Soy: Too Good to be True
by Brandon Finucan & Charlotte Gerson

While even in 1966 there was considerable research on the harmful
substances within soybeans, you'll be hard pressed to find articles
today that claim soy is anything short of a miracle-food. As soy
gains more and more popularity through industry advertising, we are
moved once again to raise our voice of concern.

The Soybean Industry in America

In 1924 soybean production in the U.S. was only at 1.8 million acres
harvested, but by 1954, the harvested acres grew to 18.9 million.
Today, the soybean is America's third largest crop (harvesting 72
million acres in 1998), supplying more than 50 percent of the world's
soybean demand.

Most of these beans are made into animal feed and are manufactured
into soy oil for use as vegetable oil, margarine and shortening. Of
the traditional uses for soy as a food, only soy sauce enjoys
widespread consumption in the American diet. Tofu, measuring 90
percent of Asia's use of the soybean, has gained more popularity in
the U.S., but soy is still nowhere near a measurable component of the
average American diet - or is it?

For more than 20 years now, the soy industry has concentrated on
finding alternative uses and new markets for soybeans and soy
byproducts. At your local supermarket, soy can now be found disguised
as everything from soy cheese, milk, burgers and hot dogs, to ice
cream, yogurt, vegetable oil, baby formula and flour (to name just a
few). These are often marketed as low-fat, dairy-free, or as a high-
protein, meat substitute for vegetarians. But soy isnít always
mentioned on the box cover. Today, an alarming 60% of the food on
America's supermarket shelves contain soy derivatives (i.e. soy
flour, textured vegetable protein, partially hydrogenated soy bean
oil, soy protein isolate). When you look at the ingredients list, and
really look at the contents of the "Average American Diet," from
snack foods and fast foods to prepackaged frozen meals, soy plays a
major role.

Where the soybean goes wrong?

Here at the Gerson Institute, we feel the positive aspects of the
soybean are overshadowed by their potential for harm. Soybeans in
fact contain a large number of dangerous substances. One among them
is phytic acid, also called phytates. This organic acid is present in
the bran or hulls of all seeds and legumes, but none have the high
level of phytates that soybeans do. These acids block the bodyís
uptake of essential minerals like calcium, magnesium, iron and
especially zinc. Adding to the high-phytate problem, soybeans are
very resistant to phytate reducing techniques, such as long, slow
cooking.

Soybeans also contain potent enzyme inhibitors. These inhibitors
block uptake of trypsin and other enzymes that the body needs for
protein digestion. Normal cooking does not deactivate these
harmful "antinutrients," that can cause serious gastric distress,
reduced protein digestion and can lead to chronic deficiencies in
amino acid uptake.

Beyond these, soybeans also contain hemagglutinin, a clot promoting
substance that causes red blood cells to clump together. These
clustered blood cells are unable to properly absorb oxygen for
distribution to the body's tissues, and cannot help in maintaining
good cardiac health. Hemagglutinin and trypsin inhibitors are
both "growth depressant" substances. Although the act of fermenting
soybeans does deactivate both trypsin inhibitors and hemagglutinin,
precipitation and cooking do not. Even though these enzyme inhibitors
are reduced in levels within precipitated soy products like tofu,
they are not altogether eliminated.

Only after a long period of fermentation (as in the creation of miso
or tempeh) are the phytate and "antinutrient" levels of soybeans
reduced, making their nourishment available to the human digestive
system. The high levels of harmful substances remaining in
precipitated soy products leave their nutritional value questionable
at best, and in the least, potentially harmful.

What About the Studies?

In recent years, several studies have been made regarding the
soybeanís effect on human health. The results of those studies,
largely underwritten by various factions of the soy industry, were of
course overwhelmingly in favor of soy. The primary claims about soy's
health benefits are based purely on bad science. Although primary
arguments for cancer patients to use soy focus on statistics showing
low rates of breast, colon and prostate cancer among Asian people,
there are obvious facts being utterly ignored. While the studies
boast that Asian women suffer far fewer cases of breast cancer than
American women do, the hype neglects to point out that these Asian
women eat a diet that is dramatically different than their American
counterparts.

