A study published in Journal of American Medical Association suggests use of soy foods may help women diagnosed with breast cancer reduce risk of premature death and recurrence.

The study led by Shu X.O. and colleagues from Vanderbilt Epidemiology Center showed those who had highest intake of soy protein were 30 percent less likely to die or had recurrence of the disease during a 4-year follow-up.

Soy foods are high in isoflavones, phytoestrogens that have been associated with reduced risk of breast cancer in previous studies, according to the background information in the study report.

The study was meant to examine the effect of soy protein intake on the health in women who have already been diagnosed with breast cancer.

For the study, the researchers enlisted 5,042 female breast cancer survivors in China ages 20 to 75 years who participated in the Shanghai Breast Cancer Survival Study. The participants were diagnosed with the disease between March 2002 and April 2006 and followed up through June 2009.

During the 3.9-year follow-up, of 5,033 women who underwent surgery, 444 women died and 534 suffered recurrence or breast cancer related deaths.

The researchers found those who had highest intake of soy protein were 29 percent less likely to die and 32 percent less likely to have recurrence of breast cancer compared to those who had lowest intake.

The mortality rate among women having the highest intake of soy protein was 7.4 percent compared to 10.3 percent for those who had lowest intake.

The recurrence rate among those who ate highest amounts of soy foods was 8 percent compared to 11.2 percent among those who had the lowest intake.

The researchers concluded “Among women with breast cancer, soy food consumption was significantly associated with decreased risk of death and recurrence.”

More reports on diet and breast cancer will be released in the pink month.

Source: yahoo.com

Soy consumption for cancer patients has been the subject of some controversy. A new study has shown that breast cancer survivors who consume soy foods reap important health benefits and found that eating soy can increase the rate of survival for breast cancer patients.

According to a recent report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), women diagnosed with breast cancer and who consumed soy foods, such as tofu, soy milk, or edamame reduced their risk of recurrence by 32 percent. 1

Previous research refuted

Previous research had produced contradictory results with some studies suggesting that soy foods reduce the risk of breast cancer and others that compounds unique to soy may help breast cancer cells to grow. Now, previous theories been refuted with this new study demonstrating that soy does not increase the growth of breast cancer cells and has been proven to increase survival rates.
Higher soy intake – lower mortality

Researchers also found that breast cancer patients who consumed soy had a 29 percent decreased risk of death, compared to women who consumed little or no soy. Xiao Ou Shu, MD, PhD, lead researcher and professor of medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, TN, said, “Women who had a higher soy intake had a lower mortality and lower risk of relapse [than women with a low soy intake].”

Dr. Shu and her fellow researchers analyzed data from the Shanghai Breast Cancer Survival Study, the largest population-based study of breast cancer survival to date. The study included 5,042 women from 20 to 75 years of age and followed them for a period of four years.
Soy compounds reduce estrogen in the body

Soybeans are rich in phytoestrogens, also known as isoflavones. Although these substances are one thousand times less potent than human estrogen, there has been some concern that isoflavones may have an estrogen-like effect and may increase cancer risk.

However, many experts believe that because isoflavones fool the body into accepting the very weak compound, phytoestrogen actually competes with the human estrogen, thus reducing the overall level of estrogen in the body.
Soy is safe and potentially beneficial

An editorial accompanying this new study suggests some probable inconsistencies in prior research. The editorial attributed those inconsistencies to the fact that soy consumption in the U.S. is a good deal lower, which made the beneficial effects of consuming soy foods difficult to identify. In China, soy intake is higher and diets tend to include the intake of more traditional soy from food sources, rather than from soy supplements.

The researchers report, “The inverse association was evident among women with either estrogen receptor-positive or receptor-negative breast cancer and was present in both users and nonusers of tamoxifen.”

“In summary, in this population-based prospective study, we found that soy food intake is safe and was associated with lower mortality and recurrence among breast cancer patients.” These scientists concluded that, among women with breast cancer, soy food consumption was significantly associated with decreased risk of death and recurrence. Dr Shu and her colleagues stated, “This study suggests that moderate soy food intake is safe and potentially beneficial for women with breast cancer.”

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1. Shu XO, Zheng Y, Cai H, et al. Soy food intake and breast cancer survival. JAMA. 2009;302:2437-2443.
Ballard-Barbash R, Neuhouser ML. Challenges in design and interpretation of observational research on health behaviors and cancer survival. JAMA. 2009;302:2483-2484.

Source: yahoo.com

Soy Isoflavones are a dietary supplement derived from soybeans containing phytoestrogens. These weak estrogens are chemically similar in structure to naturally produced estrogen hormones. Isoflavones are found in soy foods both with and without a sugar molecule attached. The two primary isoflavones in soybeans are daidzein and genistein and their respective glucosides, genistein and daidzein. Soy foods typically contain more genistein than daidzein, although this ratio varies among the different soy products. In cultures where soy products are consumed in abundance, women’s health problems, certain cancers, and cardiovascular disease are reported to be less prevalent.

A double-blinded controlled trial was performed to determine the effect of soy supplementation on abdominal fat, glucose metabolism and circulating inflammatory markers. Researchers recruited 39 obese postmenopausal women to take a soy supplement which contained 20 grams of soy protein and 160 milligrams of soy isoflavones or a casein placebo without isoflavones. Thirty-three women completed the study and were analyzed at baseline and at 3 months. The results were women given soy supplementation experienced a 7.5 percent reduction in abdominal fat, compared to 9 percent more abdominal fat in the placebo group. No differences were observed between the two groups for glucose metabolism, C-reactive protein, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, leptin or adiponectin. The authors of this study also reported that Caucasians primarily lost visceral fat (fat surrounding the organs in the abdominal cavity) while African Americans primarily lost total body fat. In conclusion, soy supplementation was found to reduce abdominal fat in obese postmenopausal women.1

Source: American Journal of Obstetrics Gynecology

1 Christie DR, Grant J, Darnell BE, et al. Metabolic effects of soy supplementation in postmenopausal Caucasian and African American women: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2010.

Previous studies had reported that the high estrogen content in soy-rich products can help women during and after menopause in various aspects ranging from treating hot flashes to reducing heart attack risk factors like high cholesterol.

According to the study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, women following a diet rich in soy supplements have less abdominal fat in more precise computerized tomography (CT) scans. The efficacy of the diet, however, varies in different races. While adopting such a diet helps white women lose more visceral and abdominal fat, the use of soy supplements is associated with considerable reductions in the overall body fat in black women. Compared to white women, black women are also reported to lose more weight during the same time, the study found. Scientists, however, stressed that postmenopausal women should not start taking soy supplements just for the sake of controlling body composition or body weight.

Source: Press TV

Butler LM, Wu AH, Wang R, Koh WP, Yuan JM, Yu MC. A vegetable-fruit-soy dietary pattern protects against breast cancer among postmenopausal Singapore Chinese women. Am J Clin Nutr. Published ahead of print February 24, 2010. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2009.28572.

Source: http://www.pcrm.org

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Our brains and bodies will slow down if we run low on fuel. By mid-morning, a lot of us grab a cup of coffee or wolf down a sugary candy bar to wake up again. This might work for a few minutes, but by lunch time we are hungry, crabby, and perhaps our mood might make us a little more prone to making unhealthy choices at lunch. Eating a good breakfast sets the tone for the rest of the day.

Skipping breakfast is a common strategy for losing weight, but not a smart one. Many people believe that they will lose weight if they skip meals, but that just isn’t true; the body expects to be refueled a few times a day, starting with a healthy breakfast. Eating breakfast is good for weight loss. In fact, people who eat breakfast are

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