Does Consuming Soy Make You Gain Weight?

Does consuming Soy make you gain weight?

Off late I have been hearing and asked by many people, “does eating Soy make you gain weight”, besides the other common notion that Soy makes men, feminish. Initially my reaction used to be, look at that person with a straight face and try to understand if she/he is seriously asking me this question or is it a joke. But then when these questions became more frequent, I thought of writing a blog on Soy.

I shall start this blog too with the same adage that anything in excess is harmful. Similarly, any food, eaten in excess, will make you gain weight, which includes foods made from soy too. That doesn't mean that soy has inherent fattening properties. Many people are misinformed regarding this plant protein and its role in health. Soy has numerous health benefits, it is a rich source of calcium, iron, and fiber. Soy also contains all essential amino acids (meaning it’s a “complete protein”). One research states that a 3/4 cup of cooked soybeans contains as much protein as 1/2 a cup of cooked meat. Many soy-derived foods have nutrients that actually help with weight control. But it is very important to note that no single food will make you gain weight or lose it. It all depends on how many calories you are eating each day as compared to how many you burn; Eat more than you burn, and you'll gain weight, eat less, and you'll lose.

For example, a slightly active 37-year-old man who is 6 feet tall and weighs 84kgs needs about 2,900 calories to maintain his weight. So, if he eats daily more than that, say, 3,400 calories, or an extra 500 calories daily, he would gain about a half kilogram each week. If he eats less than that, like 2,500 calories daily, or 500 calories fewer than he needs, he would lose half kilogram a week. (Shhh, I just shared a secret to lose weight)

Individual calorie needs depend on one’s size, activity level, gender and age. There are quite a few calorie calculators available online, go ahead and check your optimum calories intake per day. Depending on what you are looking for, add 250 to 500 calories to your daily diet for safe weight gain or remove 500 to 1,000 calories for safe weight loss.

This leads me to calories in Soy-based foods. Soy foods are moderately high in calories, which means they can help you gain weight, but they could also become an important part of your restricted-calorie weight-loss diet. For example, 2-cups of soy nuggets/granules will give about 360 calories. If you add a cup of soy nuggets to your daily diet, you get enough extra calories to gain about 250gms per week. However, if you control the calories for the soy nuggets in a restricted-calorie diet, you won't gain weight.

Another example is eating a cup of firm tofu, and you'll take in about 176 calories along with beneficial nutrients like protein, calcium and iron. Soybeans also supply calories and nutrients; a cup of green hulled edamame beans (immature soybeans in pod which are boiled or steamed and consumed) contains 376 calories and more than your entire vitamin C needs for the day, while a cup of cooked mature soybeans supplies 298 calories and around half your daily iron needs. Drink a glass of soy milk, and you would get 131 calories, plus protein and essential minerals like manganese and selenium.

Soy-based foods are high in protein, which makes them beneficial for weight loss. Protein-rich foods have a high heating effect, which means you would burn more of fat and calories during digestion; more than you would in digesting fat or carbohydrates. Soy is just as beneficial for weight loss as other sources of protein.

Further eating soy increases your fiber intake; edamame, for example, has 43 percent of the daily value for a cup. Fiber makes your food more filling and controls blood glucose levels, which prevents blood sugar crashes that trigger hunger pangs. Mature soybeans supply 41 percent of the daily value for fiber per cup; tofu contains 8 percent of the daily value; and soy milk contains 6 percent of the daily value per cup.

With all these benefits, still why do some people stay away from soy?

The issue is with soy protein isolate, which is soy protein that’s been extracted from soybeans, and reaches you through bread, cereal, soup, and energy bars. If you are constantly seeing the words ‘soy protein isolate’ on the ingredient lists of the foods you eat, it might be a wake-up call that you’re eating too many processed foods, which can pack on the Kgs or Pounds

The problem is less with soy protein isolate and more with processed foods, which it’s always a good idea to stay away from as they are often loaded with sugar and salt.

Less processed soy foods include tofu, edamame or soy beans, and soy milk.

Besides the misguided belief soy can cause weight-gain, people also avoid Soy for two other reasons. Some claim it’s an “estrogenic,” meaning it can increase the amount of estrogen hormone in your body, which will make you more feminish. Others worry about it being genetically modified.

Research has also shown two to three servings of soy per day can prevent breast cancer (this doesn’t pertain to soy supplements), and two servings of it per day is safe for breast cancer survivors.

Daily consumption can also help reduce one’s risk of cardiovascular disease and alleviate symptoms of menopause.

The other reason is the taste, there is a section of people who state that they do not like the taste of Soy. What they are referring to are soy nuggets, which are available in the market as isolated soy or processed soy. Besides like many other foods, one needs to develop taste for Soy Nuggets.

Soy milk is also an excellent alternative to milk, specially for those who are lactose intolerant

So, feel free to add soy milk to your daily coffee without fear that it’ll wreak havoc on your waistline.