Soy Intake and Risk of Type 2 Diabetes Among Japanese Men and Women: JACC Study

The evidence on the protective effects of soy foods against type 2 diabetes has been inconsistent. We thought to examine the association between the dietary intakes of soy and the risk of diabetes in a prospective study encompassing 21,925 healthy Japanese men and women aged 40–79 years. A validated self-administered food frequency questionnaire determined the intakes of soy, and their associations with risk of type 2 diabetes were evaluated by the logistic regression analysis. During the 5-year follow-up period, we observed 593 new cases of type 2 diabetes (302 in men and 291 in women). There was no association between dietary intakes of soy foods and the risk of type 2 diabetes among men. Whereas among women, higher tofu intake was inversely associated with risk of type 2 diabetes; the multivariable odds ratios (ORs) of type 2 diabetes were 0.92 (95% CI: 0.69–1.21) for 3–4 times per week and 0.67 (95% CI: 0.49–0.94) for almost daily (p-trend = 0.03) in reference to those consuming tofu less than 3 times per week. Intakes of boiled beans and miso soup were not associated with the risk in both genders. The inverse association tended to be more evident among overweight women and postmenopaused women. In conclusion, the frequency of tofu intake was inversely associated with the risk of type 2 diabetes among women.

Integrated Metabolomics and Volatolomics for Comparative Evaluation of Fermented Soy Products

Though varying metabolomes are believed to influence distinctive characteristics of different soy foods, an in-depth, comprehensive analysis of both soluble and volatile metabolites is largely unreported. The metabolite profiles of different soy products, including cheonggukjang, meju, doenjang, and raw soybean, were characterized using LC-MS (liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry), GC-MS (gas chromatography–mass spectrometry), and headspace solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) GC-MS. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that the datasets for the cheonggukjang, meju, and doenjang extracts were distinguished from the non-fermented soybean across PC1, while those for cheonggukjang and doenjang were separated across PC2. Volatile organic compound (VOC) profiles were clearly distinct among doenjang and soybean, cheonggukjang, and meju samples. Notably, the relative contents of the isoflavone glycosides and DDMP (2,3-dihydro-2,5-dihydroxy-6-methyl-4H-pyran-4-one) conjugated soyasaponins were higher in soybean and cheonggukjang, compared to doenjang, while the isoflavone aglycones, non-DDMP conjugated soyasaponins, and amino acids were significantly higher in doenjang. Most VOCs, including the sulfur containing compounds aldehydes, esters, and furans, were relatively abundant in doenjang. However, pyrazines, 3-methylbutanoic acid, maltol, and methoxyphenol were higher in cheonggukjang, which contributed to the characteristic aroma of soy foods. We believe that this study provides the fundamental insights on soy food metabolomes, which determine their nutritional, functional, organoleptic, and aroma characteristics.

Soy Foods and the Risk of Fracture: A Systematic Review of Prospective Cohort Studies

<b><i>Objectives:</i></b> The primary objective of our study was to systematically review all available prospective cohort studies which investigated the association of soy food intake and incident fracture risk. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> We searched PubMed, Scopus, and Embase databases for relevant studies up to June 2021. <b><i>Synthesis:</i></b> Of 695 records, a total of 5 cohort studies were included in the current systematic review. Two studies that were performed in China evaluated hip fracture while 2 studies that were done in Singapore evaluated any kind of fractures. The other study was conducted in Japan and evaluated osteoporosis fractures. All studies used a face-to-face interview to assess the dietary intake of soy foods. All 5 cohort studies were determined to be of high quality. One study considered soy food as a part of a vegetables-fruit-soy food dietary pattern. Others reported the association of dietary intake of soy foods with the risk of fractures. <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> The evidence from prospective cohort studies was suggestive for a protective role of soy foods, alone or within a dietary pattern, in the risk of incident fracture among Asian women, particularly for those in early menopause and those who used fermented soy products. But for men, the association was not significant. However, more cohort studies, including non-Asian populations, are required to confirm this association fully.

Dietary Soy Consumption and Cardiovascular Mortality among Chinese People with Type 2 Diabetes

Randomized controlled trials showed that soy intervention significantly improved blood lipids in people with diabetes. We sought to prospectively examine the association of soy consumption with the risk of cardiovascular death among individuals with diabetes. A total of 26,139 participants with a history of diabetes were selected from the Chinese Kadoorie Biobank study. Soy food consumption was assessed by a food frequency questionnaire. Causes of death were coded by the 10th International Classification of Diseases. The Cox proportional hazard regression was used to compute the hazard ratios. During a median follow-up of 7.8 years, a total of 1626 deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD) were recorded. Compared with individuals who never consumed soy foods, the multivariable-adjusted risks (95% confidence intervals) of CVD mortality were 0.92 (0.78, 1.09), 0.89 (0.75, 1.05), and 0.77 (0.62, 0.96) for those who consumed soy foods monthly, 1–3 days/week, and ≥4 days/week, respectively. For cause-specific cardiovascular mortality, significant inverse associations were observed for coronary heart disease and acute myocardial infarction. Higher soy food consumption was associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular death, especially death from coronary heart disease and acute myocardial infarction, in Chinese adults with diabetes.

