The beans that battle obesity

[Demi]

The Mail
london, UK
26 February, 2007


The beans that battle obesity

Black soya beans could be a key weapon in the fight against obesity, scientists claim.

A diet rich in the beans could also help lower cholesterol levels and aid in the prevention of diabetes.

Researchers fed rats a fatty diet, supplemented with various levels of black soya.

After two weeks, those getting 10 per cent of their energy from black soya had gained half as much weight as those in the control group.

In the same rats, blood cholesterol fell by 25 per cent and LDL (so-called 'bad') cholesterol fell by 60 per cent.

Experts believe that the soya protein could slow down the metabolism of the liver - reducing the production of fatty acids and cholesterol.

Reducing the amount of fat in the body would then protect against diabetes.

The study, at Hanyang University in Seoul, was published in the Journal of Agricultural Food and Chemistry and the magazine Chemistry and Industry.

It follows research showing that yellow soya beans prevent cholesterol.

Soya is also thought to fight heart disease and cancer.



http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/dietfitness.html?in_article_id=438422&in_page_id=1798

[Wyvrn]

Pretty hard to know what to make of this if they don't tell what the soy replaced. Did it replace fat, protein, carbs or what? Soy is high in protein and relatively low in carbs, compared to other legumes or any grain.

[HalfPass]

I love black soy beans and use them often, so I am just going to take this at face value and rejoice!

[dina1957]

Soya is also thought to fight heart disease and cancer.


Soy contains plant estrogen, (genestein) which is very powerfull at amount like 30-40 g a day. Since estrogen is one well know cholesterol lowering/athries smoothing hormone, so it is protective of heart desease. As for cancer protection, it is OK to eat edamame and black soy beans on ocation, as well as unsweetened soy milk or a little bit of tofu, but excessive consumption of refined soy product daily can be harmfull for women with family history of estrogen-positive breast cancer as well as suppress thyroid function.
http://www.bio.net/bionet/mm/toxicol/2001-July/003198.html

[Rachel1]

What Wyvern says, and besides, we're not rats. Still, black soy beans are yummy and I use them on occasion. They are relatively low carb (about 16 per cup, after subtracting fibre, but they are VERY filling!) and I'd recommend them to anyone who doesn't have problems with soy.

Rachel

[Mutant]

Soy contains plant estrogen, (genestein) which is very powerfull at amount like 30-40 g a day. Since estrogen is one well know cholesterol lowering/athries smoothing hormone, so it is protective of heart desease. As for cancer protection, it is OK to eat edamame and black soy beans on ocation, as well as unsweetened soy milk or a little bit of tofu, but excessive consumption of refined soy product daily can be harmfull for women with family history of estrogen-positive breast cancer as well as suppress thyroid function.
http://www.bio.net/bionet/mm/toxicol/2001-July/003198.html



It's also *fabulous* for male-to-female transexuals. I will pass on the soy for now, but will keep it in mind just in case... ;)

Kind regards

[waywardsis]

Soy's one of the top four food allergens/irritants and isn't really great to consume unless it's fermented first. That's why it was generally used as a condiment in Asia...til now, of course. (Before that, it was used as a replenishing crop, to put nitrogen back in the soil. That was it.)

*hops off soapbox*

[Demi]

More on this story here:


Magic Beans: Anti-obesity Soya Could Help Prevent Diabetes

Science Daily — A diet rich in black soya beans could help control weight, lower fat and cholesterol levels, and aid in the prevention of diabetes, reports Lisa Richards in Chemistry & Industry, the magazine of the SCI.

Yellow soya has already been hailed for its cholesterol lowering capabilities; this is one of the reasons why frozen food manufacturer Birds Eye has added the beans to its range. However, a team of Korean researchers has shown that black soya may be even more potent in rats, and also prevents weight gain (Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, February 2007 DOI: 10.1002/jsfa2808).

The researchers, led by Shin Joung Rho at Hanyang University, Seoul, allowed 32 rats to gorge on a fatty diet, supplemented with various levels of black soya. The results showed that, after two weeks, those getting 10% of their energy from black soya had gained half as much weight as those in the control group. Total blood cholesterol fell by 25% and LDL (so-called 'bad') cholesterol fell by 60% in the rats in the 10% group.

