SOY

SOYFOOD FOR YOUR GOOD HEALTH

Food as medicine-Natural medicine-Anti-aging series

The more I learned about natural medicine the more I am appreciated the soy foods. So I recommend anyone consume soy products as much you can. Let me summarized what I learned for you.

Soybeans has been cultivated and consumed by Chinese people for more than. 5000 years. . Soybeans were introduced to United stated since early1900. We did not know too much about health benefit of soy products until during the past 10 years. Since then we learned more about PHYTOCHEMICAL, PHYTOESTOGEN. We learned that soybeans contain many chemical properties that might prevent many medical conditions including:

CORONARY HEART DISEASE

CANCER

MACULAR DEGENERATIONSTEOPOROSIS

DIABETES MELITUS

KIDNEY DISEASE

GALL STONE

MENOPAUSAL SYNDROME, HOTFLUSHES

Soy foods will improve your

MEMORY

SEXLIFE

Soy foods produce from soybean, the legume family. Soy products are 1.WHOLE SOYBEANS, which can be broiled, or toasted as the snacks and soy sprout

2.SOYMILK make from soy flour

3 SOY PROTEIN as textured vegetable protein (TVP) and to make as a soy protein drink and shake.

4.TOFU just like cheese but make from soymilk

5.OKARA, the pulp of soaked soybean after squeezed liquid part out .it is rich of fiber and protein. using for soy burgers

6.YOBA.the thick surface of warm heated soymilk to use as snack chip.

7.TEMPEH, the cooked soybean with the mold culture.

8.MISO is soybean mixed with rice grain, salt and mold culture.

9.SOY SAUCE is a fermented soy product

10. NATTO is a fermented whole soybean in straw

Soybeans contain many nutritional values

1.A good source of. FIBER if product process from whole soybean such as OKARA or SOY FLOUR up to 5 gm. Per 1 tablespoonful.

2.The quality of the soy protein is almost as good as the protein from animal source except lacking of METHIONINE,one of essential amino acid (this can be added if eat with grain based foods such as rice pasta or bread).

3.A good source of phytochemicals or phytonutrients:

ISOFLAVONES, antioxidants and phytoestrogen (natural female hormone) such as GENISTEIN, DAIDZEIN, GLYCITEIN help to prevent CANCER BREAST, UTERUS AND PROSTATE as well as prevent of OSTEOPOROSIS

SAPONIN enhances immune function, limiting cholesterol absorption from the guts.

PHYTOSTEROLS or plant sterol helps to block absorption of animal cholesterol

PROTEASE INHIBITORS help to block enzymes that can cause cancer.

PHYTIC ACID (IP6 or Inositol hexaphosphate) work as ANTIOXIDANT to block the development of cancer.

4.SOY OIL contain fair amount of omega3 fatty acid

5.Phosphatidyl serine (PS) is very important phospholipid of the brain to maintain and improve our memory

6.Phosphatidyl choline also important chemical in detoxify the toxic substances from the liver

7.Arginine an amino acid that very rich in soy protein, Arginine is the raw material that the body need for production of nitric oxide a very important chemical that relax endothelial wall

CANCER and the SOY

As we learned from the orients that the incidence of cancer of prostate, breast and others are a lot less than the people of the United states .The researchers believed SOY FOOD is the most likely cause of this differences.

Before we can understand how Soybean can help prevent cancer we have to understand how CANCER or MALIGNANT TUMOR grow. We have to learn about three basic steps that cause cancer.

Step 1. INITIATION causing cancerous changes in the cell. These including FREE RADICALS, free OXYGEN ATOMS that release during the normal processing of OXYGEN for utilization for energy.

CHEMICALS enter body as PROCARCINOGENS which will be broken down by PHASE 1 ENZYMES in the liver. These end products are capable of damaging of DNA. The liver also produces second enzymes called PHASE II ENZYMES to cart off the dangerous residue phase I leave behind

Step 2 PROMOTION: If the first-line of defenses fail and a cell undergoes potentially cancerous changes. The cell will dividing rapidly. Linoleic acids(omega-6) seem to promote rapid cell division. Sex hormones such as Estrogen also promote the growth of the reproductive tissues derived tumors

Step 3. PROGRESSION: Once all defenses fail the cells start to multiply many times and form as a tumor. The tumor will need nutrients to grow further. So tumor cells will release growth factors that promote the development of new blood vessels,this process called ANGIOGENESIS.

