There was a time when people in the entire world and also in Asia were not used to consume unfermented soybean foods. But, now they eat this assuming it as good for health. Is it really good?

Historically speaking, it was in the Chou Dynasty that fermentation came into being and it paved the path for soybean to be considered as a food. Fermented things like tempeh, natto, miso and soy sauce were produced at the beginning as first soy foods.

Legumes like lentils were quite preferred by the Chinese but they had an antipathy towards unfermented soybeans because of its natural toxins. Actually, it contains some strong enzyme capable of obstructing the function of trypsin and other enzymes that are immensely important for absorption of protein.

The problem with these enzymes is that they are not disabled at the time of normal cooking. Later on down the road it can give birth to gastric problems and adversely affect the digestion of protein. Additionally it can also create problems in amino acid flow. Presence of trypsin in foods can create pancreatic problems even cancer.

Haemagglutinin is a substance that causes red blood cells clot together and oddly enough it's also found in soybeans. Trypsin and haemagglutinin are considered to be growth inhibitors so much so that rats in lab tests were unable to grow to its full capacity.

Vegetarians and especially vegans face an inherent danger from the lack of minerals from eating only soy and tofu and completely neglecting meats and dairy. But it's a lack in calcium, magnesium, iron or zinc, they are all equally terrible. It's much better to have grass fed meats, cheese and butter because they contain ample nutrients and protein.

Zinc sometimes referred to as the intelligent mineral because it aids in the operation of brain and nervous system. In fact, it is significant for protein synthesis and collagen formation and it can also aid in fighting with blood sugar. So, it can save you from diabetes and can endow you with a better reproductive system. It is better to eat beef fed on grass than soy for such substance.

Food processors realizing that soy and tofu can't be good due to its anti-nutrient properties have created soy protein isolate which is free from such ant-nutrients. However soy protein isolate is in fact an industrially processed food and can be found in soy foods replicating meat and dairy products. You can easily find these ?meatless products? in every whole foods market of all places and even some brands of baby formula has fallen in this category.

Lastly soy is incredibly allergenic and is list in the top ten most allergic foods by most experts. As you can see soy and tofu is far from a health food however the marketing machine behind the producers of these ?food? products will have you believe otherwise.