Does Soy Cause Cancer?

The real answer to this question is “it’s complicated,” but Lauren breaks down the current research and evidence for you.

I’m Lauren, this is BrainStuff, and our question today is “Does soy cause cancer?” I wanna be awkwardly straightforward here: The answer is “it’s complicated”. But I’m gonna break down the current research and evidence for you.

First, let’s talk about soy. It’s pretty cheap to cultivate because it yields a lot of edible stuff per acre.

You can cook and eat soybeans, of course, but you can also process them into soy sauce, miso paste, soy oil, soy milk, tofu, fat-free soy meal and etc., or even isolate out particular compounds.

Each type of soy product has (obviously) different nutritional properties. So saying that soy as a whole “does” anything is treading on shaky ground.

But! One of the things that soy can do is act like estrogen in your body. That’s because soybeans contain particles called isoflavones, which are chemically similar to estrogens. They’re less potent than estrogen, but similar enough that isoflavones can fit into cellular receptors that were designed for estrogen.

For example, breast tissue cells contain estrogen receptors. And sometimes, when a li’l chunk of estrogen locks into one of those receptors, it causes a chain reaction that encourages cancerous tumor growth.

But isoflavones can block it from happening! If isoflavones get to those receptors first, the estrogen can’t lock in and set off the tumorous reaction.

Isoflavones can also spur cells to produce a protein that binds to free-roaming estrogen in your body, meaning it has a hard time locking into receptors. And isoflavones can even prevent estrogen from forming in fat tissue the first place.

So eating soy food products may help prevent some cancer. And yes, research backs this up. In medical studies following large populations of women for many years, eating a variety of soy stuff as part of your normal diet has been found to either have no association with breast cancer or sometimes to protect against it.

Now, there are laboratory studies with mice and rats that have linked cancer specifically to two types of soy protein isolates and to high doses of isoflavones.

But mice are not men.

We need more research to determine whether the same link is present in humans, and if so, at what levels of consumption. Important note: The soy isolates used in these studies aren’t what go into our food – though they are similar to soy supplement pills.

There are so many factors involved in diet and lifestyle and cancer. It’s nigh impossible to link any food to cancer definitively at our current level of knowledge.

But basically, science says that it’s safe to eat a moderate amount of soy products, cancerwise. You just probably shouldn’t take soy supplements until we learn more about how they affect us.

SOURCES:

[ferrisromero]

This Vulcan woman seems very knowledgeable.

[ReikaSensei]

Considering how many Asian countries locations have soy as a regular part of their food supply for centuries and also have the highest average life expectancy, I want to really venture more on the side of no and think that there's probably more health benefits to them than negative side effects with a balanced diet and maybe even soy source.

[siegfriedfurtwanglerknappe]

The conclusion is a very common one: Natural soy products have not been linked to an increase of cancer, and sometimes even to a reduction in cancer risk. Processed soy may be dangerous. People should apply this concept globally and try to reduce their intake of processed foods.

[lizzyschmechel]

I drink soy milk everyday and I absolutely love it!

[Pieterjanvdhd]

Oxygen causes cancer but I dont see anyone worrying about that.

[johnnycinco]

"It's complicated" meaning yes? Since it's obviously not a no.

[Energizer-qq]

I heard that people who take medication to treat their thyroid condition SHOULD avoid soy. Is this true ?

[SelenaC_anime]

Two separate times at my house, we accidentally bought the wrong brand of soy sauce. It tasted terrible. Once we got some of the good sauce, tasting it again felt like heaven.

Moral of the story: Asians cannot live without good soy sauce.

[surigeez]

Omg!! I’ve been drinking soy milk for about 6 months because I’m lactose intolerant 😭😭. Will it affect me in a negative way?

[SangoProductions]

Ha! It was designed for estrogen! God 1, Science 0.

[movesguy]

Soy means "I am" in Spanish. LOL

[longhairbear]

Soy in more than moderate amounts trigger migraines for me, so I avoid it, especially Soy sauce. Soy sauce almost always triggers a migraine for me.

[imbecile]

The take home is clear: supplements bad, whole foods good.

[miguelbaeza]

Here's a good question to solve, what's the difference between FM and AM radio frequencies? BrainStuff - HowStuffWorks

[Qermaq]

With your hair up, you remind me of Audrey Hepburn.

[mohitkuumar]

how often should a woman eat soy to prevent breast cancer and have breast growth?

[shanzashai]

In my opinion soy cumception is not good for pri menupause woman because estrogen can take more benefits in young age.

[allennguyen]

my dad accidentally switiched the soy sauce for garlic vinegar
"DAD WTF IS THIS"

[erickreveles]

phytoestrogens in modern foods and its effects on men. please! definitely interested in how you guys will put this research to words

[mikeoftheages]

What about soy that is produced in the USA? considering that the majority of it has some sort of genetic modification are there any known advantages or draw backs to consuming such a product in any of its variations? Or haw about an episode on GMO's in general?