Association between Soy Food and Dietary Soy Isoflavone Intake and the Risk of Cardiovascular Disease in Women: A Prospective Cohort Study in Korea

The association between soy food and soy isoflavone intake and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk is uncertain, especially in women. We aimed to investigate this association in Korean women. We analyzed data from the Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study, including 4713 Korean women aged 40–69 years with no CVD or cancer at baseline. Dietary information was obtained using a validated semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire, and the incidence of CVD was assessed using biennial self-reported questionnaires on medical history. The mean follow-up time was 7.4 years, during which 82 premenopausal and 200 postmenopausal women reported CVD incidence. The highest tofu, total soy foods, and dietary soy isoflavone intake groups were significantly associated with a decreased CVD risk in premenopausal women (tofu: hazard ratio (HR) 0.39; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.19–0.80; total soy food: HR 0.36; 95% CI, 0.18–0.70; dietary soy isoflavones: HR 0.44; 95% CI, 0.22–0.89), whereas no association was observed in postmenopausal women. Other soy foods showed no association with CVD incidence. Dietary soy isoflavones and total soy foods are associated with a decreased CVD risk in premenopausal women. Among soy foods, only tofu showed significant health benefits.

Fermented Soy Products: Beneficial Potential in Neurodegenerative Diseases

Fermented soybean products, such as cheonggukjang (Japanese natto), doenjang (soy paste), ganjang (soy sauce), and douchi, are widely consumed in East Asian countries and are major sources of bioactive compounds. The fermentation of cooked soybean with bacteria (Bacillus spp.) and fungi (Aspergillus spp. and Rhizopus spp.) produces a variety of novel compounds, most of which possess health benefits. This review is focused on the preventive and ameliorative potential of fermented soy foods and their components to manage neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases.

Impact of Lactobacillus cultures on production of B-vitamins, organic acids and biotransformation of soy isoflavones

In the study, four potent Lactobacillus cultures of L. rhamnosus K4E, L. plantarum RD7, L. fermentum K7, and L. fermentum K16 were considered for the production of B-vitamins, organic acids and biotransformation of soy isoflavones. L. plantarum RD7 showed the highest B2 production (0.84 μg mL−1) after 36 h, while L. fermentum K16 exhibited maximum B12 production (0.084 μg mL−1) after 12 h. L. rhamnosus K4E produced 0.24 μg mL−1 of folate after 12 h. Highest production of lactate (16.43 μg mL−1) and acetate (5.86 μg mL−1) was reported by L. rhamnosus K4E. L. plantarum RD7 showed maximum butyrate (0.253 μg mL−1) production compared to the other cultures. The highest bioconversion of soy aglycones was reported by L. rhamnosus K4E with 55.43% for daidzein and 72.30% for genistein, during soymilk fermentation. These potent cultures have a potential to be used as functional starter cultures for the production of functional fermented soy foods.

Association between dietary patterns and risk of breast cancer in Chinese female population: a latent class analysis

ABSTRACT Objective: To determine if specific dietary patterns are associated with breast cancer risk in Chinese women. Design: Latent class analysis (LCA) was performed to identify generic dietary patterns based on daily food-frequency data. Setting: The Chinese Wuxi Exposure and Breast Cancer Study (2013-2014). Participants: A population-based case-control study (695 cases, 804 controls). Results: Four dietary patterns were identified, Prudent, Chinese traditional, Western, and Picky, the proportion in the controls and cases were 0.30/0.32/0.16/0.23 and 0.29/0.26/0.11/0.33, respectively. Women in Picky class were characterized by higher extreme probabilities of non-consumption on specific foods, the highest probabilities of consumption of pickled foods, and the lowest probabilities of consumption of cereals, soy foods, and nuts. Compared with Prudent class, Picky class was associated with a higher risk (OR=1.42, 95%CI=1.06, 1.90), while the relevant association was only in post- (OR=1.44, 95%CI=1.01, 2.05) but not premenopausal women. The Western class characterized by high-protein, -fat, and -sugar foods, the Chinese traditional class characterized by typical consumption of soy foods and white meat over red meat, both of them showed no difference in BC risk compared with Prudent class did. Conclusions: LCA capture the heterogeneity of individuals embedded in the population, could be a useful approach in the study of dietary pattern and disease. Our results indicated that the Picky class might have a positive association with the risk of breast cancer.