Wanted Soy Mommies & consumers to be aware... - warning about soy...

GavinsMommy wrote: This is not meant to be preaching at all...and not saying this is definitely true, but just wanted to alert all mommies feeding or supplementing with soy to be cautious...

I am a vegetarian...my diet consists of imitation meat products made with soy. My general meals include...breakfast I will eat natural grain cereal with soy milk. Lunch...pasta...dinner...soy imitation meat w/ veggies.

However, I just found a lot of information on soy. Of course you can't listen to everything you hear, but I just feel there is so much conflicting information out there, we should be aware of it all.

Take it with a grain of salt if you wish, just wanted everyone to have the info...

"Concerns About Giving Soy to Infants

The most serious problem with soy may be its use in infant formulas. "The amount of phytoestrogens that are in a day's worth of soy infant formula equals 5 birth control pills," says Mary G. Enig, Ph.D., president of the Maryland Nutritionists Association. She and other nutrition experts believe that infant exposure to high amounts of phytoestrogens is associated with early puberty in girls and retarded physical maturation in boys. [5]

A study reported in the British medical journal Lancet found that the "daily exposure of infants to isoflavones in soy infant-formulas is 6-11 fold higher on a bodyweight basis than the dose that has hormonal effects in adults consuming soy foods." (A dose, equivalent to two glasses of soy milk per day, that was enough to change menstrual patterns in women. [6]) In the blood of infants tested, concentrations of isoflavones were 13000-22000 times higher than natural estrogen concentrations in early life. [7] "

There is lots more information... http://www.mercola.com/article/soy/#

My reason for researching this is because I have not felt the same since going back to my vegetarian diet since Gavin's birth. I have been extremely tired (which is to be expected of course since I have a new baby, but WAY more than usual, sleeping all day), loss of interest in sex (sorry, lol), intrusive thoughs, etc...I felt great after he was born...UNTIL I STARTED EATING SOY!! And I just now made the connection. I felt great, well rested. By no means do I think meat is healthy...but soy is obviously not such an angel either. Also, after giving Gavin soy formula he has been extremely fussy and hard to deal with. He has trouble at the breast now, trouble with bowel movements (which soy is linked to) and fussy for no reason...he is getting better now that I have not given him soy.

I'd also like to point out that it has been linked to hypospadias...a birth defect of the penis in which the urethra is formed incorrectly. Gavin has this. He will have surgery sometime before his first birthday to correct it. I was eating a considerable amount of soy during my pregnancy, but was not a vegetarian at the time...but was taking in more soy than is "safe" according to the articles and research I have done...

Just wanted to let everyone know...like I said, not trying to preach or tell anyone this is truth, I just wanted to pass along information.


Lauren

mammag replied: Aha!!! You posted this just in time. My MIL just called last night and wanted me to do some searching because she read something about it being bad in a book and wanted to know if it was true. I'll check out the link.

Thanks!

GavinsMommy replied: That's just one of them. There are tons!! Some of it can be opinion, but the fact that there are toxins in it and phytates and such...that's fact.

I am feeling better already. Last night I took my first bite of chicken in months.

Sunflower04 replied: I didn't know that soy is even bad.

My son is 2 1/2 and is allergic to cow's milk. Our doctor has put him on the soy products until he sees an allergist. These allergies are what had been causing him to have asthma.... I guess I will have to talk to his doctor more about it. Thanks!

GavinsMommy replied:
What about rice milk??? I was drinking tons of soy milk up until I found out all of that information. The soy industry has nothing to say to back it up other than "We think the toxins in the soy fights cancer" RIGHT!

I was drinking a half gallon in two days...not anymore, and I feel much better.

GavinsMommy replied:
Oh...also it is recommended that people w/ asthma and thyroid problems not consume soy milk as it supposedly can contribute to both or aggrivate the problem...

DansMom replied: Daniel is milk-allergic too, thus we switched to soy. I was giving Daniel soy milk because the protein is much higher than rice milk and it also had more fat content. However, his digestion really tanked after a few weeks on soy, to the point that I took him off of soy milk and other soy sources (but his problems have not improved, so I'm looking into other possible problems there). I have felt much better though, having no dairy and just soy, and most of my physical problems have improved. I'm guessing the higher estrogen can help some women, but not others. I'm 40, and that might mean it benefits me. I've been giving Daniel organic meat---have no choice, as there are no other significant sources of protein he can have that he will also eat! It's a struggle knowing what best to do for your child, and there is so much conflicting information out there. My mom is lobbying against soy big time, sending me articles and such, so you post is quite timely for me as well! Anyone remember when eating was easy?

GavinsMommy replied: Well...the thing about soy...and the same is true for cow's milk...whether people choose to believe it or not...is that there are other things in soy that prevent your body from taking in the protein...

I felt better too at first on soy...then started to have problems...

His digestion problems could be a result of the soy...it can have lasting effects even if they aren't on it very long.

Hope that isn't the case though...

mammag replied:

Yeah really!!! It seems like everything I eat my mil can name some disease it's been known to cause or at least that's what "they" say.

DansMom replied:
Yes, my mom said the same thing---she can't have even small amounts of soy now, even though she felt good on soy for a while.

I'm not sure what of the many top-8 allergens I consumed caused Daniel's problems, but they are pretty bad and he's had them from early on (never was on formula, but did get various proteins through me before we figured things out). All I can do now is hope with a limited diet that we can get him on track and heal his gut so he can outgrow some of these allergies by the time he's in grade school.

I read another article that said early introduction of grains was bad too, and apple juice too. Sigh.

I'm jealous whenever I see a chubby toddler downing cheese and yogurt. I wish I could feed Daniel easily like some moms seem to be able to do.

Sorry to go off on such a tangent!

Mommy2BAK replied: Thanks for sharing! That is good to know!

gr33n3y3z replied: where was all this info many years ago when my kids were on soy.
Organic is the way to go ..... to stay away from all the toxins in milk,eggs, meats.

AmyO replied: my baby is also allergic to cows milk, dr thinks she will out grow this, but allergist has said to stay on soy until she is at least a yr. that is kind of scary about the soy though. I go to the allergist tomorrow and I will ask him about this. Thanks Amy

GavinsMommy replied:
Organic is extremely expensive though...

~Roo'sMama~ replied:
Yes it is! I would love to buy organic meat and dairy but it's just so expensive. My mom was a vegan for a few years and had to start eating meat and eggs again because she was losing muscle mass - she only buys it from farms in her area that she knows raise them organically. I wish I could do that!