The standard Asian diet consists of more natural products, far less
fatty meat, greater amounts of vegetables and more fish. Their diets
are also lower in chemicals and toxins, as they eat far fewer
processed (canned, jarred, pickled, frozen) foods. It is likely these
studies are influenced by the fact that cancer rates rise among Asian
people who move to the U.S. and adopt American-ized diets. Of course,
this change of diet goes hand-in-hand with a dramatic shift in
lifestyle. Ignoring the remarkable diet and lifestyle changes, to
assume only that reduced levels of soy in these Americanized Asian
diets is a primary factor in greater cancer rates is poor judgment,
and as stated above, bad science. The changes of diet and lifestyle
must be considered to reach the correct conclusion.

A widely circulated article, written by Jane E. Allen, AP Science
Writer, titled, "Scientists Suggest More Soy in Diet", cites in the
course of a symposium, numerous speakers discussing the probable
advantages of soy under the title, "Health Impact of Soy Protein."
However, the article states that the $50,000 symposium "was
underwritten by Protein Technologies International of St. Louis, a
DuPont subsidiary that makes soy protein!" In the course of the same
symposium, Thomas Clarkson, professor of comparative medicine at Wake
Forest University, states "Current hormone replacement therapy has
been a dismal failure from a public health point of view," not
because PremarinĆ is known to cause uterine or other female organ
cancers, but "because only 20 percent of the women who could benefit
from it are taking it."

Other popular arguments in support of soy state that fermented
products, like tempeh or natto, contain high levels of vitamin B-12.
However, these supportive arguments fail to mention that soy's B-12
is an inactive B-12 analog, not utilized as a vitamin in the human
body. Some researchers speculate this analog may actually serve to
block the body's B-12 absorption. It has also been found that
allergic reactions to soybeans are far more common than to all other
legumes. Even the American Academy of Pediatrics admits that early
exposure to soy through commercial infant formulas, may be a leading
cause of soy allergies among older children and adults.

In his classic book, A Cancer Therapy - Results of 50 Cases (p. 237),
Dr. Gerson put "Soy and Soy Products" on the "FORBIDDEN" list of
foods for Gerson Therapy patients. At the time, his greatest concerns
were two items: the high oil content of soy and soy products, and the
rather high rate of allergic reactions to soy. Soybeans can add as
much as 9 grams of fat per serving, typically adding an average of 5
grams of fat per serving when part of an average American diet.

The Extraction Process

The processes which render the soybean "edible" are also the
processes which render it "inedible." In fermenting soybeans, the
process entails that the beans be purČed and soaked in an alkaline
solution. The purČed mixture is then heated to about 115ƒC
(239ƒF)
inside a pressure cooker. This heating and soaking process destroys
most, but not all, of the anti-nutrients. At the same time, it has
the unwelcome effect of denaturing the proteins of the beans so they
become very difficult to digest and greatly reduced in effectiveness.
Unfortunately, the alkaline solution also produces a carcinogen,
lysinealine, while it reduces the already low cystine content within
the soybean. Cystine plays an essential role in liver detoxification,
allowing our bodies to filter and eliminate toxins. Without proper
amounts of cystine, the protein complex of the soybean becomes
useless, unless the diet is fortified with cystine-rich meat, egg, or
dairy products - not an option for Gerson patients.

To the soybeanís credit, they do contain large amounts of
beneficial
omega-3 fatty acids, but these are particularly susceptible to
rancidity when subjected to high pressures and temperatures.
Unfortunately, high pressure and temperature are required to remove
soybean oil from the soybean.

Before soybeans are sent to your table, they undergo a rigorous
process to strip them of their oil. Hexane or other solvents are
first applied to help separate the oil from the beans, leaving trace
amounts of these toxins in the commercial product. Hexane by
definition is; "any of five colorless, volatile, liquid hydrocarbons
C6H14 of the paraffin series," and cannot be the least bit beneficial
in anyoneís diet. After the oil is extracted, the defatted flakes
are
used to form the three basic soy protein products. With the exception
of full-fat soy flour, all soybean products contain trace amounts of
carcinogenic solvents.

