Is soy safe?

How safe is Soy milk formula? That seems to be the latest bone of contention. There are more and more babies who are being steadfastly fed on Soy formula. But is it really as safe as previously thought? Well, new research seems to think otherwise. The new findings say it isn't all good news. But the old school is sticking to their guns.

What do parents do at times like that? They need to keep themselves well informed.

A team of researchers have concentrated their studies on soy products and immune functions. They seem to have a link between the regular intake of soy products and a weakened immune system. A component in Soy formula might weaken the immune system. Genistein - a component found in soy formula is being viewed suspiciously be the research team.

Genistein is the most prominent of three isoflavones found in soy. Isoflavones copy the effect of the hormone estrogen, which is a known immune system suppressor.

Researchers fear Soy might dramatically reduce the immune system organ called the thymus. The thymus is largely responsible for the development of immune cells and immune functions. Thus babies growing up on a soy formula might be less immune than those who don't. They will pick up diseases more regularly and fall ill more often.

Researchers firmly believe that mother's milk is the best for children. Cow's milk is ranked second as it closely resembles mother's milk.

Besides babies, millions of women also take soy supplements to ease menopause symptoms. Women who take regular doses of synthetically derived soy supplements experienced a decrease in their lymphocyte counts. These white blood cells returned to a normal level after the soy supplements were stopped.

But paediatricians say more research needs to be done on Soy formula before banishing it as unhealthy. They feel many babies fed on soy formula have grown up to be healthy adults. Nutrition experts feel that there is no firm evidence linking soya formula with weakened immune systems.