Many kind of foods we eat especially the fruits and vegetables include SOY BEAN have many roles in controlling and retarding the growth of tumor.

Here are the few known substances in soybeans that important in retarding and preventing cancer.

2. 1.SOY ISOFLAVONES

3. GENISTEIN a soy isoflavone,the phytochemical that found only in soybean After alter some what by bacteria in the digestive tract. It will act like weak estrogen called phytoestrogen.Genistein will compete for the same estrogen receptors therefore less receptor for natural estrogen(CANCER PROMOTER) to act.(step2) Estrogen dependent cancer will not grow without Estrogen.Genistein act as ANTIOXIDANT that protect our body from free radicals.(step1)

4. Genistein also inhibits the tumor growth factor that promote angiogenesis (Step 3).Genistein also prevent cancer by promote diffentiate cancer cells to act like a normal cells.Genistein is also likely to prevent of spreading of cancer by blocking an enzyme called TYROSINE PROTEIN KINASE which cancer cells use during accelerated growth

5. Other soy isoflavones, DAIDZEIN and GLYCITEIN also work similar to genistein.

7. 2.SOY PHYTATE orPHYTIC ACID or IP6 (INOSITOL HEXAPHOSPHATE). IP6,is abundant in high fiber diets beside soy bean ,these including rice wheat. corn, oats, other beans, peanuts, sesame.

a. As we learn from nature that the seeds of certain plants can be viable(survive and grow) for 400 years. One reason for such longevity may be IP6.PHOSPHOROUS is very important chemical for ENERGY need for all cells and for germinating seeds.

b. IP6 supply phosphorous

c. IP6 act like antioxidant by chelating excessive mineral such as IRON.Iron is essential in respiration(FENTON REACTION) in the cell’ sMITOCHONDRIA.If in exess will create free radical called HYDROXYL RADICALS(OH) which will damage the cell membrane or phospholipids such as PHOSPHATIDYL INOSITOL.This stop subsequently harmful reaction called lipid peroxdation and therefore prevent cancer.

d. IP6 also increase CALCIUM absorption into the cells.Calcium supplement has been proved to prevent tumor growth.

e. IP6 also boosting the activity of NATURAL KILLER CELLS(NK),the cellar immunity,the LYMPHOCYTES that can kill tumor cells(NK-CELL CYTOTOXICITY).

f. IP6 with or without INOSITOL cause the cancer cells to behave normally by make the cancer cells to mature

g. IP6 structure is very similar a potent inhibitor of the enzyme called PHOSPHOTIDYL INNOSITOL-3 KINASE which activated the tumor growth factor called PROTEIN-1(AP1). So IP6 inhibit the growth of tumor by this mechanism.

h. 3.PROTEASE INHIBITORS contained in raw soy known to interfere with the digestion of dietary protein In 1980 scientist found that protease inhibitors cancer growth of many organs in animals by prevent the activation of the specific genes that cause cancer as well as protect against the damaging effects of radiation and free radicals which can attack DNA. In cooked soy food most of the protease inhibitors will be destroyed by heat but just a few percentages left enough to inhibit cancer growth without interfering with protein absorption.

i. 4..SAPONINS a form of fiber in soybeans also act like antioxidants, which will prevent mutations of the cells that lead to cancer.

j. 5.PHYTOSTEROLS,the sterol from soy bean. Just like cholesterol from animal foods. Phytosterols will not absorp by our digestive tract very well. And will interfere with bile acids reabsorption from large intestine and has been proved to reduce the developmemt of colon tumors.

k. 6.PHENOLIC ACIDS in soy beans also work as antioxidants to prevent cancer.

l. 7. OMEGA-3 FATTY ACID in soy beans which known to compete with omega-6 fatty acid that promote cancer growth..

m. 8.LECITHIN in soy bean also proved to reduce lung tumors.

SOY AND YOUR CIRCULATION

As mention before soybean contains many phytochemicals,essential fatty acids,essential aminoacids.

Soy products have been proved to prevent artheriosclerosis due to phytochemical so called genistein which reducing blood cholesterol by 15 percents