Earlier this week, I let you in on one of the dirty secrets of the soy industry – the use of the dangerous chemical hexane in the extraction process.
And if you think you’re not eating soy, you might be surprised. This cheap protein is packed into everything from “health food” bars, burritos and smoothies, to sauces, pizzas and other packaged foods.
And while these foods may send us to an early grave, where we really should be looking is the cradle.
In fact, baby food formulas made from soy (and most of them are) may be one of the worst things we can do for the long-term health of our babies and children.
And even if you do not have a baby, surely you have grandchildren, nieces, nephews or friends who need the information in this letter. We hope you’ll pass this along to those you care about.
Here are eight reasons why you should NEVER put a baby on soy infant formula:
1. Caustic Chemicals: Soy protein isolate is the primary ingredient in soy formulas. Unless it is listed as organic, this ingredient is treated with caustic hexane.
2. Exposure to GMOs: Almost all soy is genetically modified. But even if you choose organic soy formula (like Earth’s Best), the issues below still remain as health concerns.
3. Estrogen Exposure: It is estimated that infants fed exclusively soy-based formula receive an estrogen dose equivalent to five birth control pills, daily.
4. Proper Growth & Development: Soy is high anti-nutrients, known as phytates. These molecules actually block the uptake of essential minerals. For this reason, soy formulas have been known to cause a zinc deficiency in infants. Zinc is essential for normal growth and development.
5. Lower IQ: Soy formulas do not have lactose, which is broken down into glucose and galactose. Galactose is valuable for brain development. Anthropologists have demonstrated that the more intelligent species of mammals have greater amounts of lactose in their milk, and human milk contains one of the highest concentrations of lactose. Soy-based formulas contain table sugar and corn syrup instead.
6. Brain Function: Soy formulas lack cholesterol. This is a required ingredient for making myelin – the fatty sheath surrounding nerve fibers. Myelin makes it possible for nerves to carry information from one part of the brain or body to another.
7. Thyroid Function: Soy contains goitrogens. These are chemicals that can impair thyroid function. The thyroid affects weight, metabolism, mood and the functioning of other endocrine organs.
8. Exposure to Heavy Metals: The aluminum content of soy formula is 10 times greater than milk-based formula and 100 times greater than unprocessed milk. The toxic effects of aluminum range from kidney failure in infants to Alzheimer’s in adults.
When it comes to baby food, the breast is always the best (so long as mom is consuming a healthy diet).
If someone you love is feeding their baby soy formula, please pass this important information on. You just might save a life.
And speaking of the health of our little ones, in the Your Plate, Your Fate health transformation series you’ll learn:
- Which toxic chemical increases a girl’s risk of developing breast cancer later in life by five times compared to girls with lower exposure
- The common food preservative, when consumed during pregnancy can increase a child’s risk of brain tumor by two to three times, compared to children whose mothers ate none.
- Why women getting just three grams of this fat each day reduced the risk of premature delivery by 33%
- How children born to mothers who ate two grams of this fat every day during pregnancy and lactation, scored higher on IQ tests at age four than children whose mother’s ate none.
- The type of baby food in which just one jar can expose a child to 100 times the EPA’s daily limit of dioxins – dangerous endocrine disrupting chemicals.
We hope you’ll pick up your copy of Your Plate, Your Fate today. This one-of-a-kind health transformation system will show you how to optimize your nutrient levels using the right cooking techniques… protect your DNA from the damage that speeds aging and encourages cancer… balance your blood sugar, while still enjoying decadent desserts… and even release fat stores and renew your vitality with the most powerful (and delicious!) detoxifying foods on the planet.
References
1. Behind the Bean: The Heroes and Charlatans of the Natural and Organic Soy Foods Industry. The Cornucopia Institute, 2009
2. Rackis, Joseph J. et al., “The USDA trypsin inhibitor study. I. Background, objectives and procedural details”, Qualification of Plant Foods in Human Nutrition, vol. 35, 1985.
3. Van Rensburg et al., “Nutritional status of African populations predisposed to esophageal cancer”, Nutrition and Cancer, vol. 4, 1983, pp. 206-216
4. Moser, P.B. et al., “Copper, iron, zinc and selenium dietary intake and status of Nepalese lactating women and their breastfed infants”, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 47:729-734, April 1988
5. Harland, B.F. et al., “Nutritional status and phytate: zinc and phytate X calcium: zinc dietary molar ratios of lacto-ovovegetarian Trappist monks: 10 years later”, Journal of the American Dietetic Association 88:1562-1566, December 1988.
6. “Vegetarian diet in pregnancy linked to birth defect”, BJU International 85:107-113, January 2000.
