Soybeans are a treasure for menopause, and you must know their 4 major health benefits! Nutritionist He Caixuan: 3 tips for eating soybeans

We often come into contact with soy products in our daily diet, but when it comes to the benefits of eating soybeans, most people only focus on the ability of soy isoflavones to improve women's menopausal symptoms. In fact, soybeans can also help women hydrate the skin, protect the heart, and reduce the risk of postmenopausal osteoporosis. Nutritionist He Caixuan has compiled the following 4 benefits of soybeans for women!

4 health benefits of eating soybeans

Soy products help women's skin hydration

Past studies have focused on soy isoflavones to explore their efficacy and mechanisms in reducing wrinkles in women. However, a recent Japanese study found that after 60 premenopausal women drank soy milk for eight consecutive weeks, their self-rated skin moisturizing scores increased by 24% and elasticity increased by 31%.

Soybeans help protect the heart

Compared with animal ingredients, soybeans are rich in unsaturated fatty acids and vitamin E, and contain lower levels of saturated fatty acids. Using soybean products as the main source of protein can help balance the proportion of fatty acids in our daily intake, help fight inflammation, and reduce low-density lipoprotein cholesterol by 3-4%, which has the potential to prevent cardiovascular disease.

Soybeans reduce the risk of breast cancer recurrence

In the past, soybeans were believed to contain isoflavones that would increase tumor growth due to an animal experiment in 1990, and breast cancer patients were advised to avoid eating soybeans and their products. However, some clinical experiments after 2009 found that eating soybeans not only did not increase the risk of breast cancer, but instead reduced the risk of breast cancer recurrence and mortality.

Many health organizations have stated that soybeans are safe and beneficial for breast cancer patients, and the American Cancer Society and the World Cancer Research Fund also support that eating soybeans can help breast cancer patients recover after treatment and reduce recurrence.

Many health organizations have stated that soy is safe and beneficial for breast cancer patients.

Soybeans reduce the risk of osteoporosis after menopause

After menopause, women's estrogen levels decrease and osteoclast activity increases, which can easily lead to bone loss and increase the risk of osteoporosis and fractures.

Two past Asian epidemiological studies have found that soy intake is negatively correlated with fracture risk, and studies in the United States have also pointed out that drinking soy milk is associated with a reduced risk of osteoporosis, indicating that the intake of soy products may reduce the risk of postmenopausal osteoporosis.

How can we eat soybeans in our daily diet?

We have discussed many benefits of eating soybeans, but how can soybeans and their products be used in life to maximize their benefits? Nutritionists provide three tips!

3 Tips for Eating Soybeans

Tip 1: Replace some meat with soy products

Elderly people have poor teeth and often reduce their protein intake because they cannot bite meat. At this time, part of the meat can be replaced with soy products such as tofu or dried tofu. In addition to increasing protein intake, calcium can also be supplemented to reduce the risk of osteoporosis.

Tip 2: Adding sesame to soy milk increases the chance of calcium supplementation

For people who are lactose intolerant or do not like drinking milk, in addition to supplementing calcium through dried tofu or other high-calcium ingredients, you can also add sesame seeds to soy milk to supplement protein and calcium at the same time.

Tip 3: Replace animal fats with soybean oil to reduce saturated fatty acid intake

Many food stalls or bakeries still use animal fats such as lard or butter as their main ingredients. If you make your own meals at home, it is recommended to use more soybean oil instead of animal fats to reduce the intake of saturated fatty acids. Currently there is high oleic soybean oil, which contains a high proportion of monounsaturated fatty acids and has heart-protecting benefits.