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Soy
Raises Good Cholesterol
(HealthScout)
-- Soy is just the ticket for those with high cholesterol, but
a new study says that even people with normal cholesterol levels
can benefit from the protein.
A preliminary
study of 150 Chinese men and women with normal cholesterol levels
found that adding 40 grams of soy protein to their diet daily
for three months raised the level of "good" cholesterol, which
is high-density lipoprotein (HDL) by almost 5 percent. The levels
of "bad," low-density lipoprotein (LDL) also increased, but not
enough to matter. Forty grams is 1.4 ounces.
Previous studies
have shown that soy protein helps lower LDL levels and raise HDL
levels in people with high cholesterol, but this is the first
to show a beneficial HDL effect on people with normal cholesterol
levels.
"We were excited
about this finding, to find that soy protein intake increased
HDL by 5 percent, which is significant," says Dr. Jiang He, an
associate epidemiology professor at Tulane University in New Orleans,
and lead author of the report.
He is presenting
the results of his study today at the American Heart Association's
41st Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology
and Prevention in San Antonio, Texas.
"The increase
in HDL is no surprise," says Dr. Frank Hu, a nutrition professor
at Harvard's School of Public Health. "The increase in HDL isn't
due to soy, but probably due to substituting protein for carbohydrates…which
can cause an increase in HDL. This kind of effect happens, not
just with soy."
"That's a
possibility," says Dr. He, who is now conducting the second phase
of the study, which includes 200 more participants.
Because of
soy's efficacy in lowering the LDL levels in people with high
cholesterol, the American Heart Association's (AHA) Nutrition
Committee recommends the wider use of soy products for those with
the high cholesterol.
Cholesterol,
a soft, waxy substance found among the lipids (fats) in the bloodstream,
is used to form cell membranes, some hormones and other needed
tissues. But in excess, it is a major risk factor for coronary
heart disease, according to the AHA.
Cholesterol
and other fats can't dissolve in the blood. They have to be transported
to and from the cells by carriers called lipoproteins, mainly
low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL).
LDL, if found in too high amounts in the blood, tends to line
the artery walls and form plaque, increasing the risk of heart
disease, and is thus called the "bad" lipoprotein.
The other
major lipoprotein, HDL, is thought to carry excess cholesterol
away from the arteries and back to the liver, where it's passed
from the body. Its presence is associated with a lower heart disease
risk, so it is called the "good" lipoprotein.
In the study,
researchers studied 60 men and 90 women, ages 35-65, all of whom
had normal cholesterol levels. The average cholesterol level was
200, but no one in the study had a cholesterol level of over 240,
which is considered too high. Over a period of three months, half
of the participants ate cookies containing soy protein supplements
every day, while a control group consumed a complex carbohydrate
placebo. At the end of that time, those who had received the soy
supplements had an average 4.7 percent increase in HDL compared
to the control group.
Eat your tofu;
unless you're allergic, it can't hurt and it may just help you.
Reference Source 101
To
learn more about soy, you can visit
University of Illinois or, for a selection of soy recipes,
go to The Indiana
Soybean Board.
For
more information on how to prevent other diseases, use
PreventDisease.com's "Quick
Prevention Resources".
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