Soy and Osteoporosis: Studies Show Soy Protein May Help in Prevention and Treatment of Bone Loss
Source: PR Newswire

Two studies have revealed that soy may play an important role in the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis, a disease that can affect 24 million Americans.

Osteoporosis causes the loss of bone mass and strength. It affects both men and women, but is primarily found in post-menopausal women.

A study by the Division of Nutritional Science, University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, entitled "Short-Term Effects of Soybean Isoflavones on Bones in Post-Menopausal Women," found that post-menopausal women with high concentrations of soy in their diet had stronger bone health.

Dr. John W. Erdman, Jr., author of the study, found that "results indicated significant increases in both bone mineral content and bone density in the lumbar spine: for women with a high soy diet."

The study, reported at the Second International Symposium on the Role of Soy in Preventing and Treating Chronic Disease, concluded that "these results indicate a potential role for the soybean isoflavone in maintaining bone health."

In another report, Dr. Bahram Arjmandi, leading soy researcher of the Department of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Illinois at Chicago, also found in several recent studies that soy protein may lead to a "natural" therapy for osteoporosis sufferers.

Dr. Arjmandi's latest study, "The Ovarian Hormone Deficiency-Induced Hypercholesterolemic Is Reversed by Soy Protein and the Synthetic Isoflavone, Ipriflavone," examined whether soy protein isolate would prevent or slow bone loss.

Dr. Arjmandi's study, reported in Nutrition Research, a newsletter for health professionals, found that soy protein "can effectively prevent the ovarian-hormone-deficiency-associated rise in serum cholesterol."

"We found that while bone density increased with the consumption of soy isolate, more importantly, bone quality was improved. This is very important to the growing population of Americans confronting the onset of osteoporosis," he said.

Dr. Arjmandi noted that additional long-term study is needed to further determine soy protein’s effects on human health.

"If long-term studies in humans demonstrate that ipriflavone (similar to estrogen and soy protein isolate) is free of undesirable side effects, then it might be considered a desirable alternative for dealing with post-menopausal women’s increased risk of coronary heart disease and osteoporosis," he said.

Soy protein, which comes from the soybean, contains a compound called isoflavones. Isoflavones have been described as "possessing a myriad of biological properties that can affect many biological and physiological processes." Many scientists attribute the soybean’s positive health effects to its high concentration of isoflavones, which are found only in the soybean.

A recent issue of the Mayo Health Clinic Letter noted that studies on soy have shown promising results in the prevention of heart disease, stroke, cancer, and hot flashes during menopause, as well as benefits for osteoporosis. The newsletter said that rates of heart attacks, cancer and osteoporosis are lower in "cultures where soy is the main source of protein," such as Asia and the western world, which has led to increased study of soy.

"While it may be too early to make specific health claims for soy, there is evidence that adding soy to your diet makes good nutritional sense," the newsletter concluded.

Source: PR Newswire, June 30, 1997