Note: This is certainly good news. Not unexpected. I've understood that phytoestrogens have more of a balancing effect on hormonal level rather than actually increasing hormones. It's because they have a weaker effect than normal estrogen. So if the levels of estrogen are too high, the soy will take up binding sites for a weaker estrogen effect. If endogenous estrogen is too low, then the soy estrogens will supplement it. That said, I do encourage moderation in soy consumption. In Asia, where soy has been eaten for thousands of years, it's more of a side dish than here in the West. You won't see someone sit down with a large bowl of edame and eat it all like popcorn. Another example of if a little is good, more is not necessarily better. Studies in monkeys and women suggest that unlike traditional estrogen therapy, a diet high in the natural plant estrogens found in soy does not increase the risk of uterine cancer in postmenopausal women, according to Mark Cline, D.V.M., Ph.D., an associate professor of comparative medicine at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.
No Evidence That Estrogens in Soy Increase Uterine Cancer Risk
