This section was compiled by Frank M. Painter, D.C. Send all comments or additions to:Frankp@chiro.org
If there are terms in these articles you don't understand, you
can get a definition from the Merriam Webster Medical Dictionary. If you want information about a specific disease, you can access the Merck Manual. You can also search Pub Med for more abstracts on this topic.
The Menopause Relief Page
A great collection of articles, as well as reviews of the impact of Soy, Dong quai, and Black cohosh on perimenopausal symptoms.
Soy Food Intake and Breast Cancer Survival
Journal of the American Medical Association 2009 (Dec 9); 302 (22): 2437–2443
Soy foods are rich in isoflavones, a major group of phytoestrogens that have been hypothesized to reduce the risk of breast cancer. To evaluate the association of soy food intake after diagnosis of breast cancer with total mortality and cancer recurrence, 5033 surgically treated breast cancer patients were tracked for more than 3 years. Soy food intake, as measured by either soy protein or soy isoflavone intake, was inversely associated with mortality and recurrence. The researchers then concluded that soy food consumption was significantly associated with decreased risk of death and recurrence of breast cancer.
Childhood Soy Intake and Breast Cancer Risk in Asian American Women
Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention 2009 (Apr); 18 (4): 1050–1059
Soy intake during childhood, adolescence, and adult life was associated with decreased breast cancer risk, with the strongest, most consistent effect for childhood intake. Soy may be a hormonally related, early-life exposure that influences breast cancer incidence.
Soy Isoflavones for Women's Health: Is Soy a Viable Alternative to Traditional Estrogen Hormone Replacement?
In April and May of 1998, newspaper headlines were buzzing with news of the latest cancer prevention pills. Two prescription drugs, tamoxifen and raloxifene, were found to reduce the risk of breast cancer. There were drawbacks to the pharmaceuticals, however, as there usually are: Tamoxifen increased the risk of endometrial cancer and pulmonary embolism (blood clots in the lungs), and raloxifene users were more likely to suffer from hot flashes and leg cramps.
Soy Isoflavones Monograph
Alternative Medicine Review 1998 (Oct): 3 (5): 376–378 ~ FULL TEXT
The principle isoflavones in soy are Genistein, Daidzein, and their metabolites. Genistein has a hydroxy group in the 5 position, giving it three hydroxy groups, while Daidzein has just two. Isoflavones are members of the large flavonoid family of plant compounds which are in turn members of the larger group of plant constituents known as polyphenols.
Estrogen Replacements
This article discusses the three "natural" human estrogens (estrone, estradiol, and estriol), the so-called xenoestrogens (including "designer estrogens" like tamoxifen and raloxifene, and Pesticides and Herbicides, which also induce estrogenic properties in humans), and the Phytoestrogens (derived from red clover, soy and certain other legumes). It then discusses the safety of phytoestrogen replacement for hormonal balancing.
Dr. Chaney's Response to Recent Soy "Scare" Articles in the Popular Press
Recent news reports suggesting that soy might interfere with cancer treatment in people who already have breast cancer are highly misleading. This statement is based on two reports showing that soy caused a small stimulation of normal breast cancer tissue and a report that genistein, one of the phytoestrogens found in soy, stimulated the rate of growth of breast cancer cells in mice lacking both their ovaries and a functioning immune system.
Improving The Prognosis For Breast Cancer Survival: Dangerous DNA Damage Can Be Prevented With Vitamins, Citrus and Soy
Ask women about their greatest health fears, and many will rank breast cancer close to the top, even though they're five times more likely to die from heart disease. Yet conventional medicine, in the quest to prevent breast cancer, has accomplished little more than a dog chasing its own tail. The drug tamoxifen, for instance, helps many women with breast cancer, but they pay the price of an increased risk of endometrial cancer.1 Medicine would do much better concentrating on genuine prevention -- especially through nutrition.
