Soy (How much is too much)
Posted by mailjlynn on Feb 14, 2010 · Member since Feb 2010 · 13 posts
I'm just curious to see what other's have found regarding soy.
How much is too much?
How much soy to you put into your diet (daily or weekly)?
I usually have small amounts of soy milk in my coffee, oatmeal, or other foods.
I eat Tofu / Tempeh probably 2-3 times per week.
I also eat soy based protein items such as veggie patties, veggie sausage or soy "meats" another 2-3 times per week.
I guess if I averages my soy intake on a weekly basis it would breakdown to approx 1 serving of soy per day (sometimes 2).
Your thoughts?
I think the most important thing is to listen to your body and what it's telling you - as much as humans all have the same basic guideline needs, there are myriad little tiny differences in body chemistry (due to genetics, lifestyle, history, age, blahblahblah) that can change what foods you handle well and which don't sit well.
I don't think there's anything wrong with whole or lightly-processed soy - edamame, soy milk, tofu, tempeh, miso - but I do try to avoid soy protein isolates and that sort of thing just the same as I try to go for whole grains over refined. So I don't really think there's a set amount for how much is 'too much'.
I have soy milk in my tea pretty much every day, and maybe a couple of times a week on cereal. Really, it'd probably be better if I drank more of it, because fortified soya milk is pretty much my sole source of B12, calcium, and vit D - yay for cheap student food in the north of Scotland! But I definitely don't go out of my way to include soya products. If they're easily available, I'll use them as much as I feel like it, though.
tl;dr - less than one serving a day.
i used to consume a lot of soy products between meat analogues, soy milk and tofu. then i started reading about negative effects of soy on your thyroid and since i have hypothyroidism, decided to cut way down. i use more beans instead of meat analogues, or mostly use ones without soy. i use fortified rice milk instead of soy milk and vegan rice cheese instead of soy. and no more tofu. i still probably have 1, maybe 2 servings of soy a week. But I agree with Narcissus, you should listen to your body. Maybe try cutting down on soy for a week or two and see how you feel. If it doesn't make a difference, then don't worry about whatever soy you may be consuming. If you do notice a difference, well then there's your answer. I've found I feel a LOT better since cutting out soy. but that's me!
Soy doesn't "bother" me as far as digestion.
I have just read a lot on the negative effects of too much soy but have yet to determine what "too much soy" is.
I definately eat a lot of beans, whole grains, and legumes as a protein source and I add in the occassional nutritional yeast too.
I can't give you a specific amount for too much, but I do try to limit the amount of soy I consume. My personal rule is to aim for variety wherever possible -- I use hazelnut or almond milk instead of soy, other sources of protein in meals, etc.