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Menopause & Soy
4 Nov 2020
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Are soy foods helpful in reducing symptoms of menopause, especially hot flashes? What do WFPB doctors say?
Dr Barnard

In 2020, Dr Neal Barnard's group conducted a 12-week study. Postmenopausal women were asked to (a) drop animal products from diet, (b) ensure low fat, and (c) consume 1/2 cup cooked soybeans daily (in soup or salad, for example). What were the results?

(2021) Study Shows Diet Causes 84% Drop in Troublesome Menopausal Symptoms — without Drugs explains the study. An excerpt:

"A new study, published by the North American Menopause Society in the journal Menopause, found a plant-based diet rich in soy reduces moderate-to-severe hot flashes by 84%, from nearly five per day to fewer than one per day. During the 12-week study, nearly 60% of women became totally free of moderate-to-severe hot flashes. Overall hot flashes (including mild ones) decreased by 79%."

Research paper: The Women's Study for the Alleviation of Vasomotor Symptoms (WAVS), a randomized, controlled trial of a plant-based diet and whole soybeans for postmenopausal women by Neal Barnard, Hana Kahleova, Danielle Holtz, Fabiola del Aguila, Maggie Neola, Lelia Crosby, Richard Holubkov, Menopause (J of North Am Menopause Society), July 12, 2021.

Video testimonials: (2021) Fighting Hot Flashes With Diet is a good article. It has a 5-min video summarizing the PCRM study and testimonials by study participants.

3-Part Video Series: Dr Barnard explains the study and motivates women to adopt a low fat Whole Food Plant-Based diet with 1/2 cup cooked soybeans daily:

(18 mins, 2021) Relief for Hot Flashes
(22 mins, 2021) Is Soy Healthy?
(19 mins, 2021) These 3 Things Are Proven To Help Menopause
Videos by Dr Greger

In the WAVS study above, why do we need low fat, plant-based diet and soybeans? Turns out that soybeans are much more effective for 'equol producers' and adopting a low fat plant-based diet makes us an 'equol producer'. For details, see Dr Greger's videos below.

(2021) Soy Phytoestrogens for Menopausal Symptoms

(2020) How to Block Breast Cancer's Estrogen-Producing Enzymes

(4 mins) Transcript. Dr Greger's summary: "What happens to hormone levels in women and men randomized to drink soy milk?"

(2018) Soy Phytoestrogens for Menopause Hot Flashes

(6 mins) Transcript. Dr Greger's summary: "Does soy food consumption explain why Japanese women appear to be so protected from hot flash symptoms?"

(2018) How to Convert Into an Equol Producer

(7 mins) Transcript. Dr Greger's summary: "Certain gut bacteria can supercharge the benefits of soy foods, resulting in even more bone protection, better control of menopausal symptoms, and lower prostate cancer risk, but how can we foster the growth of these good bacteria?"

(2009) Soy Foods & Menopause

(1 min) Transcript. Dr Greger's summary: "Does eating soy foods help with hot flashes?"

Menopause Taylor (Dr Barbara Taylor)

See Dr Barbara Taylor: Plant-Based Menopause for more information about her. She has a YouTube playlist on phytoestrogens for menopause with these videos:

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