Soy Product - Isoflavones / Genistain

Soy Isoflavones

The health benefits of a wonder bean...

For thousands of years the Chinese and Japanese have eaten soy products. In the
last few decades westerners have been trying to understand why these people have
less problems with breast, prostate, colon and rectal cancers, osteoporosis, coronary
heart disease and menopause. In fact, it is interesting to note that the Japanese do not
even have a word for menopause in their language. This is because menopausal
symptoms did not exist in the past. It took the west a long time to put it together that
the large consumption of soy in China and Japan, in particular, might be the main
difference between the East and the West and the occurrences of the aforementioned
conditions.

Studies began as early as the mid 1980's to understand soy and what gives soy its
amazing properties. Initial studies showed that the isoflavones in soy may be the
primary reason that soy has been so effective for health benefits. Further studies
showed that soy isoflavones have three modifications and each has three simple
aglycone moieties. Genistein, daidzein, and glycetein compose these aglycones. The
modification consists of glycosides, acetyl derivatives and malonyl derivatives. More
studies showed the health benefits associated with the consumption of soy
isoflavones are in fact, attributed to the weak estrogenic activity produced by soy
isoflavones.

Soy isoflavones have the ability to bind to estrogen receptors and partly block the
effects of estrogen. This function reduces excess estrogen for those who produce too
much in the body. Soy-isoflavones may help reduce the growth of estrogen dependent
cancers, as occurs with many breast and ovarian cancers. They also bind to
testosterone receptors in a similar manner, suggesting a potential use in prostate
cancer. Genistein has other properties as well, such as inhibiting angiogenesis and
inhibiting enzymes, including tyrosine kinase, which is directly involved in cancer cell
growth and regulation. The estrogen receptor binding function of soy isoflavones may
be complementary to the effects of estrogen for those who produce too little estrogen
in the body. Because of this action, they may be beneficial for women who are
peri-menopausal.

Menopausal Health
Current estrogen-replacement therapies for the treatment of menopausal symptoms
can cause unwanted side effects. However, isoflavones' estrogenic effects suggest
that these phytochemicals may provide a dietary regimen for maintaining a healthy
menstrual cycle. When soy protein (rich in isoflavones) is added to the diet, increases
in the length of the menstrual follicular phase and delayed onset of menstruation in
women age 21 to 29 were observed. The increase of the isoflavone content in
these test diets was about 45 mg per day, as aglycone equivalents. More recently,
isoflavones have been shown to help reduce post-menopausal hot flashes. Significant
reductions in the occurrence of hot flashes were observed in women who consumed
soy for 12 weeks.

Bone Health
Estrogen is used to inhibit bone resorption in post-menopausal women. Similarly, the
isoflavone 7-isopropoxyisoflavone (ipriflavone) exerts an effect that increases bone
mass, but by a different mechanism from estrogen. One of ipriflavone's metabolites is
daidzein, which comprises as much as 10% of the metabolic products of ipriflavone.
This suggests soy isoflavones, in particular daidzein, may help maintain bone health
without the harmful side effects related to estrogen.

Safety
Soy isoflavones have been widely consumed and are considered to be non-toxic.
Nearly all human safety information has risen from epidemiological studies and
studies on soy product consumption. In 1996, the National Cancer Institute (NCI)
concluded in a clinical development plan report that genistein is not considered to be
toxic. In this study, a preparation of genistein with daidzein was also
evaluated and produced results similar to the purified material. However, a small percentage

of people have allergies to soybeans and thus should avoid soy products.

What Soy Isoflavones can do for you?

Soy Isoflavones are being used in connection with the following conditions:

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