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Vol. 7, No. 1
February 19, 2002

Soyfoods USA ...a monthly e-mail newsletter designed to inform media sources, dietitians, and consumers about the latest soyfoods information.

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CONTENTS

1. Soy Research Update
2. Allergies and Soy Review
3. Recipes
_ Soy Breakfast Burrito
_ Sausage Noodle Casserole
_ Chili Mac Skillet
4. Getting on and off our list

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SOY RESEARCH UPDATE

By Mark Messina, Ph. D., Adjunct Associate Professor
Dept. Nutrition, Loma Linda University
President, Nutrition Matters, Inc.

The momentum propelling soyfoods into becoming part of mainstream American diets continues to build. As has been the case for the past 10 years, positive research findings are the key to the mainstreaming of soy but progress could not be made without industry providing convenient user friendly products that consumers find acceptable. Increasingly, large well established food companies have either taken ownership in soyfood companies or begun marketing their own soy products.

Considerable insight into the health effects of soy has been gained within just the past couple of years. One reason for this is that in the field of steroid biochemistry much has been learned about the interactions between estrogen and the estrogen receptors. For example, it is now known that there are two estrogen receptors (estrogen receptor alpha and estrogen receptor beta) and that the relative amount of each receptor varies among tissues. This is important because isoflavones bind to ERB to a much greater extent than ERA. This helps explain why isoflavones appear to exert estrogen-like effects in some tissues, such as the bones, but in other tissues, such as the endometrium, either have no effects or possible antiestrogenic effects. For this reason, some experts now consider isoflavones to be natural selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs), just like the breast cancer drug tamoxifen and the osteoporosis drug, raloxifene. 

A second reason for increased understanding of soy is that the amount of human research in this field has increased markedly. Regardless of how well accepted a particular animal model may be, there are always concerns about extrapolating the findings from animal studies to humans. The human studies obviously eliminate that uncertainty. Nevertheless, many of the proposed health benefits of soy will require much more research before definitive conclusions can be drawn. But because there is no downside to eating soy, and plenty of proven and potential upside, there is absolutely no reason for health professionals not to recommend that all Americans consume at least one serving of soy daily.

Because soyfoods have received so much attention for their role in menopausal health, the possibility that soy consumption might reduce risk of developing prostate cancer has not received the attention it deserves. At the recently held _Fourth International Symposium on the Role of Soy in Preventing and Treating Chronic Disease_ in San Diego, California, one of the most exciting presentations focused on isoflavones and prostate cancer. In this small six-month study, isoflavone supplements favorably affected prostate specific antigen levels (PSA) in men with uncontrolled prostate cancer. An elevated PSA level is a good indicator of prostate cancer. That isoflavones had effects in cancer patients suggests soy may truly have an important role in prostate cancer prevention. 

Also, two studies presented at the symposium confirmed an observation that was first reported in human subjects back in 1988. When soy protein is substituted for animal protein, urinary calcium excretion is reduced. This source of this calcium is the bone, thus soy protein causes less bone breakdown. This is because soy protein has lower amounts of two amino acids, methionine and cysteine, than animal proteins. All other things being equal, substituting soy protein for animal protein should improve bone health. Of course, the isoflavones may also have direct beneficial effects on bone health, but results from studies presented at the symposium were conflicting. There was no dispute however about soy protein lowering cholesterol and having beneficial effects on kidney function.

Despite the overwhelming amount of data indicating soy has no adverse effects when consumed by healthy adults, some concerns have arisen about the safety of soy. For example, one epidemiologic study found that Japanese men and women residing in Hawaii who consumed about 2-4 servings of tofu per week were twice as likely to experience cognitive impairment when elderly compared to non-tofu consumers. In contrast, animal studies suggest that soy and isoflavones generally have favorably effects on cognition. More importantly, two studies presented at the fourth symposium found that soy favorably affected cognition. In one, healthy young men and women who consumed a high soy diet for 10 weeks experienced an improvement in short-term and long-term memory and mental flexibility. In the other study, postmenopausal women who were given a daily isoflavone supplement for 6 months experienced an improvement in verbal memory in comparison with the placebo group. These studies certainly help to allay any fears that soy has adverse effects on cognition and offer hope that soy might exert important benefits. 

Another area of debate is whether women with breast cancer should consume soy because of concerns that isoflavones might stimulate the growth of tumors. Again, the results from two year-long studies presented at the symposium are reassuring. One found that in premenopausal women isoflavone supplements had no effects on breast tissue density, whereas the other found that in women aged 56-65 years, isoflavone supplements decreased density. Agents such as estrogen that increase breast cancer risk increase density, whereas those that decrease risk, such as the breast cancer drug tamoxifen, decrease density. Thus, these two isoflavone studies suggest soy either has no effect on breast cancer risk, or decreases it.

