Soy Isoflavones and Menopause, Pt II – The Cons
The soy plant is native to Asia and has been around for thousands of years, but only became familiar to the western world in the last century. After it was noted that Asian women had fewer symptoms of menopause and fewer side-effects afterwards, scientists started conducting studies and came up with some definite possible advantages to taking soy isoflavones to reduce or eliminate the symptoms of menopause.

But just like any estrogen replacement therapy for menopause symptoms, soy isoflavones have a few disadvantages to taking them, too:

• Because results of studies are contradictory, it is unclear whether the use of soy isoflavones to control symptoms of menopause have any long-term side effects. It has been suggested that the estrogen-mimicking isoflavones could have the same potential side effects as HRT, including an increased risk of breast cancer for women who are at higher risk already.

• Soy products are “controlled” as foods rather than drugs in the Unites States. As such, the federal requirements for consistency are lighter. Amounts of isoflavones in the preparations for sale today can fluctuate quite a bit based on different manufacturers and even different production lots by the same manufacturer.

• Some people are allergic to soy products, and reports show that they will also have an adverse reaction to soy isoflavones taken in capsule form. Take precaution if you don’t know if you are allergic to soy or not.

While it appears there are no real side effects and few, if any, long-term effects of taking soy isoflavones to reduce the symptoms of menopause, it is always important to consult your primary healthcare provider before beginning any course of treatment. You and your health professional can determine the right course of treatment for you.

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