Soy

A friend asked me about consuming a lot of soy and all the controversy about it. I pulled the following studies. I think based on these studies that soy is like any other healthy food. For instance, Vit -D is good for you right? Eat too much and you die. It is simple. Though, most healthy foods do not kill you. You would not fair well if you ate the same thing day in and day out.

Human's are designed to eat a balanced diet to the best of their ability. One goat was meant to feed a family of 10 (small portions). On the other hand everyone may of had their fill of potatoes. But we are at our best when we eat a balanced meal. So, I have no problem with my family having a couple servings of soy each day. But mix it up. If your family drinks a lot of soy milk, serve rice based ice creme. On days when you serve soy tofu and soy sauce, hand out glasses of rice milk, hemp milk, oat milk, almond milk or water. In my house we are big soy milk drinkers and soy yogurt consumers. But our cheese is goat, sheep or cow and our icecreme (usually do not have desert) is dairy. From what I have read, soy is a problem if you eat a lot of processed foods. The soy is not the real problem, but the delusion held by consumers, thinking a processed food still may contain the healthy goodness the adds claim, though it no longer resembles the original soy bean. In addition if you have cancer, back off the soy...I would eat as many fruits and veggies as I could if cancer was an issue. No cancer = eat soy, Have Cancer = run the other way.


NON Fermented Soy - (Soy milk, Soy bean nuggets, Soy bergers, proceded foods, etc)

Soy Milk Lowers Blood Pressure - Journal of Nutrition (2002;132:1900–2)

Drinking soy milk regularly may lead to substantial reductions of blood pressure in individuals with high blood pressure, according to a new study in the Journal of Nutrition (2002;132:1900–2). Matt Brignall, ND is a graduate of the University of Michigan and Bastyr University.

No to Soy Supplements - Georgetown University

"meta-analysis does not find enough benefits to recommend use of soy supplements according to Leena Hilakivi-Clarke, Ph.D., a professor of oncology at Georgetown University's Lombardi Comprehensive cancer Center who studies the role of food-based estrogens in cancer prevention. She cautions against overuse of soy supplements, particularly by women at high risk for breast cancer or by breast cancer survivors."

Soy milk and Tofu (curd) - Cancer Research UK

"Researchers from Cancer Research UK, the National University of Singapore and the National Cancer Institute found that consumption of soy milk and tofu (soybean curd) may reduce the risk of breast cancer by as much as 60 percent, reports the Nando Times." Novemebr 2002

"Many cases of cancer are largely caused by the way estrogen acts on breast tissue, and the researchers speculate that the isoflavones in soy may block estrogen in the breast. "

Effect of soy milk consumption on serum estrogen concentrations in premenopausal Japanese women - 1998

Department of Public Health, Gifu University School of Medicine, Japan.

RESULTS: At the end of the study period, estrone and estradiol levels were decreased by 23% and 27%, respectively, in the soy milk-supplemented group and were increased by 0.6% and 4%, respectively, in the control group. The changes for each hormone between the two groups were not statistically significantly different. In the soy milk-supplemented group, menstrual cycle length was increased by nearly 2 days, and, in the control group, it was decreased by approximately 1 day, a difference that was not statistically significant. A subgroup analysis restricted to subjects who provided follicular-phase blood samples on the same day or 1 day apart in menstrual cycles 1 and 3 showed a reduction in serum estrone levels in the soy milk-supplemented group that was of borderline statistical significance (P = .07 for change in serum estrone level in soy milk -supplemented group versus control group).

CONCLUSION: Much larger studies will be required to confirm the ability of soy products to reduce serum estrogen levels.

