Tuesday, June 5, 2007

Soy protein

Soy protein is considered to be one of the best substitutes for meat protein due to its essential amino acids. It is a healthy way to get the required amount of vegetable protein in the diet and it is also animal-fat free. It is great in taste, natural and has the capability of providing numerous health benefits to the human body. It is a great food for bodybuilders who want to be on a high protein and low carbohydrates diet.
Benefits of Soy protein:

It is beneficial for reducing the cholesterol level as per FDA studies.
It has the highest possible score of 1.0 as per PDCAAS (standard measure of quality of protein).
It also helps in reducing the risk of several heart-related diseases.
It helps to increase the nutritive value of other foods due to its high content of amino acids.
It also reduces the risk of prostate cancer, osteoporosis and colon cancer.
It does not affect HDL cholesterol and helps to reduce LDL cholesterol.

It can also be used for texturizing and emulsification beside applications such as paper coatings and adhesives.

Soy protein can be consumed in the natural form as well as by taking soy supplements. It is generally considered to be quite safe.
Side effects of Soy products:

Although considered to be safe and natural, soy products can cause stomach upset or diarrhea in acute cases. It can also worsen bladder cancer risk or kidney stone besides reducing the production of thyroid hormone in the human body.

Soy protein is also helpful in increasing the lean muscle mass and is basically derived from soybeans that are considered to be low in terms of cholesterol, fat and lactose. It is highly nutritive and is equivalent to milk, eggs and meat. Therefore, soy protein is also referred as “complete protein” at times. It is very beneficial for people who are intolerant to lactose.

In the case of a bodybuilder, soy protein is a great source of protein which is required by his body for maintaining the muscle mass. And, soy protein is vegetarian, natural and animal-fat free which makes it an obvious choice.

Thus it would be right to term soy protein as the “complete protein” keeping in mind its nutritive abilities and being a great source of protein which is needed by the body to increase the lean muscle mass besides being a natural and animal-fat free source.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Gr8 article. The article has good facts abt SOY Isoflavones and Protein.

A.S.Viswanathan,
Nutrition and Wellness Advisor, Nutrilite HEalth Institute, California. USA.