Is Soy Consumption Good or Bad for the Breast? - PMC Advertising on our site helps support our mission. What if Im a survivor? Can soy products cause hormone issues, especially in men? Experts recommend sticking with a moderate amount, or about one to two servings, of whole soy a day. (2019). Request an appointment at MD Anderson online or by calling 1-877-632-6789. (PR) status is the important indicator for predicting efficacy of endocrine therapy and prognosis in breast cancer. UCSF Medical Center: A Guide to Foods Rich in Soy.. Soy has a lot of health benefits outside of cancer prevention, too. So there was a fear that soy could act as estrogen in the body and stimulate cancer cells, Meyers says. Though they sound similar, these hormones arent the same, and eating phytoestrogens doesnt affect the estrogen found naturally in your body. subscriptions and profile. Marleen Meyers, MD, assistant professor of medicine, NYU School of Medicine; director of survivorship, Perlmutter Cancer Center Survivorship Program, NYU Langone Medical Center. Not to worry. A vegetable-fruit-soy dietary pattern protects against breast cancer among postmenopausal Singapore Chinese women. medical and editorial policy and guidelines. Summary tables are a useful way to look at the science behind many breast cancer guidelines and recommendations. I tell patients: Not only should you not avoid soy, but it could be beneficial to incorporate into your diet.. Because soy supplements are created in a lab, they can contain individual soy protein isolates. All rights reserved. Answering Questions About Soy and Breast Cancer - Susan G. Komen 1-877-465-6636 (Se habla espaol) Walk the grocery stores aisles these days and you cant go too many steps before coming across a food with soy as a main ingredient. This is quite a controversial and debatable question and often, it causes confusion. As with everything, balance is key. And if it's OK to eat, why do some people say it isn't? Beyond the Heart of the Matter: Aspirin and Breast Cancer Risk and Survival Komen Perspectives, Debunking Five Common Myths About Breast Cancer Treatment Komen Perspectives, ww5.komen.org/BreastCancer/FactorsUnderStudy.html#soy, ww5.komen.org/BreastCancer/Table19Soyintakeandbreastcancerrisk.html, Many Lives Still Left Behind: What Breast Cancer Needs Now, The Ultimate ROI: Health Equity for the Black Community, Imposter Syndrome: The Dave Grohl Predicament, Corinas Story: Breast Cancer Inspired Me to Help Others, Dr. Nathan Merrill is Eliminating Disparities for Triple Negative Breast Cancer Patients, Dr. Abenaa Brewsters Pioneering Research: Unraveling the Potential of Blood-Based Biomarkers in Breast Cancer. Twitter. Consider anycorrelation between soy and breast cancer world-wide. Some people need to be careful of that. They caution, however, that more research needs to be done to see whether taking isoflavone supplements is equally safe, since these supplements may have higher concentrations of isoflavones than there are in soy foods. Am J Clin Nutr. 2023 Healthline Media LLC. Eur J Epidemiol. Soy protein isolate is a stripped-down version of soy that only contains protein and none of the other benefits. Qin LQ, Xu JY, Wany PY, Hoshi K. Soyfood intake in the prevention of breast cancer risk in women: a meta-analysis of observational epidemiological studies. Soy and Breast Cancer - Oncology Nutrition DPG News Soy and Cancer Risk: Our Expert's Advice Published on: April 29, 2019 Written by: Stacy Simon Senior Editor, News There's a lot of conflicting information going around about soy: Is it healthy? Does soy really affect breast cancer risk? - Mayo Clinic Phytoestrogens are plant-based substances that act like estrogen in the body. 3. Furthermore, in a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, roughly 73,000 Chinese women who were part of the Shanghai Womens Health Study and who reported consuming high levels of soy consistently during adolescence and adulthood had a substantially lower risk of breast cancer. Ask your doctor about the risks and benefits if youre considering taking isoflavone or any other dietary supplements. Dietary isoflavone intake and all‐cause mortality in breast cancer survivors: The Breast Cancer Family Registry. However, the answer is no. Study selection criteria: Prospective cohort studieswith at least 400 breast cancer cases, meta-analyses and pooled analyses. The protective effect was highest for women who had not yet reached menopause. Experts say not all plant-based diets are created equal. 9(2):e89288, 2014. Yet, despite such popularity and in part because of it soy remains an important and somewhat controversial health topic, particularly when it comes to breast cancer. Testing whether soy, or its active components can protect against genetic damage and prevent the development of breast cancer. Science tries to avoid correlatingbehaviors with risk factors too quickly. Soy may be a migraine trigger in some people, and it may be genetically modified, which some people choose to avoid. Soy is a great alternative to animal protein to include in your daily diet, she says. As a breast cancer survivor and senior clinical dietitian at MD Anderson, Christie Siebel is passionate about debunking misinformation so patients get the nutrients they need to stay healthy. In tissues with breast cancer cells, estrogen stimulates the multiplication of cancer cells. In addition, isoflavone supplements are available