Interesting Person: Lee-Jane Lu, PhD, associate professor, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston

The following link is to Lu's profile page which includes studies she is working on.

http://www.utmb.edu/pmch/Divisions/nutrition/Lu/Lu.htm

Soy protein has a greater effect on bone in postmenopausal women not on hormone replacement therapy, as evidenced by reducing bone resorption and urinary calcium excretion

"Recent reports suggest that soy protein may reduce the risk of osteoporosis in peri- and postmenopausal women. The objective of this study was to examine whether soy supplementation exerts beneficial effects on serum and urinary biomarkers of bone metabolism in postmenopausal women, regardless of whether or not they are on hormone replacement therapy (HRT)"

Departments of Nutritional Sciences (B.H.A., D.A.K., B.J.S., E.A.L., S.J.) and Statistics (M.E.P.), Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma 74078; and Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology (R.A.W.), University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73190

Say no to soy if you have cancer

"Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign recently announced results of research suggesting that the highly purified soy foods and soy supplements marketed in the United States may promote the growth of some pre-existing breast cancers. The study results, to be published in a future issue of the journal Carcinogenesis, showed that breast tumors in mice grew when the animals were fed highly processed soy products missing some of the natural components of whole soybeans."

Everything is Reusable

I can not believe all the recycled materials that are being used and turned into fabulous Eco Chic totes, grocery bags and yes, handbags. I never was a handbag person. When I finally gave up my backpack at 28 years old, I went to a messenger bag. Even if you do not use handbags you need to check out this site because it is an inspiration. For me, as a consumer, it has set a new standard that daily used products can easily be made from recycled materials.

They are as beautiful as they are diverse. I think that is why I like these bags so much. I will be buying a bag in the future now that I found ones that let me make my own statement; Give me design and Eco Friendly all in one !

Check them out

P.S. No, I do not make a commission off these bags. And we need to support artist who use recycled matterials.

Vaccines - Aluminum Injections Studies

There has been very little research into Aluminum toxicity. Here are the few I know of.

PEDIATRICS Magazine (Vol. 97, 1996, pp. 413-416)
"In 1996, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a position paper on Aluminum Toxicity in Infants and Children which stated in the first paragraph, “Aluminum is now being implicated as interfering with a variety of cellular and metabolic processes in the nervous system and in other tissues.[3]"


Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN)
"Federal Register of January 26, 2000 (65 FR 4103), aluminum content in parenteral drug products could result in a toxic accumulation of aluminum in the tissues of individuals receiving TPN therapy. Research indicates that neonates and patient populations with impaired kidney function may be at high risk of exposure to unsafe amounts of aluminum. Studies show that aluminum may accumulate in the bone, urine, and plasma of infants receiving TPN." www.fda.gov

Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, Tianjin Medical College.

"Mice were tested orally to study the toxic effects of Al on their skeleton and brain. The results showed that the Al content in brain increased along with its intake increase, but pathological examination of brain revealed no apparent change between test and control groups. Relative femur weight of mice in the highest dose group was lower than those of the other groups (P less than 0.05). The bone Al content was increased along with Al intake increase (P less than 0.05). There was negative correlation between the bone Al content and relative femur weight (P less than 0.05), and positive correlation between the bone Al content and the Al intake (P less than 0.01). Pathological examination of femurs revealed that the pathological changes of osteoporosis and osteoblast atrophy tended to increase while both Al intake and bone Al content were increased." PMID: 1782826 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Division of Research and Testing, Food and Drug Administration, Washington, DC 20204.
Aluminum is used in medical products and some parenteral products (Vaccines) contain aluminum. In a study of neurotoxicity of aluminum in mice, four groups of CD1 mice (5 males and 5 females per dose level) were treated as follows: group one drank 1.0% of aluminum (as AlCl3) during the weaning period from day 1 to 8 weeks of age; group two drank AlCl3 from 1 month to 4 months of age; group three mice (1 month old) were injected i.p. with 10, 30 and 100 mg of aluminum/kg/day for two days; group four mice (1 month old) were injected s.c. with 3, 10, and 30 mg of aluminum/kg/day for 2 days. Controls received the vehicle only. All mice were trained for CAR five times at 2 months of age. The CAR of mice that ingested AlCl3 during the weaning period to 8 weeks of age was lowered by 26% compared to the control group, which achieved 46% of CAR after five training sessions. Also, the retention of CAR was reduced to 30% whereas that of the control group remained at the same level after 1 month. CAR values of group two did not differ from those of its control. CAR of group three (at 30 mg/kg i.p.) was 36% lower than controls. CAR of s.c. group four (3, 10, and 30 mg/kg) was lowered to 16%-28% of the control; CAR retention was reduced to 18%. Therefore, the oral ingestion of aluminum induced neurotoxicity in mice which may be seen only at an early age, but injection of aluminum can cause neurotoxicity at any age." PMID: 1542881 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]


