the fermentation time is several months.

It would be more correct to say that not only alcoholic fermentation occurs, but also lactic acid fermentation. For most manufacturers this takes several months, and for expensive brands that deliver the sauce to the imperial court - up to six months.

Then the second wort is squeezed out, poured into other containers, filtered, and the remainder is dried using a press. The result is a raw sauce that is left in the tank for several days for the microscopic suspensions that remain in it to settle. The sauce is then heated, otherwise the fermentation process will not be stopped. By the way, at this stage it remains transparent.

Why is soy sauce salty?

Many people believe that soy sauce itself is salty only because of the salt contained in the food. In fact, as mentioned above, salt in sauce is always added in small quantities . This is not for taste, but to prevent the proliferation of pathogens. Because the sauce has a great flavor and contains little salt, it allows you to add less salt to dishes prepared with it.

However, there is currently a low-salt soy sauce on the market that uses less salt. There is also a sweet sauce with vinegar and sugar. Some manufacturers produce special varieties for sushi and sashimi. This sauce contains special seafood spices. So it shouldn't taste salty.