Personal Experiences

The following letter was received in November 1998: "I have used soy
milk for 12 years with no problems. About 9 months ago, I started to
have heart palpitations. I thought maybe that I was in menopause, but
I wasnít. I added more potassium to my diet and magnesium and
vitamin
E. No change. I am already decaffeinated but I also took all sugar
out of my diet. I lost 25 pounds and felt great except for the
palpitations. I tried hawthorn and garlic but nothing was helping.
Recently I came down with acute bronchitis and could only drink water
because even the soy milk made me have horrendous bouts of coughing.
I realized that after a few days my heart palpitations had stopped. I
didn't think anything of it because it never occurred to me that soy
was the culprit. As soon as I started drinking it again, my heart
went crazy. I went off it for a week and then changed brands. Within
30 minutes of drinking only 4 ounces [of soy milk], my heart was all
over the place. I've noticed that it takes about 24 to 36 hours for
my heart to settle down. I wondered if your research turned up
anything like this in regard to soy. I know it is not within the
definition of an allergy, but something is definitely going on. I
called the manufacturer of the soy milk, but they were of no help. I
am very upset because I only drink soy milk and water. I also use the
soy milk to make protein shakes (with what elseÖbut soy protein)."

In our November/December 1996 issue of the Gerson Healing Newsletter
we described another case: a pregnant lady who looked very ill and
was terribly deficient! She also described her son, age five, who had
many allergies and infections - both were using a good deal of soy in
their diet. I recommended that they discontinue the use of all soy
products. At the time, I had only just run across this situation.
However, a year later, I was in the same area for a lecture, and the
lady invited me to dinner. She had cut out all soy products: her skin
was now rosy, her face filled out, her sunken eyes normal, her black
circles gone and her little boy, now six, was in greatly improved
health.

Just last week, another interesting story came to our attention. A
patient at the Gerson Certified Hospital in Mexico told us of her
son, now 25, who has total lack of hair (Alopecia) with the exception
of eyebrows and eyelashes. She added that this started when he was
just three years old. Since the mother asked me about this situation,
I considered the problem for a moment. Then, looking at the parents
who both have normal hair, I figured that the boy's problem was most
probably not genetic. So, I asked the mother if he used a lot of soy.
She said, no. But then, after thinking about the question for a
moment, she said that at about one year of age, the boy had many
allergies, so she regularly fed him soy milk! I explained to her that
the enzyme and nutrient blocking ability of soy and the likelihood of
the soy milk being the cause of his condition starting at age three.
Since we had just witnessed the case of a patient whose hair grew
back on his bald pate, (See "Practitioner Training" article in this
issue) after being bald for some 20 years, I cautiously suggested
that a complete change of diet accompanied by intensive
detoxification, may be able to overcome the problem.

Gerson Institute Newsletter Volume 14 #3

This article is the first of two parts. Part Two will be next week

http://www.soyonlineservice.co.nz/

ěSoybean Products: A Recipe for Disaster?î Extracted from Nexus
Magazine, Vol. 4, No. 3 (Apr-May 1997), http://www.icom.net/
~nexus/soya.html

Soy Protein Council, http://www.spcouncil.org

ěJeopardizing the Future? Genetic Engineering, Food and the
Environmentî, by Dr. Michael Hanson and Jean Halloran,
http://www.pmac.net/

ěMonsanto Genetically Engineered Soya has Elevated Hormone Levels:
Public Health Threatî (Oct. 1997), http://www.holisticmed.com/

ěMonsantoís Toxic Roundupî (Nov. 1996),ht
tp://www.holisticmed.com/

ěToxicity from Genetically-Engineered Foodsî,
http://www.holisticmed.com/

Eat the State!, ěNature & Politicsî by Jeffrey St. Clair and
Alexander Cockburn (Feb. 1999),

'Concerns Regarding Soybeansî, http://www.rheumatic.org/soy.htm

COMMENT: This is an excellent summary of some of the major reasons
why soy is not the health food that you think it is. There are
literally billions of dollars of influence in the edible oil industry
that is promoting soy's use in natural medical circles so it's use
can be then promoted in the general medical public. They are even
able to fool otherwise knowledgeable natural medical physicians. I am
a monthly columnist in the Townsend Letters and another columnist,
Dr. Hudson, who was voted Naturopathic doctor of the year, has an
article this month extolling soy's values. Needless to say I quickly
wrote a letter to Townsend asking them to print the other side of the
soy story. In the meantime, you can save you and your family some
potential problems by limiting any soy use to fermented products
only, like tempeh or miso