Questions:
If an injection of Aluminum can cause neurotoxicity with as little as 3 to 30mg/kg (or 3 to 30mg/2.2lbs) then why allow it in vaccines?

If a 8 pound baby is born and given the Hep B vaccine that would be 250 micrograms of Aluminum or 69.4mg/2.2 lbs could they develop neurotoxicity? According to the study, a new born baby would have neurotoxicity because as little as 3mg/2.2lbs would cause a 16% loss of control.

Can injected Aluminum accumulate? And if injected Aluminum accumulates on your baby's tissue after repeated exposure what happens then?

Water Contaminants

Many of us have bought or plan to buy a water filtration system. A few things to educate yourself on before buying are as followed.

1. All systems are not created equal; Distillation, carbon filter, reverse osmosis, ionization and a combination there of, all produce different levels of clean water.

2. Many municipal water systems have up-dated their systems and are much more effective and consistent then 20 years ago. Wells and non-municipal waters need special treatment.

3. Read the EPA Website to see what contaminants are mandated to be tested by your municipality and their limits.

4. Cheaper filters are designed to improve taste and reduce turbidity (soil contamination) so the filtered water looks and smells better.

5. If you have old pipes in your house, you may have lead contamination. It is up to you to replace the pipes or filter the lead out of your water.

6. Learn the abbreviation; MCL = Maximum Contaminant level, MCLG = Maximum Contaminant Level Goal, TT = Treatment Technique

Example of what a filter can do.

Note: For those readers who don't like looking at numbers, the more zeros the less the contamination. e.g. 0.002 has more contamination and is a larger number then 0.0005.

Chemical in mg/L...........Municipal Water.............Carbon filter+Ionization Commercial Product


Alachlor.............................0.002....................................0.0005
Atrazine.............................0.003....................................0.0005
Benzene.............................0.005....................................0.0005
Carbon Tetrachloride.........0.005....................................0.0005
O-Dichlorobenzene............0.6........................................0.0005
P-Dichlorobenzene............0.075....................................0.0005

Some of these contaminants, in high concentrations, can cause kidney or liver "problems". Others can cause cancer. Every few years the EPA, due to new studies, adjust the quantity of the MCL. Usually the study shows that there needs to be tighter controls.

My thinking is that...

1. Why wait for the EPA to realize that there should not be any PCBs, Pesticides, Herbicides, etc in our water? I want clean water now. Even if some of the natural "good" minerals are taken out. Because I can get the same minerals in the food I eat, like Broccoli and other greens.

2. If I want to optimize my physical, mental and emotional capacities then this requires a balanced, diverse, and natural diet with clean water. A student can not get good grades if they can't concentrate or are constantly sick and home from school due to contaminated water or poor nutrition. An Olympic athlete can not win a gold metal if their livers and kidneys are not processing the water they intake at optimum levels. See book "Optimum Sports Nutrition".

3. And if clean water is good for those people who are above average then the average kid could derive benefits too. Everyone should have optimally cleaned water.

Mercury Alert

I really do think that children, if no one else, should be exempt from corporate profiteering and denial. I know my average reader understands how dangerous toxins like mercury are. My readers are the type of people that go out of their way to provide a safe & health environment for their own or other children. Sometimes I think it is some sort of game, survival of the fittest, the goal being more then just feeding, clothing, playing with, listening and caring for your or other children. It's as if "Corporate America" views consumers as wallets on legs, looking for products to solve their needs. Corporations say we have the solution, though they used the cheapest ingredient possible, they may contain toxins, but it is the parent's responsibility to figure out if the products are safe.

