Soy has been known to be a staple diet in most Asian countries particularly in China and Japan. It can come in the form of tofu or soybean curd, tempeh or soy cake, miso or soy soup stock, soy beans, soy nuts, soy milk and soy sauce. It has become popular because it can be added in many meals. Soy has been known to replace eggs or milk in many baking recipes and is commonly used as a meat extender. It is fast becoming a health alternative choice for most people who are health conscious about their diets.

There are studies which looked into the components of soy and some research concluded some good benefits that these components would do to overall health of the body. Soy is made up of proteins, isoflavones and fiber which are beneficial to good health. Soy protein has essential amino acids that help breakdown bad cholesterol. Soy has lower saturated fatty acids compared to cow’s milk. Studies showed that those given soy milk to drink had reduced their hypertension levels to about 10% in just about nine weeks of continuous drinking; compared to those who were given cow’s milk with almost no change in their hypertension conditions.

It was further concluded that it is the isoflavones content that greatly affected the decrease of hypertension. Isoflavones which are active ingredients in soy reduced cholesterol levels especially the bad cholesterol in hypertensive patients.

Since soy undergoes some processes to make it into more consumable products such as soy milk, soy beans, tofu and other soy based products the amount of isoflavones and protein contents are affected. In some studies where soy drinks were used to test on hypertensive patients the effects were different. Soy wherein isoflavones were taken out through alcohol extraction had no significant effects on the hypertension conditions of the patients. However, soy drinks wherein the isoflavones were not processed resulted to significant drop of hypertension levels of patients.

As for soy proteins which are found in soy products like tofu, miso, soy milk, soy cheese or soy yogurt, the amounts of soy protein can be affected by the processes these foods undergo. Most of the lipids and indigestible ingredients of soy proteins are eliminated during the processes and the results is soy protein in a more concentrated form. This kind of soy protein is good to add to the foods which can be included as part of a healthy diet plan. Another soy based food that has been found out to lower blood pressure significantly is the soy beans. Again, the good amount of isoflavones in soy beans greatly contributed to the lowering of the blood pressure of the patient.

However, there are some precautions to be observed in the consumption of soy. It is recommended that only about 25 grams of soy per day is good enough to be included in a healthy diet plan. This amount is also good enough for a person with a heart condition. It is further recommended that only whole soy foods would be consumed for best health benefits.

Regardless of the health benefits of soy, there are still some controversies surrounding it. Further research is being done to study soy and its health benefits to combat hypertension and its effects to combat cancer as well.

Jonathan Pitts

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