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Soy Helps With Your Cholesterol Counts

Soy foods are a delicious way to balance cholesterol levels without side effects.

The goal of any cholesterol-lowering program is to lower "bad" LDL cholesterol, which is easily oxidized and sticks to artery walls, and to increase "good" HDL cholesterol, which clears LDL out of the body. The proteins contained in soy reliably lower LDL and raise HDL. In one study, LDL decreased by 11% and the ratio of LDL to HDL decreased by 19%. (The lower the ratio, the lower the risk of heart disease.) In another study, a liquid diet with protein from soy increased HDL 11% and reduced LDL by 26%. When protein from meat or dairy products is replaced with soy protein in research studies, cholesterol levels change for the better. How does soy consistently have these impressive effects on cholesterol?

• Improves cholesterol clearance. It's thought that soy protein attaches to bile in the intestines and carries it out of the body in the feces. Bile is made in the liver from cholesterol and is secreted from the gallbladder into the intestines to break down fats. When bile is removed from the system by soy protein, the liver is stimulated to make more and pulls cholesterol out of the bloodstream to do so. It is also possible that soy somehow changes the way cholesterol is processed, with the end result of higher HDL and lower LDL in the circulation
• Cholesterol-lowering effects of phytoestrogens. Because soy isoflavones are phytoestrogens, or plant estrogens, they behave like the hormone estrogen in the body. Estrogen is known to increase the number of LDL receptors in cells. When LDLs attach to those receptors, fewer are left circulating in the bloodstream.

Other Heart-Healthy Benefits of Soy

While soy's effects on cholesterol are its best documented heart-healthy benefit, it does more than that to protect the circulatory system.

• Provide Antioxidant effects. Soy isoflavones act as antioxidants in the bloodstream. They attach to LDL particles as they circulate through the body, protecting them from oxidation.
• Keep blood vessels open. When blood vessels become irritated and inflamed, they tend to constrict, raising blood pressure to dangerous levels. Stress contributes to this "clamping-down" reaction. In vessels that are partly closed, even a small blood clot can become stuck and blood flow can be halted to heart, brain, legs, or other parts of the body. Genistein and other isoflavones prevent these blood vessel spasms.

• Maintain blood fluidity. Soy isoflavones normalize the process of cell adhesion, where blood cells clump together to form clots. They also alter the activity of growth factors and other biochemicals that spur the growth of plaques, which in turn slows their formation. Soy also contains healthy omega-3 fats, which promote the formation of "good" eicosanoids - hormones that thin the blood.

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