Osteoporosis affects more than one million Australians, both men and women, and makes bones become brittle leading to a higher risk of breaks than in normal bone. Essentially, osteoporosis occurs when bones lose minerals, such as calcium, more quickly than the body can replace them, causing a loss of bone density. Although there are a range of possible causes, menopausal women are at a greater risk of developing osteoporosis because of the rapid decline in oestrogen levels meaning that bones lose calcium and other minerals at a much faster rate. As a result a bone loss of approximately 2 per cent per year occurs for several years after menopause. According to a new study though, soy isoflavones may help protect bones in the post-menopausal years.
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The study involved 200 women in early menopause who were given a daily supplement containing soy protein with 66mg of isoflavones. To put this in perspective; 100g of uncooked soy beans contains around 200mg of isoflavones, 100g of tofu contains around 35mg of isoflavones, and 100ml of soy milk contains around 9mg of isoflavones. Other women took soy protein alone. Both groups took the supplement daily for six months.
At the end of six months the women taking isoflavones showed significantly lower blood levels of proteins BetaCTX and P1NP indicating that their rate of bone loss was slowing down. Additionally, those taking soy isoflavones were showing blood markers indicating a reduced cardiovascular risk compared to those who took soy protein only.
The researchers say that the 66mg of isoflavones a day is equivalent to eating an “oriental diet” while the typical western diet only contains around 2-16mg of isoflavones per day.
This certainly suggests that soy isoflavones may be useful in helping prevent osteoporosis in menopausal women. Of course, soy is one of those crops that around the world has been subjected to heavy genetic modification. Soybeans have not been modified for health reasons, but rather they have been modified for economic reasons involved in modern agribusiness. While genetically modified soy cannot currently be grown in Australia you will likely be consuming GM soy products from overseas sources if you consume things like chocolate, potato chips, margarine, mayonnaise, and biscuits. If you don’t want to be consuming genetically modified foods then look for the organic label with your soy.
