Soya’s Health Benefits | Event Report
Setchell, from the Children’s Hospital at Cincinnati who presented results showing that animals metabolise isoflavones very differently to humans. He demonstrated that compared to animals, humans are very efficient at metabolising the more potent isoflavones to a less biologically active form. The higher levels of biologically active isoflavones in animals may explain the differences seen between animal and human studies. The safety of soya foods in breast cancer
patients was also confirmed by two large studies. In the first, Professor Shu from the Vanderbilt Epidemiology Center, Vanderbilt University, USA presented data from the Shanghai Breast Cancer Survival Study (SBCSS). This study included over 5000 breast cancer patients. Five years after cancer diagnosis soya food intake was associated with a more favourable outcome; women eating more soya (15.31g a day) had a 33% lower risk for all deaths and a 34% lower risk for breast cancer recurrence compared to the women who ate the least amount (5.31g a day). Five year mortality rates were 13.1% for women who ate the least amount of soya versus 9.2% who ate the most. Five year recurrence rates were 13% in the lowest soya eating group
compared to 8.9% in the highest. This benefit was seen both in users and non-users of tamoxifen (a widely used treatment for breast cancer). In the second study, Dr Kang from the
Cancer Hospital of Harbin Medical University in China examined the associations between dietary soya isoflavones and breast cancer recurrence and survival among post-operative breast cancer patients who were receiving adjuvant drug treatment. After an average follow- up period of 5.1 years, postmenopausal women consuming more dietary soya isoflavones had a significantly reduced risk of recurrence of breast cancer compared to those eating the least. Soya isoflavones had no effect on mortality rates.
Conclusions The information presented at the 9th International Soya Symposium clearly emphasised soya’s health benefits as well as its safety. Eating a healthy diet is the cornerstone to good health. Soya is a nutritious food, and as such can be enjoyed as part of a healthy, balanced diet. However consumption data from the US shows the intake of soya foods is still very low and so should be encouraged.
Key points and dietary recommendations • Studies continue to demonstrate that soya protein can reduce LDL cholesterol at intakes of approximately 15 to 25g a day.
• The beneficial effect of soya on all the blood fats is predicted to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease by up to 24%.
• Swapping animal protein for soya protein could further reduce LDL cholesterol because of a reduced saturated fat and cholesterol intake.
• 30 to 100mg of soya isoflavones a day can reduce hot flush frequency and severity by approximately 50%. Approximately 50mg of isoflavones can be found in 3 to 4 servings of soya food.
• Data shows that soya foods are safe for breast cancer patients at intakes of around 15g a day. Fifteen grams of soya protein can be found in approximately 2 servings of soya foods.
• Soya foods can easily be integrated into the daily diet during breakfast (e.g. using a soya drink on cereal) or as a snack (e.g. soya desserts or soya yoghurt) or at lunch (by replacing meat with delicious soya meat alternatives).
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... postmenopausal women consuming more dietary soya isoflavones had a significantly reduced risk of recurrence of breast cancer compared to those eating the least.
Complete Nutrition Vol.10 No.6 December/January 2010/11
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