This is a quote out of the Washington Post.

Consumer Alert

"The Food and Drug Administration is urging the government to amend its advisory that women and children should limit how much fish they eat, saying that the benefits of seafood outweigh the health risks and that most people should eat more fish, even if it contains mercury."

"The FDA sent its draft report, a copy of which was obtained by The Washington Post, to the White House Office of Management and Budget as part of the FDA's effort to update the existing health advisory. The report argued that nutrients in fish, including omega-3 fatty acids, selenium and other minerals could boost a child's IQ by three points."

What does this mean?

These are the claimed benefits for eating fish; Omega-3 fatty acids & Selenium. These benefits are claimed to equal 3 IQ points. Mind you you can get these nutrients in other foods.

Are these three IQ points suppose to compensate for mercury poisoning? I don't think they do. I would think that the three point of IQ are then neutralized by the IQ deficit cause from the mercury then add a decrease in language skills, memory and attention. Here are some quotes about Methylemercury on Wikipedia.

"Several studies indicate that methylmercury is linked to subtle developmental deficits in children exposed in-utero such as loss of IQ points, and decreased performance in tests of language skills, memory function and attention deficits."

"Ingested methylmercury is readily and completely absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract. It is mostly found complexed with free cysteine and with proteins and peptides containing that amino acid. The methylmercuric-cysteinyl complex is recognized by amino acid transporting proteins in the body as methionine, another essential amino acid.^[5] Because of this mimicry, it is transported freely throughout the body including across the blood-brain barrier and across the placenta, where it is absorbed by the developing fetus. Because of this mimicry and its strong binding to proteins methylmercury is not readily eliminated."

"Fish and shelfish have a natural tendency to concentrate mercury in their bodies, often in the form of methylmercury, a highly toxic organic compound of mercury. Species of fish that are high on the food chain, such as shark, swordfish, king mackerel, albacore tuna, and tilefish contain higher concentrations of mercury than others."

The EPA have some history, concerns and answered questions on their site HERE.

In regards to the human body and mercury, one quote from the EPA's site is as follows.

"If you regularly eat types of fish that are high in methylmercury, it can accumulate in your blood stream over time. Methylmercury is removed from the body naturally, but it may take over a year for the levels to drop significantly. Thus, it may be present in a woman even before she becomes pregnant. This is the reason why women who are trying to become pregnant should also avoid eating certain types of fish."

Here is an interesting note to leave you with...Two people each with their own agenda, one science one money. Which would you believe?

"Kathryn Mahaffey, who was the EPA's top mercury scientist until she left the agency in August to become a lecturer at George Washington University School of Public Health, said the FDA used an 'oversimplified approach' that could increase the public's exposure to mercury.

But Gavin Gibbons, a spokesman for the National Fisheries Institute, applauded the FDA's efforts. 'This is a science-based approach,' he said. 'And you start to see a picture emerge that shows the clear benefits of eating seafood outweigh the risks of a trace amount of mercury in fish."

"

Happy Holidays

I hope all my readers are finding time to enjoy the holiday merriment. We have three holidays approaching: The first night of Hanukkah on Dec 21st which is also the first day of winter, Christmas Eve and Day on Dec 24th & 25th, and Kwanzaa on Dec 26th.

I look at my little family and I have to admit that I am tempted to celebrate all the holidays not just my personal, traditional ones. I think it is because I am grateful to live in an area that is, not tolerant but instead embraces all the great things that different cultures offer. Yes, I am a "One Human Race" type of person. To me the diversity is enriching and provides a chance to be closer to friends, by learning about their personal beliefs and cultures. So, if you know someone who celebrates one of the mentioned holidays or any other, take not just a moment, to ask them about their history and culture.

Happy Holidays

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