Re: Sorting Out Soy Confusion

 Fallon says that soy is high in phytates and ordinary cooking doesn't break it down. When I googled phytates I read that soy is one of the highest sources

Actually there are many "healthy" foods that are higher:

http://curezone.org/forums/fm.asp?i=1497792#i

and it takes something like 10 hours cooking to deactivate them. I don't consider that "ordinary cooking," so Fallon makes sense in that regard. Are you saying that there is processing to make tofu and soymilk does the same thing? How do you know who is doing the correct processing?

First of all phytates are not bad, this is another common myth that I have addressed a number of times:

http://curezone.org/forums/fm.asp?i=1542754#i

http://curezone.org/forums/fm.asp?i=1449316#i

http://curezone.org/forums/fm.asp?i=1626045#i

http://curezone.org/forums/fm.asp?i=1684274#i

And it does not take 10 hours of cooking to reduce the phytic acid content.  That is just more unsubstantiated hype.  There are a number of factors involved in how effectively phytic acid is reduced such as temperature, presence of acetic acid, cooking with a pressure cooker and microwaving.  All of these can greatly influence phytic acid decomposition.

Is this the crux of soy argument- that fermenting is not the only healthy way to take care of enzyme inhibitors and goitragens?

Cooking also readily destroys these.  Fermentation though is more effective at completely destroying phytic acid though, which again can reduce health benefits of seeds.

Oh, and you said that fermentation takes care of goitragens- is this true for vegetables, too? About half of what I read says it does and the other half says fermentation won't do it. Can't figure that one out- seems like a straightforward issue.

I think the confusion comes from the fact that the fermentation only reduces the goitrogens, but does not eliminate them completely.  And as with the phytic acid the goitrogens are not necessarily a bad thing.  Many of these goitrogens are phytoestrogens that help protect us from cancer, balance the hormones, strengthen the bones, etc.  But many things that are generally beneficial to the body can have adverse effects in consumed in excess, even water and oxygen.