Soy Isoflavones May Cut Menopausal Cardiovascular Risk
A woman's body goes through many changes during menopause—some of them with potential to affect cardiovascular health. When women's estrogen levels decrease during menopause, blood vessels can become rigid and less responsive to changes in blood flow and blood flow-altering mediators such as nitric oxide. Until now this decline in cardiovascular health was a risk women had to face if they opted against hormone replacement therapy. But research published in the March issue of The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism [1999;84(3):895-8] suggests that Promensil, an isoflavone-based dietary supplement derived from red clover, may help women maintain blood vessel elasticity and prevent hypertension during menopause.
Keeping Women Healthy With Soy
It is known that women living in Asia have lower risks of heart disease, breast cancer and menopausal symptoms than Western women. These differences in risks, however, disappear within a generation or two after Asian women emigrate to the West. In recent years, researchers have attributed these differences in disease and symptom risks to environmental factors, particularly diet. One of the more promising biochemical factors they have investigated is phyto-estrogens.
The Joy Of Soy: Worried About High Cholesterol? This Versatile Bean May Be Just What the Doctor Ordered
Time Magazine 1999; 153 (22) June 7: 68–69
Dolores Pilcher, 67, a retired nurse living in Mount Airy, N.C., knows her risk of heart disease only too well. Both her father and an aunt died of heart attacks when they were still pretty young, and her cholesterol level has soared over the past few years. So when she heard that scientists were trying to determine if drinking a soy-protein milk shake every day could lower cholesterol levels, she volunteered to take part in the experiment.
And FDA Said: Let Them Eat Soy
When first introduced, soy foods held a tenuous position in the American diet. The original soy "ice creams" and bland tofu blocks were well received by vegetarians and the gastronomically experimental, yet the general public remained wary of making one of this country's biggest animal feed crops part of the national cuisine. However, as the health benefits of soy evolve from anecdotal reports to sound clinical studies and as soy foods become more accessible, diverse and tasty, Americans are growing quite fond of the lowly bean.
Soy and Alzheimer's Disease
Soy Isoflavone Glycitein Protects Against Beta Amyloid-induced Toxicity and Oxidative Stress in Transgenic Caenorhabditis Elegans
BMC Neuroscience 2005 (Aug 25); 6: 54
Epidemiological studies have associated estrogen replacement therapy with a lower risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, but a higher risk of developing breast cancer and certain cardiovascular disorders. The neuroprotective effect of estrogen prompted us to determine potential therapeutic impact of soy-derived estrogenic compounds. Mice, who are genetically prone to express the human beta amyloid found in Alzheimer's Disease, were fed with the soy derived isoflavones genistein, daidzein and glycitein (100 microg/ml), and then examined for Abeta-induced paralysis and the levels of reactive oxygen species. Among the three compounds tested, only glycitein alleviated Abeta expression-induced paralysis in the transgenic C. elegans. These findings suggest that a specific soy isoflavone glycitein may suppress Abeta toxicity through combined antioxidative activity and inhibition of Abeta deposition, thus may have therapeutic potential for prevention of Abeta associated neurodegenerative disorders.
Soy and Cancer
Soy Food Intake and Breast Cancer Survival
Journal of the American Medical Association 2009 (Dec 9); 302 (22): 2437–2443
Soy foods are rich in isoflavones, a major group of phytoestrogens that have been hypothesized to reduce the risk of breast cancer. To evaluate the association of soy food intake after diagnosis of breast cancer with total mortality and cancer recurrence, 5033 surgically treated breast cancer patients were tracked for more than 3 years. Soy food intake, as measured by either soy protein or soy isoflavone intake, was inversely associated with mortality and recurrence. The researchers then concluded that soy food consumption was significantly associated with decreased risk of death and recurrence of breast cancer.
Childhood Soy Intake and Breast Cancer Risk in Asian American Women
Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention 2009 (Apr); 18 (4): 1050–1059
Soy intake during childhood, adolescence, and adult life was associated with decreased breast cancer risk, with the strongest, most consistent effect for childhood intake. Soy may be a hormonally related, early-life exposure that influences breast cancer incidence.
