Soy Should be in Every Diet (plus an easy delicious recipe)

Soyfoods represent dozens of different kinds of foods made from the soy bean, an ancient legume that originated in eastern China three thousand years ago. From fresh soy products range from edamame, soy milk and soy nuts to soy that is fermented such as soy souce, tofu, miso, tempeh and more. The new foods (faux meat) taste great to me and are made with soy but are not as healthy and are processed. They are not considered healthy.

There is a widespread misconception that women should avoid eating soy because of the belief that the natural plant phytoestrogen can cause cancer. The truth is phytoestrogens in soy do not increase the incidence of breast cancer in human studies. In fact, it’s the opposite. The phytoestrogens actually act as antiestrogens in humans, interfering with the ability of estrogen to fuel. certain cancers. Check out the study from the Shanghai Breast Cancer Survival Study which studies 5,042 cancer survivors. It’s just one study that will back this up. Try for 10 grams of soy a day at least.

For me personally since I am mostly vegan, I eat a lot of soy instead of meat. My favorite way to have it is for breakfast as a soy scramble…so, so good and filling.

Easy recipe for Tofu Scramble full of protein, vegetables and whatever else I have to throw in.

• 1/3 of a pound of hard tofu
• a handful of mushrooms
• 1/2 of a zucchini
• a bunch of onion
• a handful of spinach or kale
• 1 slice soy based provolone cheese (optional)
• 1/4 cup fresh salsa (optional)

Cut the vegetables into small pieces and sautee in water. When they are pretty well done, add the spinach/kale and crumbled tofu and mix in for another minute. Then add the cheese until it melts. That’s it. A nice hot, breakfast.

Soy is so versatile. It can be added to anything. The silky tofu can be made into great guilt free desserts like chocolate pudding. The edamame can be used in salads. Stir fries are so good with tofu. You can also use soft tofu to make salad dressings that don’t need any oil.

Use organic as soy is one of the most genetically engineered foods.

I spent most of my years thinking I hated soy. I can’t believe I did this. It has become one of my staples. I can only say that the reason was because I had a taste for meat which is very different. I also had the mindset that I didn’t want to “waste” my calories on something like that. Ug. Well, better late than never has become my new mantra. There are so many great plants out there to discover. Try it, you will thank yourself.

Eat to Beat Disease (The New Science of How Your Body Can Heal Itself William W. Li, M.D.

How Not to Die Micheal Greger, M.D.

Fake Meat vs. Real Meat (The New York Times)