David Bender, sub-dean at the Royal Free and University College Medical School, London, thinks that the soya protein may be having an effect on fat metabolism in the liver and adipose tissue, reducing synthesis of new fatty acids and cholesterol. It is this metabolic effect that may explain the traditional Asian use of black soya in the treatment of diabetes. 'The key problem in type II diabetes is impairment of insulin action, mainly as a result of excess abdominal adipose tissue - so loss of weight often improves glycaemic control,' says Dr Bender.

Lynne Garton, a registered dietician and nutritionist and consultant to the Soya Protein Association, said: "Soy fits in well to a healthy balanced diet which is important in preventing diabetes -- low in fat, high in fibre and a good source of complex carbohydrates."

Note: This story has been adapted from a news release issued by Society of Chemical Industry.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/02/070226095329.htm

[pauleo]

Why do you say 'til now, of course'? (meaning that traditional diets and eating-common-sense have passed away in the 20th and 21st centuries?...)

Paul.


Soy's one of the top four food allergens/irritants and isn't really great to consume unless it's fermented first. That's why it was generally used as a condiment in Asia...til now, of course. (Before that, it was used as a replenishing crop, to put nitrogen back in the soil. That was it.)

*hops off soapbox*

[Dodger]

Soy contains plant estrogen, (genestein) which is very powerfull at amount like 30-40 g a day. Since estrogen is one well know cholesterol lowering/athries smoothing hormone, so it is protective of heart desease. As for cancer protection, it is OK to eat edamame and black soy beans on ocation, as well as unsweetened soy milk or a little bit of tofu, but excessive consumption of refined soy product daily can be harmfull for women with family history of estrogen-positive breast cancer as well as suppress thyroid function.
http://www.bio.net/bionet/mm/toxicol/2001-July/003198.html

Estrogen was considered to be the reason that women didn't have as many heart attacks as men. HRT (heavy on estrogen) was thought to prevent heart attacks. Unfortunately, the data on HRT showed more heart problems with the women taking it than in women that didn't.

[dina1957]

Estrogen was considered to be the reason that women didn't have as many heart attacks as men. HRT (heavy on estrogen) was thought to prevent heart attacks. Unfortunately, the data on HRT showed more heart problems with the women taking it than in women that didn't.
I am not advocating HRT, just some ideas on heart-protective mechanism of soy since it is a source of weak, plant estrogen. As for HRT, it is not that simple. Estrogen is only a part of HRT, and alone it is indeed protective, but it needs progesterone to avoid endometrial cancer, and progesterone decreases estrogen protective quality.

Many of our early studies showed that estrogen prevents heart disease; then along came others that demonstrated that hormone replacement in menopause could increase the risk of heart attack and stroke. The earlier “positive” studies were observational; women who took estrogen were followed and compared to women who did not. Those on high doses of the most commonly prescribed form of estrogen, Premarin (1.25 to 2.5 milligrams a day) had a 50 to 70 percent reduction of CHD. When doses were reduced and progestin added (to protect the uterine lining from cancerous changes), the benefit was still there, but “only” 30 percent. The argument was subsequently made that part of the so-called estrogen benefit came not from taking the hormone but from the fact that women who took it were initially healthier and had a higher socioeconomic status than nonusers. There is some justification for this, however, when the statisticians corrected for these factors, the observed heart benefits of estrogen persisted. We also know that in women who undergo removal of their ovaries before menopause and do not take estrogen replacement, the risk of heart attack increases dramatically; the younger they are at time of surgery, the higher the risk. Even if a woman’s ovaries are removed in the years just prior to or at the beginning of menopause (50 to 59), lack of estrogen replacement may cause her to be twice as likely to develop atherosclerosis as a woman who has not undergone surgical menopause. When women of the same age but different menopausal status are compared (one menopausal, the other, not) the menopausal woman has a two to threefold increase in her future risk of CHD. In the final analysis: for each year’s delay in menopause, the risk of CHD decreases by 2 percent...






When we put all these facts and theories together, estrogen’s effect on coronary heart disease is thought to be as follows: In our reproductive years, hormones protect our vessels from plaque formation. Once we become menopausal there is an early window of opportunity to reduce this plaque formation with estrogen. If hormone therapy is delayed and is started years after menopause when plaque has already formed, it may initially cause the plaque to erode or rupture, but years later there could be a benefit in that cholesterol levels are improved. In scientific terms, this is a triphasic effect: First good, then not good, then better.


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10034785/

Still "roll the dice" game as with any HRT.


JMO