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Episode 2924:
Drinking soy milk is not only safe but may offer several health benefits, including reducing inflammation, lowering bad cholesterol, and even protecting against certain cancers. Concerns about soy affecting thyroid function or hormone levels are largely unfounded for most people, though those taking thyroid medication should avoid consuming soy around the same time as their dose. If soy milk works well for digestion and fits your lifestyle, there's no reason to avoid it, enjoy it as a nutritious alternative to dairy.
Quotes to ponder:
"Consuming soy milk, tofu, soybeans, and so on is perfectly fine for most folks. It may actually prevent many chronic diseases like certain forms of cancer, and cardiovascular disease, and protect the health of the brain."
"Soy may have these health benefits because it contains compounds called isoflavones, thought to reduce inflammation in the body."
"Consuming soy products does not lead to thyroid problems, but for those that have a diagnosed thyroid condition and are taking medications for it, it is wise to avoid consuming soy-based foods around the same time you take your thyroid meds."
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[00:00:00] It's another Q&A edition of Optimal Health Daily and I'm Dr. Neal Malik. Hey there, you survived another week. Happy Friday and welcome to another Q&A edition of Optimal Health Daily where I answer your health questions related to fitness, diet and nutrition and lots more. You send in the questions and I answer them for you. As I always say, I want this to be a place where I can bust myths, where you can ask me questions about things you may have heard about but aren't quite sure if it's true,
[00:00:26] so that I don't just respond with my opinion but rather what does the real data out there say. It's great to be passionate about health and wellness like I am, but sometimes that's not enough. Sometimes you have to do a little bit of research, a little bit of digging to make sure that the information you're getting is actually accurate. So with that, I'm sure you're very eager to hear today's question. So let's hear it as we optimize your life.
[00:00:56] Hi, my name is Anna and I have a question for the Optimal Health Daily, Dr. Malik. I live in Japan. I'm going to school here and the common milk here is soy milk instead of dairy milk. So I ended up drinking that more and it also fits better with my body digestion wise.
[00:01:15] But I've heard that it's not actually good for humans because it does weird things to thyroid and also maybe raises estrogen levels to an odd level. So I'm wondering if you could clarify whether I should be drinking soy milk or not and what other milks I could try if it's not good. So thank you. Thank you for your question, Anna. And thank you for listening to the podcast.
[00:01:41] I still remember cruising along the dairy aisles when I was still in school and there would be only one brand of soy milk available. Well, that was a while ago. And usually there was plenty of it, meaning nobody was buying it. People would complain that it tasted odd or maybe it wasn't sweet enough or the texture wasn't quite right. And when I say people said it tasted odd, I'm actually being kind. They used much harsher words.
[00:02:05] Now there are so many options and food manufacturers continue to improve the taste of soy milk and other non-dairy varieties. Sometimes they can't even keep them on the shelves. Say we were to compare soy milk to cow's milk from a nutrient perspective. We'll find that soy milk compared to some other non-dairy varieties does come closest. So from a nutrients perspective, in addition to calories, we only tend to focus on two nutrients in cow's milk, protein and calcium.
[00:02:33] So if you were to drink non-flavored soy milk, basically those with no vanilla or chocolate added, the amount of protein per serving will be close to cow's milk. But soy milk is often slightly higher in calories per serving and lower in calcium. Unless during manufacturing, the companies add extra calcium, which we call fortification. Now if we were to compare almond milk to cow's milk, almond milk may be lower in calories, protein and calcium.
[00:02:59] If we were to compare coconut milk to cow's milk, we'd usually find that it's higher in calories because of the higher fat content and lower in calcium and lower in protein. So again, it sounds like soy is probably the closest to cow's milk when we think about in the context of calories and protein, but it may be lower in calcium depending on whether the companies fortify their soy milk with it. Now the question is, are there actually benefits to drinking soy milk or consuming soy-based products?
[00:03:27] Now you know me, I like to look at what the research says, so let's dive in. Some studies have found that consuming soy early in life may lower the risk of breast cancer later. There are also some data that suggest that consuming soy products may lower bad cholesterol levels, also called LDL cholesterol, in the blood. Now soy may have these health benefits because it contains compounds called isoflavones.
[00:03:53] Isoflavones are found in many plant-based foods, soy of course being one of them. But you can also find isoflavones in other beans and legumes. It's thought that these isoflavones reduce inflammation in the body. This is a good thing because when we're stressed or are sick or have a chronic disease, the body is experiencing some inflammation. Think of this inflammation like a fire. When you're really sick, like with a bad case of the flu, there's often lots of inflammation,
[00:04:21] which is why you may have a sore throat, a runny nose, muscle pain, you might run a fever, etc. This is all caused by the body trying to fight off the flu. And these symptoms are a result of inflammation. And in this case, the inflammation is like a raging fire. You feel pretty awful. Eventually, that fire will be extinguished and our symptoms will go away. And so the inflammation is now gone.
[00:04:47] But sometimes we can have a lower grade inflammation that goes on for years and years. For example, those that suffer from a lot of stress may have low grade inflammation for years and years if they don't manage to cope with their stress. Think of this like a small campfire that never gets put out. It just continues to burn. Eventually, that slow burn will start to damage the body. So isoflavones act like a fire extinguisher. They can help reduce this inflammation in the body.
[00:05:17] And sure enough, when we look at the research, isoflavones found in soy may help protect the health of our blood vessels, like our arteries, may promote bone health, and even prevent dementia. As far as soy isoflavones acting like estrogen in the body, we're finding that this doesn't seem to be the case. I know that guys often worry about consuming soy products because they're afraid of the estrogen-like effects, but have no fear. Researchers have even gone so far to study women who have had a history of breast cancer
[00:05:44] and whether consuming soy makes them feel worse or whether it increases their risk of having their cancer come back. And it turns out, consuming soy may actually decrease the risk for having a recurrence of breast cancer. So what about those with thyroid conditions? Consuming soy products does not lead to thyroid problems, but for those that have a diagnosed thyroid condition and are taking medications for it, it is wise to avoid consuming soy-based foods around the same time you take your thyroid meds.
[00:06:14] This is because it's possible it may interfere with the drug's effectiveness. So the bottom line is that consuming soy milk, tofu, soybeans, and so on is perfectly fine for most folks. It may actually prevent many chronic diseases like certain forms of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and protect the health of the brain. So, enjoy your soy. Thank you again for your question, Ana. Now, if you want to send your questions in
[00:06:42] and get a copy of our Optimal Living Daily Workbook for doing so, you can email them to health at oldpodcast.com. That's health at oldpodcast.com. Or, if you want your voice played on the show, come by oldpodcast.com slash ask. Or, you can do it the old-fashioned way and call in your question. The number is 161-ILOVE-OHD.
[00:07:10] That's 1-614-568-3643. Thank you so much for sending me your questions. Answering them is one of my favorite parts of this show. Alright, that's another Q&A edition of Optimal Health Daily. Thank you so much for listening every day and all the way through. I hope you have a great start to your weekend, and I'll see you back here tomorrow where your optimal life awaits.