How Did We Get Soy Confused?
The reason that we have decided to write about soy is because of all of the controversy and confusion surrounding it. It goes full spectrum, from being an ancient and healing super food, to being the main and even sole cause of breast cancer.
Yet in Asia, soy has been eaten for hundreds, if not thousands of generations, without any evidence of adverse effects. In fact, it has been well documented and correlated, that the high amount of soy in the Asian diet protects Asian women from breast cancer. It is well known that Asian women have a much lower incidence of breast cancer than American women do.
We must deduct then, that all soy is not the same. And this in fact, could not be truer. There are numerous unhealthy soy products on the market today. And very few traditionally made whole soybean foods. There is a difference.
In it’s natural state, the soybean is a nutritionally dense source of the essential amino acids, making it a complete source in and of it’s own, of protein. It also contains valuable phyto nutrients such as isoflavones that have been found to protect the body against not only breast cancer, but prostate and colon cancer as well. Isoflavones, naturally occurring in soybeans, also protect against menopausal symptoms, heart disease, and osteoporosis.
But rather than use the WHOLE soybean, in as close to it’s natural state as possible, the manufactured food industry has isolated the soybeans valuable compounds, and added them to soy food products such as so called “healthy” candy bars, powdered drinks, chips, crackers, cookies, and other junk, excuse me, snack foods, soy cheeses, soy yogurt (often full of sugar), soy ice cream (also almost always full of sugar), soy butter / margarine, flavored soy milk (please read the label, you will find many of these to be full of sugar as well), and as generalized food fillers. If you are reading this and thinking that the health food industry is “crazy”, and that you are safe because you don’t eat the so called “healthy” foods that turn out to be filled with isolated soy fillers, think again. Non-organic, genetically engineered isolated soy fillers are found in all kinds of processed and packaged non health food store foods as well, from regular ice cream, to regular hot dogs, to instant mashed potatoes, to canned soups, and on and on.
These isolated soy compounds lack the supporting vitamins, minerals, fiber, proteins, complex carbohydrates, and other plant substances found in the natural and whole soybean. They act differently in the body when the known and unknown substances present in whole soybeans do not support them. I mean, who are we, as mere humans, to think that we can isolate the components and properties of foods, and re-create / package them, thinking that we can do a better job than Mother Nature does, when there are as yet, hundreds upon hundreds of nutrients we humans have yet to even discover. Also, the amount and concentration of some of the soybeans isolated compounds, as used in manufactured foods, far exceeds what is present in whole and natural soybeans, and therefore cannot be compared to real, whole, traditionally prepared, cooked and / or fermented soy foods, such as dried black and yellow soybeans, miso, tofu, tempeh, and shoyu soy sauce.
There are numerous, numerous health benefits in the above mentioned traditionally prepared real soy foods. Fermentation itself is one. Through natural fermentation, healthy digestive and intestinal probiotics are formed, and can be accessed for our bodies’ health, by eating fermented soybeans such as tempeh, shoyu, tofu, and miso. And for every benefit of eating the traditional soy foods, there are equally detrimental effects from eating soy products, many of which do not stem from the innocent soybean itself, but rather from the commercial processing of the soybean, the isolation of its compounds, and the many unhealthy ingredients it is combined with in the resulting products.
Some basic food principles never change. I have written about these basic food rules before: Eat real food, or food in as close to it’s real and natural state as possible. Here is a huge hint: Real food has very little in the way of ingredients on its label. We buy tofu and tempeh already prepared, because, 1.very high quality tofu and tempeh are available fortunately, and 2.the method in which tofu and tempeh are prepared is somewhat lengthy and involved. And miso and shoyu take years to make, literally, no exaggeration, as they are not only fermented, but aged as well. Very few of us have the time, Wholly Macro included, the physical space, or know how, although we actually do know how to make to make these valuable soy foods from scratch here at Wholly Macro. (The knowledge that is, but not the time or space). And these are not ready to eat food products. They are one step in the utilization of whole soybeans, into a ready and waiting food, for any of us to come along and get creative with, turning them into beautiful and healthy dishes, by means of cooking, pureeing, combining them, or similar, with other healthy whole foods such as grains, vegetables, fruits, soups, etc.
We are not sure how we all got soy confused, but do hope this offers a bit of clarification. It hurts our hearts when we hear people group the valuable and traditional whole soy foods that we use exclusively here at Wholly Macro, into the same category as cheap, commercial, and misleading, chemically laden, imitation soy products. It behooves us all to know the difference. Otherwise we miss out completely on the valuable and health giving energetic and healing food properties that soybeans have to offer.
