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Article: Benefits and Risks of Soy.
- Article from:
- Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients
- Article date:
- November 1, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 The Townsend Letter Group. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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In recent years, there has been an increasing amount of evidence that soy consumption may help prevent a wide range of health conditions, particularly cardiovascular disease, some hormone-dependent cancers, menopausal hot flashes, and postmenopausal osteoporosis. The evidence that soy protein can lower elevated serum cholesterol is now sufficiently compelling that the Food and Drug Administration allows such a "health claim" to be made for soy.
On the other hand, certain problems can result from consumption of excessive amounts of soy. At least two compounds present in soy (phytate and one or more other unidentified substances) are capable of inhibiting the ...