Hi, is "SOY" familiar to your daily life? As you know, soy is well known as rich protein that serves as an alternative to meat, poultry, and other animal-based products. There are many products made with soy - tofu, soymilk, soy flour, miso (soybeans paste) and tempeh (a chewy soybeans cake and used as a meat substitute.)

Before I came to New York, I thought soy foods were popular only for Asians, however, I found it was not true. We can buy soy products everywhere and find many soy-specialty restaurants in NYC. It seems many New Yorkers (especially Vegans) prefer to eat them because they believe it's healthy and good for their diet.

I read a very interesting article about soy and breast cancer. It said, " While some studies showed soy offers a protective effect against breast cancer, a few studies showed the estrogen-like effects in isoflavones may be harmful for women with breast cancer." Since I believed soy helps to prevent breast cancer, I was kind of surprised at the studies. Also, the article said, "American Institute for Cancer Research stresses that data on soy and breast cancer are not conclusive, and more work is needed to be done before any dietary recommendations can be made." Therefore, it seems we cannot be sure about the issue yet.
Most health professionals agree that having soy is certainly a good idea along with plenty of whole grains, fruits and vegetables; accordingly I guess it is important to have a well-balanced diet and enjoy foods.

*If you are interested in a Japanese restaurant named "SOY" in NYC, click here. They have delicious homemade foods - soy smoothie, soy croquette, tofu salad, tofu miso soup and more!

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