Soy Compound Has Anti–Cancer Effect
Journal of the National Cancer Institute 1998; 90: 381–388
A high consumption of soy- based food such as tofu is thought to protect against cancer, and now California researchers suggest a reason why: a compound found in soy, called genistein, suppresses the production of stress proteins in cells - proteins that otherwise help cancer cells survive destruction by the immune system.
Case–Control Study of Phyto–oestrogens and Breast Cancer
Lancet 1997 (ct 4); 350 (9083): 990–994
There is a substantial reduction in breast-cancer risk among women with a high intake (as measured by excretion) of phyto-oestrogen, particularly the isoflavonic phyto-oestrogen equol and the lignan enterolactone. These findings could be important in the prevention of breast cancer.
Association of Soy and Fiber Consumption with the Risk of Endometrial Cancer
Am J Epidemiol 1997 (Aug 15); 146 (4): 294–306
These data suggest that plant-based diets low in calories from fat, high in fiber, and rich in legumes (especially soybeans), whole grain foods, vegetables, and fruits reduce the risk of endometrial cancer. These dietary associations may explain in part the reduced rates of uterine cancer in Asian countries compared with those in the United States.
Genistein Inhibits Both Estrogen and Growth Factor–stimulated Proliferation of Human Breast Cancer Cells
Cell Growth & Differentiation 1996 (Oct); 7 (10): 1345–1351
Genistein is a naturally occurring dietary protein tyrosine kinase (PTK) inhibitor that is hypothesized to be responsible for the lower rate of breast cancer observed in Asian women consuming soy. Although genistein is a potent in vitro PTK inhibitor, its mechanism of action in vivo is not known. In vivo, breast cancer growth is regulated by estrogens and peptide growth factors, such as epidermal growth factor (EGF), the receptor of which has intrinsic PTK activity.
A Review of the Clinical Effects of Phytoestrogens
Obstet Gynecol 1996; 87: 897-904
This review suggests that phytoestrogens are among the dietary factors affording protection against cancer and heart disease in vegetarians. With this epidemiologic and cell line evidence, intervention studies are now an appropriate consideration to assess the clinical effects of phytoestrogens because of the potentially important health benefits associated with the consumption of foods containing these compounds.
Rationale for the Use of Genistein-containing Soy Matrices in Chemoprevention Trials for Breast and Prostate Cancer
J Cell Biochem 1995; 22S: 181–187
Pharmacologists have realized that tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) have potential as anti-cancer agents, both in prevention and therapy protocols. Nonetheless, concern about the risk of toxicity caused by synthetic TKIs restricted their development as chemoprevention agents. However, a naturally occurring TKI (the isoflavone Genistein) in soy was discovered in 1987.
Epidemiology of Soy and Cancer: Perspectives and Directions
J Nutr 1995; 125 (3 Suppl) Mar: 709S–712S
Previous epidemiologic studies of the effects of soy protein on cancer risk have been limited by small variations in soy intake, inability to separate soy from other dietary variables and difficulties inherent in relating dietary intake to the development of cancer several decades later. As a result, although existing data suggest that soy protein may be protective for cancer risk, results are overall inconclusive.
Soy and Menopausal Symptoms
The Menopause Relief Page
A great collection of articles, as well as reviews of the impact of Soy, Dong quai, and Black cohosh on perimenopausal symptoms.
Phytoestrogens After Breast Cancer
Endocr Relat Cancer 2001 (Jun); 8 (2): 129–134
In breast cancer survivors, most physicians avoid HRT because of concern regarding the potential promotion of growth of occult malignant cells by estrogens, due to the estrogen dependence of breast cancer. Soy phytoestrogens are being promoted as the 'natural alternative' to HRT and have been available without restrictions for several years as nutritional supplements. In this paper, data on the complex mammary effects of phytoestrogens in epidemiological studies, in in vitro studies, as well as in in vivo studies on animal carcinogenesis are reviewed.
