Sweeeet!

Ten Thousand Villages in Little Rock has Equal Exchange chocolate–the first brand of fair trade I’ve found that has no soy lecithin in it! Check them out.

Soy milk truth

http://www.mercola.com/2006/dec/14/soy-milk-is-unhealthy.htm

The Maker’s Diet part 2

I wanted to add some information from The Maker’s Diet that I didn’t include in my original post.

About protein:  “If even one of these eight essential amino acids is missing, the body is unable to synthesize the other proteins it needs–no matter how much protein you eat!  Animal protein is our only complete protein source  . . .”

Rubin argues against several myths that are prevelant as reasons to be a vegetarian–I don’t want to take space to write them in this post.

If you’re still drinking diet

please read this

Read it anyway so you’re informed about some of the problems in the country’s politics, health system, etc.

Soy revisited

After more thought and more research, I am withdrawing my endorsement of Shaklee’s soy protein. There is too much controversy so I’d rather play it safe. I get a lot of hits on my site from people googling soy and they need to know that although some say that the isoflavones and phytoestrogens reduce the risk of cancer, others say they cause cancer. Here is the original post that still has six valid points when it comes to soy.

 

 

Follow up to soy

Dr. Mercola bashes soy a lot but says fermented soy is good. Below is a quote. Click to read more.
Many studies have shown traditionally fermented soy–which is the form that is very popular in many Asian cultures–aids in preventing and reducing a variety of diseases including certain forms of heart disease and cancers.

Now I need to find out how soy is fermented . .

Soy–good or bad?

I am updating this post.  See the bottom note.

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A few years ago soy was the rage. . it was so good for you la di da . . . then studies came out that no it’s not good for you in fact it’s terrible for you. So what’s up? Well I’m still investigating this myself but here are some things I’ve learned that need to be taken into consideration:

SOY QUALITY CONTROL CHECKLIST

1) The beans must be organically grown.

Studies have shown decreased levels of food nutrients and increased levels of nitrates in chemically fertilized crops when compared with their organic counterparts. There is a connection between the ingestion of nitrates & cancer. Therefore, it is important to know that pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides have not been used during the growing process. With soy beans in particular, since they are such a hardy plant a powerful and deadly weed spray called Round-up is usually used. For your safety, you must know that your soy products are organically grown.

2) The beans must not be genetically engineered.

Genetically engineered soybeans are much cheaper to purchase but the effects of genetically engineered food is not fully known and is likely problematic.

3) The beans should contain all nine essential amino acids.

One of the most valuable features of the soybean is that it is a complete protein and provides all nine of the essential amino acids. The body requires these daily to produce hormones, digestive juices, antibodies, and enzymes. However, not all soybeans are created equal. Quality and amino acid content will vary based on soil conditions, and variable growing and harvest conditions. If one essential amino acid is missing the immune system can be depressed by 30% and many important body functions are delayed or stopped. Therefore, it is essential that each batch of soybeans be checked for amino acid content if we want to depend on the soy isolate to provide a guaranteed supply of the nine essential amino acids.

4) The crushed soy flakes must be washed in water, not alcohol.

Alcohol washing destroys isoflavone content up to 88%. It is the isoflavones that reduce the risk of breast, prostate, lung and bowel cancer. As well, it is the isoflavones that are so beneficial in hormone balancing and increasing bone mass.

5) The “anti-growth” or “anti-tyrosine” substance must be removed.

Tyrosine deficiency will cause low blood pressure, low body temperature, and restless leg syndrome. Therefore, the anti-growth substance must be removed without cooking the soy (cooking will remove it but see below).

6) The soybean must be raw.

Amino acids and isoflavones are very sensitive to heat. In some studies, cooking protein has been shown to destroy up to 50% of some essential amino acids. If an individual consistently consumes a diet that is lacking in all of the essential amino acids, inadequate brain development and hormones or other body tissue development can be the result.

7) Calcium must be added to the soy isolate.

Some negative reports about soy say that soy powders are very acidic and cause bone loss because it causes calcium to be drawn from the bones. The raw soy bean is a neutral food. However, the removal of the soybean oil (which is essential so the soy powder will not go rancid very quickly), makes the powder very acidic. Therefore, adequate calcium (which is very alkaline) must be added to cause the powder to be neutral again, or it can cause the above stated problem.

Shaklee has a soy protein powder that meets these standards (I don’t know if anyone else does). But mistakes can be made by anyone human so I don’t take this as the final word. However, I do know I don’t trust other soy products. My blood turns cold after reading soy criticisms when I think about how much of the store bought kind Elisa has had.

UPDATE:  there is controversy as to whether the isoflavones help cancer or make it worse.  The only safe soy is fermented and used as a condiment like they do in Asia.