Soy milk, which is made from soaking, grinding, and boiling soybeans with water, is a very nutritious drink. Soy is naturally high in essential fatty acids, proteins, fiber, vitamins, and minerals. These nutrients provide energy and keep your body functioning at its optimum level. Below are the most important health benefits you can acquire from drinking soy milk.
Soy milk has zero cholesterol
Unlike dairy milk, soy milk is unsaturated with cholesterol. It is therefore ideal for people with a family history of coronary heart diseases.
Soy milk is ideal for school going children
Soy milk contains omega-3 acid. Omega-3 is an essential fatty acid for the development of the brain.
Improve Lipid Profile
The most important attribute of soy milk is its ability to improve your blood lipid profile. Unlike dairy milk, which is high in saturated fat and cholesterol, soy milk fat is mostly unsaturated with zero cholesterol. The monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids in soy can inhibit the transport of cholesterol into your bloodstream. This combined effect makes soy milk an ideal drink if you have high cholesterol or have a family history of coronary heart diseases.
Strengthen Blood Vessel Integrity
The omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids as well as the powerful phyto-antioxidants in soy can effectively protect your blood vessels from lesions and hemorrhage.
These compounds bind to the blood vessel lining and defend your lining cells from free radical attacks and cholesterol deposits.
The binding of these nutrients also improves the fluidity and flexibility of your blood vessels so that they are much more resilient to blood pressure changes.
Promote Weight Loss
Promote Weight Loss
Soy milk is naturally lower in sugar content than regular milk. Cow's milk has about 12 grams of sugar per cup as opposed to only 7 grams in soy milk. This is why a cup of whole soy milk has only 80 calories, which is the equivalent of skim milk.
In addition, the monounsaturated fatty acid in soy milk can inhibit your intestinal absorption of fat, which is another great advantage for weight loss. Drinking soy milk also gives you an extra dose of fiber, keeping your feeling fuller for a longer time.
Prevent Prostate Cancer
Soy milk is a rich source of phytoestrogen, a unique plant hormone that can inhibit the production of testosterone in men. Reduced testosterone levels can significantly cut the risk of prostate cancer. -Studies have shown that men who eat a soy-rich diet are less likely to develop prostate hypertrophy or prostate cancer.
Prevent Postmenopausal Syndromes
During menopause, a woman's natural production of estrogen drops to a minimum. The sudden reduction of estrogen creates a number of health problems for postmenopausal women.
Postmenopausal women have higher risks of heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. They are also more vulnerable to depression, mood swings, insomnia, and other psychological disorders.
The phytoestrogen in soy is an effective estrogen replacement. Regular intake of soy is a great way to prevent and alleviate these postmenopausal syndromes.
Prevent Osteoporosis
Prevent Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis is another age and hormone-related disease. The phytoestrogen in soy can help accelerate calcium absorption by your body and prevent the loss of bone mass. For the maximum benefit, make sure to buy the soy milk that is fortified with extra calcium and vitamin D.
Benefits of drinking soy milk as compared to cow's milk.
Benefit 1: Soy milk contains only vegetable proteins
Vegetable proteins have the advantage that they cause less loss of calcium through the kidneys. It is known that a diet rich in animal (and dairy protein) creates a higher risk for osteoporosis.
Benefit 2: Soy milk contains no lactose
About 75 percent of the world population cannot tolerate lactose. Some ethnic groups are more affected than others. For example, 75 percent of Africans and 90 percent of Asians have lactose intolerance.
As an additional benefit, soy milk contains the prebiotic sugars stachyose and raffinose. These prebiotic sugars boost immunity and help decrease toxic substances in the body.
As an additional benefit, soy milk contains the prebiotic sugars stachyose and raffinose. These prebiotic sugars boost immunity and help decrease toxic substances in the body.
Benefit 3: Fewer people are allergic to soy milk
Only 0.5 percent of the children are allergic to soy milk, whereas 2.5 percent is allergic to cow's milk.
Benefit 4: Soy milk reduces cholesterol
The saturated fats in cow's milk are unhealthy and increase your cholesterol. The protein in cow's milk has no benefits for the cholesterol. Soy protein can decrease cholesterol levels. The FDA (Food and Drug Administration of the US) confirms that soy protein, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol may significantly reduce the risk of coronary heart. The FDA recommends incorporating 25 grams of soy protein in your daily meals.
Benefit 5: Soy milk contains no hormones
Cow's milk contains natural hormones (from the cow) but also synthetic hormones, which can influence the good working of our own body. The synthetic hormone rBGH (recombinant bovine growth hormone) increases milk production by as much as 20 percent.
Benefit 6: Soy milk does not cause insulin-dependent diabetes
Although no general consensus exists among scientists, some studies have shown an association between drinking cow's milk in early life and the development of insulin-dependent diabetes. This association does not exist with soy milk.
Benefit 7: Soy milk is rich in isoflavones
The presence of isoflavones is the most important and unique benefit of soy milk. Each cup of soy milk contains about 20 mg isoflavones (mainly genistein and daidzein). Cow's milk does not contain isoflavones. Isoflavones have many health benefits including reduction of cholesterol, easing of menopause symptoms, prevention of osteoporosis, and reduction of risk for certain cancers (prostate cancer and breast cancer). Incidents of these cancers are very low in countries with a high intake of soy products, including soy milk. Isoflavones are also antioxidants that protect our cells and DNA against oxidation.