Heart Association says soy doesn't lower cholesterol much - The Boston Globe

Well then....

Heart Association says soy doesn't lower cholesterol much - The Boston Globe
"

An American Heart Association committee reviewed a decade of studies on soy's benefits and came up with results that are casting doubt on the health claim that soy-based foods and supplements lower cholesterol significantly.

The findings could lead the Food and Drug Administration to reevaluate rules that allow companies to tout a cholesterol-lowering benefit on the labels of soy-based food.

The panel also found that neither soy nor the soy component isoflavone reduced symptoms of menopause, such as hot flashes, and that isoflavones don't help prevent breast, uterine, or prostate cancer. Results were mixed on whether soy prevented postmenopausal bone loss."

On the plus side, while it mayor may not lower cholesterol, as a source of protein it is more ecologically efficient than meats, does not raise cholesterol, and does not lead to the slaughter of animals. Thus, it still gets my vote :)