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Why soy confused?Making sense of a diet dilemmaAhealthy alternative to dairy, or not worth the risk?SiobhanMoylan reports.

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“Mybarista said he never drank soymilkas he didn’t want ‘man boobs’. ”

‘Soymilk’s bad for you’’ quipped afriend as I ordered a soy latte. ‘‘Idon’t know if it is or it isn’t,’’ Iresponded, but admitted to being

aware of the recent resurgence of an anti-soyzeitgeist permeating the culinary and coffee-lovingworld.My local barista toldmehe never drank

soymilk as he didn’twant to grow ‘‘manboobs’’, yet amenopausal friend said hersymptomsdiminishedwhen shemade theswitch to soy products. Soy confused?It is true thewheels fall off the soy

bandwagon every few years. InNewZealandin 2012 therewere calls for soy-based babyformula to be taken off supermarket shelvesafter research emerged suggesting exposureto soy in thewombor in childhood couldaffect female fertility. And then there’s theBonsoy story,wheremore than600 Australians have joined aclass action against BonsoySoymilk, claiming they got sick froman overload of iodine.With all thegood and badpress surroundingthe legume it’s hard tomakesense ofwhat types of soy oneshould be consuming.ProfessorMarkWahlqvist is a

long-standingmember of theWorldHealthOrganisation’sNutritionAdvisoryPanel.He isalso editor of theAsiaPacificJournal of ClinicalNutrition. Hiswork on the legume is extensive.He says it’s vital to distinguishbetween traditional andmodernformsof soy.Traditional forms of soy foods

include tofu, bean curd and

tempeh (principally used in Indonesia). InJapan, traditional forms includemiso soup,edamame and a fermented formof soy callednatto. ‘‘Traditional forms of soy are all fairlyintact, they haven’t been broken down intocomponents; thewhole bean is eaten, or hasbeen processed by the traditional foodtechnology, like fermentation,’’Wahlqvist says.The forms of soy consumed in theWest

are often based on soy isolates, where theprotein is used as a food ingredient, so thetype of soywe ingest here is not the typegetting all of the positive spin, nor is thewaywe consume it. InAsia, soy products in theiroriginal formare used as condiments andnot to excess. ‘‘In theWest, soy is used inreconstituted products like soymilk,meatlook-alike products, protein bars and after-

gym-workout shakes,’’Wahlqvist says.He says consumers should bemindful that

when they consumeproducts that do notcontain soy in its pure form, theymaymissout on the health benefits that exist in thetype consumed inAsian countries.That said, he also cautions against soy

‘‘scare’’ stories that do not give thewholepicture; for example, that soy causes thyroidsuppression. It’s true soy does containgoitrogens – substances that depress thyroidfunction, but he says: ‘‘Even though the

goitrogenic activity of soy is low, it’s true thatit could be exacerbated by iodine deficiencywith resultant goitre and thyroid disease.But this applies to several other foods likebrassica [cruciferous vegetables] none ofwhichwewouldwant to discourage. The realissue is dealingwith iodine deficiency.’’Earlier in 2013, FoodStandardsAustralia

NewZealand brought in a lawallowingmanufacturers tomake health claims abouta range of foods including soy products.Prior to this, nutritional claims could bemade but not health claims such as ‘‘thisfood is good for strong bones’’.Wahlqvist says: ‘‘I resisted anymove

towards ahealth claim for soyprotein [in theUSandAustralia], and still do now thathealth claimsarepossible inAustralia, as itwouldhave, has andwill encourage so-called ‘value-addedness’ of foodby splittingit apart.’’ He saysmore studies areneededbefore any value-addedbenefits canbemadeonnon-traditional soyproducts.JohnEden,AssociateProfessor of

reproductive endocrinology at theUniversity ofNSW, sayswehavenothing

to fearwhen it comes to the endocrinesystemand soyproducts in the amounts

typically consumed in theWest.That said, he asserts glowing reviews

canbe just as confusing to the soy story.Heandhis teampublished a study in 2001concluding soyproducts, includingmilk,powders, cheese, theworks, donot helpwiththe incidence of hot flushes inmenopausalwomen.A similar peer-reviewed study conducted

in 2009 inGermany concluded the samething.What aboutwomen trying to get pregnant,

should they avoid soyproducts?Eden saysthis is anothermyth and that estrogenicactivity is everywhere.‘‘It’s in thewater, other foods, cosmetics,

everywhere – thequantities in soy are little.To assert that soyproducts can changeendocrine system function is nonsense, itreally does comedown tohaving abalanceddiet,’’ he says.Can soy alter awoman’smenstrual cycle?‘‘Yes,’’ Eden says, ‘‘but not significantly.

As long as awoman is having at leastsix periods a year, that is considered ‘normal’.Exactly howsoy achieves adelay effect isopen to speculation butmore importantlyit is not harmful. Just before I pickedup thephone to you I downed somecheese, andasoydrink.’’