In Health To You As Always.
Gayle and Jaime / Wholly Macro
Yet in Asia, soy has been eaten for hundreds, if not thousands of generations, without any evidence of adverse effects. In fact, it has been well documented and correlated, that the high amount of soy in the Asian diet protects Asian women from breast cancer. It is well known that Asian women have a much lower incidence of breast cancer than American women do.
We must deduct then, that all soy is not the same. And this in fact, could not be truer. There are numerous unhealthy soy products on the market today. And very few traditionally made whole soybean foods. There is a difference.
In it’s natural state, the soybean is a nutritionally dense source of the essential amino acids, making it a complete source in and of it’s own, of protein. It also contains valuable phyto nutrients such as isoflavones that have been found to protect the body against not only breast cancer, but prostate and colon cancer as well. Isoflavones, naturally occurring in soybeans, also protect against menopausal symptoms, heart disease, and osteoporosis.
But rather than use the WHOLE soybean, in as close to it’s natural state as possible, the manufactured food industry has isolated the soybeans valuable compounds, and added them to soy food products such as so called “healthy” candy bars, powdered drinks, chips, crackers, cookies, and other junk, excuse me, snack foods, soy cheeses, soy yogurt (often full of sugar), soy ice cream (also almost always full of sugar), soy butter / margarine, flavored soy milk (please read the label, you will find many of these to be full of sugar as well), and as generalized food fillers. If you are reading this and thinking that the health food industry is “crazy”, and that you are safe because you don’t eat the so called “healthy” foods that turn out to be filled with isolated soy fillers, think again. Non-organic, genetically engineered isolated soy fillers are found in all kinds of processed and packaged non health food store foods as well, from regular ice cream, to regular hot dogs, to instant mashed potatoes, to canned soups, and on and on.
These isolated soy compounds lack the supporting vitamins, minerals, fiber, proteins, complex carbohydrates, and other plant substances found in the natural and whole soybean. They act differently in the body when the known and unknown substances present in whole soybeans do not support them. I mean, who are we, as mere humans, to think that we can isolate the components and properties of foods, and re-create / package them, thinking that we can do a better job than Mother Nature does, when there are as yet, hundreds upon hundreds of nutrients we humans have yet to even discover. Also, the amount and concentration of some of the soybeans isolated compounds, as used in manufactured foods, far exceeds what is present in whole and natural soybeans, and therefore cannot be compared to real, whole, traditionally prepared, cooked and / or fermented soy foods, such as dried black and yellow soybeans, miso, tofu, tempeh, and shoyu soy sauce.
There are numerous, numerous health benefits in the above mentioned traditionally prepared real soy foods. Fermentation itself is one. Through natural fermentation, healthy digestive and intestinal probiotics are formed, and can be accessed for our bodies’ health, by eating fermented soybeans such as tempeh, shoyu, tofu, and miso. And for every benefit of eating the traditional soy foods, there are equally detrimental effects from eating soy products, many of which do not stem from the innocent soybean itself, but rather from the commercial processing of the soybean, the isolation of its compounds, and the many unhealthy ingredients it is combined with in the resulting products.
Some basic food principles never change. I have written about these basic food rules before: Eat real food, or food in as close to it’s real and natural state as possible. Here is a huge hint: Real food has very little in the way of ingredients on its label. We buy tofu and tempeh already prepared, because, 1.very high quality tofu and tempeh are available fortunately, and 2.the method in which tofu and tempeh are prepared is somewhat lengthy and involved. And miso and shoyu take years to make, literally, no exaggeration, as they are not only fermented, but aged as well. Very few of us have the time, Wholly Macro included, the physical space, or know how, although we actually do know how to make to make these valuable soy foods from scratch here at Wholly Macro. (The knowledge that is, but not the time or space). And these are not ready to eat food products. They are one step in the utilization of whole soybeans, into a ready and waiting food, for any of us to come along and get creative with, turning them into beautiful and healthy dishes, by means of cooking, pureeing, combining them, or similar, with other healthy whole foods such as grains, vegetables, fruits, soups, etc.
We are not sure how we all got soy confused, but do hope this offers a bit of clarification. It hurts our hearts when we hear people group the valuable and traditional whole soy foods that we use exclusively here at Wholly Macro, into the same category as cheap, commercial, and misleading, chemically laden, imitation soy products. It behooves us all to know the difference. Otherwise we miss out completely on the valuable and health giving energetic and healing food properties that soybeans have to offer.
In Health To You As Always.
Gayle and Jaime / Wholly Macro