Effects of Soy Protein on Renal Function and Proteinuria in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes
Am J Clin Nutrition 1998 (Dec); 68 (6 Suppl): 1347S–1353S
On the basis of the available evidence, we are proposing the soy-protein hypothesis, which states that substituting soy protein for animal protein in diabetes patients results in less hyperfiltration and glomerular hypertension and, therefore, resultant protection from diabetic nephropathy.
Soy and Stroke
Soy Phytoestrogens Prevent Stroke As Much As Premarin
WINSTON-SALEM, NC –– March 20, 1998 –– Postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy from soy protein with phytoestrogens provides equivalent reduction in the occurrence of atherosclerosis in the internal carotid artery to the standard Premarin therapy prepared from mammalian estrogens in monkeys, a Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center research team reported today at an American Heart Association meeting in Santa Fe, N.M.
Soy and Its Isoflavones: A Review of Their Effects on Bone Density
Alternative Medicine Review 2002 (Aug); 7 (4): 317–327 ~ FULL TEXT
Menopausal hormone decline contributes significantly to the risk of osteoporosis. Therapies for treating osteoporosis, such as hormone replacement therapy (estrogen or combination estrogen-progestins), inhibit bone resorption. Both animal and human studies demonstrate phytoestrogenic soy isoflavones favorably impact bone health.
Protective Effects of Dietary Phytoestrogens in Chronic Renal Disease
J Ren Nutr 2001 (Oct); 11 (4): 183–193
The biological actions of isoflavones and lignans have been well defined in different cell types in vitro and also in vivo, but how these compounds might reduce renal injury remains to be elucidated. Possible mechanisms include inhibition of cell growth and proliferation via ER-mediated mechanisms or non-ER-mediated pathways through inhibition of tyrosine protein kinases, modulation of growth factors involved in extracellular matrix synthesis and fibrogenesis, inhibition of cytokine-induced activation of transcription factors, inhibition of angiogenesis, antioxidative action, suppression of platelet activating factor and platelet aggregation, and immunomodulatory activity.
Dietary Phytoestrogens: A Possible Role in Renal Disease Protection
Am J Kidney Dis 2001 (May); 37 (5): 1056–1068
The diversity of cellular actions of isoflavones and lignans supports their protective effects in a variety of experimental and human types of chronic renal disease. Further investigations are needed to evaluate their long-term effects on renal disease progression in patients with chronic renal failure.
Soy and Cholesterol
Perspectives on Soy Protein as a Nonpharmacological Approach for Lowering Cholesterol
J Nutrition 1995 (Mar); 125 (3 Suppl): 675S–678S
Dietary therapy is the first step in the treatment of hyperlipidemia. However, some patients are unable to lower their cholesterol concentrations to a desirable range with diet alone. For primary prevention of coronary artery disease, physicians and patients often wish to avoid pharmacologic therapy of elevated cholesterol concentrations. The use of adjuncts to diet such as soluble fibers, garlic and soy protein may allow target lipid concentrations to be reached without the use of drugs.
Soy Consumption and Cholesterol Reduction: Review of Animal and Human Studies
J Nutrition 1995 (Mar); 125 (3 Suppl): 594S-597S
Animal proteins such as casein are more hypercholesterolemic than soy protein or other plant proteins when fed to rabbits in low-fat, cholesterol-free, semipurified diets. A casein-amino acid mixture produces a hypercholesterolemia similar to that of casein. This appears to be mainly due to lysine and methionine, although other essential amino acids probably contribute to the effect.
Decreased Serum Total Cholesterol Concentration is Associated with High Intake of Soy Products in Japanese Men and Women
Journal of Nutrition 1998; 128 (2): 209–213
The relationship between soy product intake and serum total cholesterol concentration was examined in 1,242 men and 3,596 women who participated in an annual health check-up program in Takayama City, Japan, provided by the municipality in 1992. The intake of soy products and various foods and nutrients was assessed by a semiquantitative food-frequency questionnaire.
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