Finally, when looking at all of the evidence, it seems clear that the American public would benefit if soy protein made a larger contribution to total U.S. dietary protein intake than it currently does. At the turn of the century, the ratio of plant to animal protein was approximately 1:1; today that ratio is about 1:2. Replacing some of the animal protein in the U.S. diet with soy protein would help to restore the balance of animal to plant protein to a more favorable ratio. Consuming soyfoods in amounts that provide approximately 10 g/d of soy protein, which is similar to Asian intake, holds the potential to exert health benefits while still only representing no more than 10-15 percent of total U.S. protein intake.

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ALLERGIES AND SOY REVIEW

Clare M. Hasler, Ph. D., has posted at the Soy and Human Health Forum a new review of soy protein and allergies. The review can be found at...

http://web.aces.uiuc.edu/faq/faq.pdl?project_id=5&faq_id=917

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RECIPES...

SOY BREAKFAST BURRITO

Vegetable cooking spray
6 eggs
1/4 cup plain soymilk
2 Tbs minced onion
1/4 tsp ground sage
1/4 tsp ground thyme
1/4 tsp pepper
1 Tbs soybean oil
1 package (14 oz) soy sausage (such as Gimme Lean)
8 large flour tortillas
Salsa
Shredded soy cheese (cheddar)

·Coat electric skillet or wok (or skillet on stovetop) with cooking spray.
·Heat over medium heat. Mix eggs, soymilk, onion, sage, thyme and pepper in bowl.
·Pour into heated skillet and cook, stirring frequently, until eggs are cooked and scrambled. Scoop out eggs and set aside.
·Heat oil in skillet and add soy sausage. Cook until heated throughout and breaking sausage up into crumbles.
·Add scrambled eggs to sausage and stir until mixed. Serve immediately with flour tortillas. Add salsa and shredded soy cheese if desired.

Makes about 4 cups egg-sausage mixture. Per _ cup serving on 1 flour tortilla: 300 calories, 17 g protein (12 g soy protein), 37 g carbohydrate, 9 g fat, 2 g sat fat, 160 mg cholesterol, 67 mg calcium, 611 mg sodium, 4 g dietary fiber.

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SAUSAGE NOODLE CASSEROLE

4 cups uncooked extra wide egg noodles
1 (14 oz.) log of soy sausage crumbles
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tsp garlic, minced
1/2 cup soymilk
1 (10.75 oz) can cream of celery soup
1 (10.75 oz) can cream of mushroom soup
1 8 oz. package soy cheddar cheese
1 Tbs vegetable oil

·Cook egg noodles according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
·Cook soy sausage crumbles, onion, garlic in vegetable oil until onion is tender.
·Mix crumble mixture, noodles, soups, milk, and 1/2 package of cheese together.
·Place mixture in casserole, sprinkle top with remaining cheese.
·Reheat covered casserole in microwave for 4 minutes, high power or until cheese is melted.

12 servings. Per serving: 230 calories, 6.7 g fat (1.0 g sat fat), 1.5 cholesterol, 22 g carbohydrate, 2.9 g dietary fiber, 15.7 g protein (6 g soy protein), 903 mg sodium.

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CHILI MAC SKILLET

1 bag (12 oz) soy burger style crumbles
1 cup chopped onions
1 can (15 oz) yellow soybeans
1 1/2 cans (15 oz) tomato sauce, drained
1 can (15 oz) crushed or diced tomatoes
1 cup uncooked soy macaroni
1/2 cup water
1 can (4.5 oz) chopped green chili peppers, drained
1 Tbs chili powder
1 tsp minced garlic
2 cups (8 oz bag) shredded soy cheddar-flavored cheese

Makes 8 cups (5 servings of 1 2/3 cups each) Per serving: 470 calories, 13 g fat (1 g sat fat), 40 g protein (22 g soy protein), 50 g carbohydrate, 2128 mg sodium, 0 mg cholesterol, 391 mg calcium, 10 g dietary fiber.

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Permission is granted to reprint this information, as long as credit is given to Soyfoods USA http://soyfoods.com

Send comments or requests for information about Soyfoods USA to the editor, Roger Stevens, info@soyfoods.com

Back issues available at http://www.soyfoods.com/newsletter/old/OldSUSA.html

More information about soyfoods can be found at the U.S. Soyfoods Directory http://soyfoods.com

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Copyright 2002
Stevens & Associates, Inc.