at natural health stores and online. Thus Komens role in funding research on soy and other weak estrogen-like substances in plants is very important. Does Soy Cause Cancer? Understand the Facts One form of fermented soy, soy sauce, contains tyramine and monosodium glutamate (MSG). You look at Asian women who consume moderate amounts of soy as their diet, their lifestyle, they do not have worse outcomes.. Farvid MS, et al. If youve been diagnosed with cancer and are interested in a second opinion about your diagnosis or treatment plan, call us or chat online with a member of our team. Learn about the strengths and weaknesses of different types of studies. Dr.Roeschdoes advise women to avoidsoyisoflavone extracts,especially in large doses. When researchers conducted similar soy studies on primates, whose biology is much closer to human biology, they found no increased risk of breast cancer among the primates who consumed soy. However, due to the phytoestrogens in soy, the myth that soy causes breast cancer is still popular. No clinical studies have yet given a definitive answer to the question of whether these products cause breast cancer. 1. We need to look at if having soy later in life has the same effect.. Soy - Breastcancer.org At CTCA, patients, depending on their needs, may meet with a registered dietitian to address side these and other side effects, evaluate the patients nutritional status and makes recommendations for staying nourished during and after treatment. Women in the study who reported eating higher amounts of soy products experienced a lower risk of breast cancer. Soy comes from soybeans. Experts now believe that soy isoflavones may actually block estrogen from attaching to breast cancer cells instead of spurring growth like once thought. Its one of the few plant foods that has all of the essential amino acids that we need, building blocks of protein like meats, and it is a nice, concentrated source of protein, says Carolyn Lammersfeld, Vice President of Integrative Oncology and Clinical Services at CTCA. 2023 The University of Texas MD Anderson Butler LM, Wu AH, Wang R, Koh WP, Yuan JM, Yu MC. And in those societies, people still eat soy in its traditional forms. It is also cholesterol-free and lactose-free, and a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, adding to its health benefits. Isolates, like pure vitamin A, can only be created in a lab. Can soy increase your risk of cancer, especially breast cancer? These studies on humans have not confirmed a link between eating naturalsoyand developingbreastcancer. 6:119127, 2004. Eating soy goes beyond enjoying a block of tofu. Is there a relationship between eating soy and breast cancer? (2011). Soy isoflavone phase II metabolism differs between rodents and humans: implications for the effect on breast cancer risk. Nutritional support at CTCA may be used to manage multiple cancer-related symptoms and treatment side effects, including: The nutrition therapy team plays a key role in the patient-centered approach at CTCA. Can Soy Cause Breast Cancer? Rates ofbreastcancerin generalare much higher in the United States than in many Asian countriesfor example, wheresoyproducts are a major diet staple, Dr.Roeschsays. However, in humans, phytoestrogens turn into genistein and daidzein, two isoflavones that are very different from and much weaker than human estrogen. pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2016/01/28/peds.2015-1226, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2981011/, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5535874/, cancernutrition.org/resources/is-soy-safe-for-cancer-patients/, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7334424/, hsph.harvard.edu/news/features/red-meat-consumption-and-breast-cancer-risk/, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3192476/, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2874068/, cancer.org/latest-news/soy-and-cancer-risk-our-experts-advice.html, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5571710/, acsjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/cncr.30615. Cancer causes: Popular myths about the causes of cancer Okekunie AP, et al. You can eat soybeans in many forms, including tofu, the beans themselves (also known as edamame), soy milk, miso, and soy powder. In an interview, the study's first author, Gary E. Fraser, Ph.D., explained, "Consuming as little as 1/4 to 1/3 cup of dairy milk per day was associated with an increased risk of breast cancer . Phytochemicals targeting estrogen receptors: Beneficial rather than adverse effects? Pursuing basic and translational research across 9 programs and 100+ labs, Focusing on clinical cancer research and population health, Bridging the lab and the clinic through translational research, Fostering interdisciplinary collaborations between laboratory scientists and clinicians, Partnering with other academic and research institutions, Offering state-of-the-art resources for our researchers, Offering a curriculum with a focus on cancer, Connecting college seniors to future careers in biomedicine. The role of dietary factors in the cause of breast cancer has been extensively investigated, . Pills with isolated soy isoflavones may cause troublenot enough research has been done yet on people to determine whether or not high concentrations of those isoflavones may encourage the growth of breast cancer. Which soy foods are good sources of isoflavones?