Tofu : Why is it so bad?

I tell myself, I gotta write another post about soy based food products. Why? I got heck a lot of colleagues and friends bugging me about whether this and that soy based food is safe to eat. In this post, I would want to share with all of you reading this right now, about soy based food called tofu. I'm sure everyone is familiar with this soy food product and it is widely sold and used in range of foods. 

Now, do you think tofu is a healthy form of protein? The soy industry would have you believe that this is a smart move for your heart health, but in reality, processed soy, which includes tofu, is not a health food. You are much better off eating organic eggs, grass fed meat and raw dairy products than you are eating processed non fermented soy.

Before I proceed further, I would like to clear one confusion about soy based food and population of people with longevity such as certain Asian countries. I got a colleague who quoted me "Japanese and Chinese people consume soy based food back in early days and they survive and live long". 

Now, first of all, asians don't eat massive amounts of soy. It is not their staple food and most asians back in early days eat smaller amount of soy based food. Back in early days, asians eat mainly old traditional, old-fashioned fermented soy products. The soybean did not serve as a food until the discovery of fermentation techniques, some time during the Chou Dynasty. The Chinese did not eat unfermented soybeans as they did other legumes such as lentils because the soybean contains large quantities of natural toxins or antinutrients. The Japanese traditionally eat a small amount of tofu or miso as part of a mineral-rich fish broth, followed by a serving of meat or fish. The first soy foods were fermented products like tempeh, natto and miso. They don't eat soy energy bars, soy protein powders or soy milk like how we eat right now! All these are modern soy products. Another thing is that asians have higher rates of thyroid cancer, liver cancer, esophageal cancer as well as stomach cancer. 

They are a lot of people who are not aware that they consume soy as part of their daily diet. When I tell my colleagues and friends that soy is part of the ingredient in fast food burgers, breads and most processed and packaged food products, they look shocked. Even most protein bars, energy bars, cereal bars and protein powders contain soy. You don't have to take my words for it. Just look into the ingredient list and read carefully. 

Alright, now, let's talk about tofu. Tofu, is a percipitated soy product, and it is not fermented. And because it is not fermented, the processing does not remove phytates that block minerals absorption and trypsin inhibitors that block protein digestion. So people, stop saying and debating that soy is a health food or non harmful!

Eating high levels of some soy products, such as tofu, could raise the risk of memory loss. However, tempeh, a fermented soy product made from the whole soy bean, has been associated with better memory. This could be related to the fact that it contains high levels of the vitamin folate, which is known to reduce dementia risk. A Hawaii study shows a significant statistical relationship between two or more servings of tofu a week and "accelerated brain aging" and even an association with Alzheimer's disease.

Today's high tech processing methods not only fail to remove the anti-nutrients and toxins that are naturally present in soybeans but leave toxic and carcinogenic residues created by the high temperatures, high pressure, alkali and acid baths and petroleum solvents. The worst of the worst when it comes to soy products are the fractionated products like soy protein isolate and hydrolyzed plant protein, as all processed soy contains phytates that block mineral absorption and trypsin inhibitors that block proper digestion. Soy products may contains high levels of aluminum manganese, depending on the processing and packaging. Tofu is one step up because it’s a whole soy product, but it still contains the anti-nutrients mentioned above. 

It’s very important to know also that children and babies, who are still developing, are particularly vulnerable to soy’s hormone-mimicking effects. A Lancet study showed that the daily exposure to estrogen imitating chemicals for infants who consume soy formulas was 6-11 times higher than adults consuming soy foods.

And the blood concentration of these hormones was 13,000 to 22,000 times higher than estrogen in the blood. An infant exclusively fed soy formula receives the estrogenic equivalent of up to five birth control pills per day. So, please do not feed your baby soy infant formula. The effects are so potent that even pregnant women should avoid eating soy products for the safety of their unborn child. If you want to know more about soy and soy based infant formulas, read my earlier posts all relating to soy.

Vegetarians who consume tofu and bean curd as a substitute for meat and dairy products risk severe mineral deficiencies. The results of calcium, magnesium and iron deficiency are well known; those of zinc are less so. Zinc is called the intelligence mineral because it is needed for optimal development and functioning of the brain and nervous system. It plays a role in protein synthesis and collagen formation, it is involved in the blood sugar control mechanism and thus protects against diabetes, it is needed for a healthy reproductive system. Zinc is a key component in numerous vital enzymes and plays a role in the immune system. Phytates found in soy products interfere with zinc absorption more completely than with other minerals.

Meanwhile, there are a few types of soy that are healthy, and all of them are fermented. After a long fermentation process, the phytic acid and antinutrient levels of the soybeans are reduced, and their beneficial properties, such as the creation of natural probiotics, become available to your digestive system. 

It also greatly reduces the levels of dangerous isoflavones, which are similar to estrogen in their chemical structure, and can interfere with the action of your own estrogen production. So, if you enjoy soy and want to eat it without damaging your health, and in fact gain health benefits, the following are all healthy options:

• Natto - fermented soybeans with a sticky texture and strong, cheese-like flavor. It's loaded with nattokinase, a very powerful blood thinner. It is the highest source of vitamin K2 on the planet and has a very powerful beneficial bacteria, bacillus subtilis. 
• Tempeh - a fermented soybean cake with a firm texture and nutty, mushroom-like flavor. An Indonesian local food product. 
• Miso - a fermented soybean paste with a salty, buttery texture, it is commonly used in miso soup. You will notice this food product when you hit the Japanese restaurants. 

Remember, though, that all processed soy products such as soy milk, soy burgers, soy cheese, soy energy bars, soy ice cream, soy protein powders, are not health foods. And to truly avoid all types of damaging soy products, you need to avoid processed foods as the vast majority of them contain soy ingredients.

Finally, to all stubborn headed out there, STOP calling soy as health food. You may be ignorant and have fix mindset, but I hope this would be my last post about soy.