Soy Products And The Gas Effect

A recent post at JohnIsFit discussed a very entertaining topic yesterday about foods we shouldn’t eat.  It’s a good read, and at the end, he posed the question to his readers, asking if there are any foods they shouldn’t eat.

Soy Products and Gas

I posted mine in the comments section — soy products.  A few years ago, when I first started my journey toward fitliving, I went looking for some low-calorie foods that would keep me feeling full.  That eventually left me standing in front of the “diet section” at the local grocery, staring at the array of foods that sounded totally unappealing.  I’m thinking to myself — “Who eats this stuff?”  Then I realized that I was looking to join the legions of dieters — time to shut my trap I guess.  So anyway, some of the soy products sounded like they might not be too bad,  and the calorie content was pretty low, so I decided to give them a shot.  I grabbed 2 bags of “soy chips,” and headed on to work.

So, about mid-morning, I’m sitting at my desk.  This is about the time I would normally head back to the snack machine to grab a bag of peanut M&M’s and a coke.  Rather than take my regular ritual, I decided to try my new snack.  I pulled out a bag and had a double-handful, thinking to myself that they tasted like flavored cardboard, but at least the calorie content was low.  Well, it hit me about 2 hours later.  PAIN!!  I thought I was going to die.

About 6 hours later, the pain seemed to have fully passed.  It took me some time to figure out what it was, because I don’t usually suffer from gas pain, but I got my first introduction, and let me tell you — I was not impressed.  Since then, I’ve avoided soy products like the plague.  In retrospect, I now know that an experience with a soy protein bar yielded the same result.  I know health nuts swear by them, but I’m not interested in repeating that experience.  I’ve since come to realize that many people suffer from “soy gas,” and there’s a very entertaining commentary on this subject at PoopReport.  (You can truly find anything on the web.)  In all seriousness though, it is must be fairly common for people to have gas and bloating from the consumption of soy-based products.

Honestly, I find it curious that soy products hit me this way.  From what I’ve read, the problem is based in the indigestible materials (read:  fiber) found in all legumes.  All of my life, pinto beans, navy beans, and kidney beans have been an integral part of my diet.  Not many foods have more fiber per serving than beans.  You know how you hear guys cracking jokes about eating beans (or worse, chili) then locking themselves in a room with a bunch of coworkers.  These foods have never had that effect on me.  But give me soy nuts, and no one would want to be around me.  To read more about the hidden dangers of soy, check out The Whole Soy Story.

If you’ve never looked into the hidden places you can find soy products, check out these following common, and not so expected, places you may find soy products:

• Tofu
• Soy Chips
• Soy Milk
• Soy Cakes
• Infant Formula
• Protein powder
• Protein shakes
• Meal bars
• Edamame

Soy products are an integral part of the diet of millions of people around the world, and soy has a number of potential health benefits.  It’s inexpensive, high in protein and has zero cholesterol.  It comprises a significant part of the flexitarian diet, and for vegetarians as well, and phytoestrogens are beneficial to women.  In particular, soy products may help allay the symptoms of menopause, and many health specialists suggest women make the consumption of soy part of women’s diets, particularly as they get older.  But there are negative side effects to soy products as well.  Those same phytoestrogens could stunt the sexual development of growing boys, and then of course, there’s the whole gas thing.  So, while we could argue whether soy products are good or bad; personally, I’m out.  I’m certain my wife will continue to drink soy milk, which is probably a good idea.  But as far as I’m concerned, soy products and men just don’t go together.

Photo Credit