Featuring Andy De Santis, RD, MPH, Registered Dietician

Duration: 1 minute, 19 seconds

Soy represents a family of foods including soy beans, edamame, tofu, tempeh and soy milk.

Soybeans are also used to cook certain dishes including miso soup.

Allergies to these foods are among the nine most common allergies in Canada and is common in infants. Most children will outgrow a soy allergy by age ten, but in rare cases it could be a lifelong condition.

These foods are among the richest and best quality sources of plant protein and are often utilized by vegans and vegetarians for this purpose, although their immense nutritional value means they merit consideration in all diets.

Contrary to common misconceptions, consuming soy-based foods has not been demonstrated to negatively influence human health and hormone levels. Quite the opposite, in fact.

Soy foods are the only food family which contain unique flavonoid compounds known as isoflavones which are anti-inflammatory and known to have unique benefits for bone health, cholesterol lowering and have been shown to reduce menopausal symptoms too.

They also contribute varying amounts of key nutrients like magnesium fibre, calcium, iron, folate and even the omega-3 fatty acid ALA.

Presenter: Andy De Santis, Registered Dietitian, Toronto, ON

Local Practitioners: Registered Dietitian