Hey what’s up, guys.
Sean Nalewanyj here at www.SeanNal.com-www.BodyTransformationTruth.com and in this video today we’re talking about
soy protein and more specifically, does soy protein reduce testosterone levels in men.
Now the idea that men should avoid soy protein for that reason, that’s been pretty commonly
accepted truth in the bodybuilding and fitness community for a really long time but is it
actually based on real science or is it just another one of those myths that gets regurgitated
and passed around without having any real basis.
Now you might be asking this question because you’re a vegan or vegetarian who uses soy
as a staple protein source from things like tofu, tempe, soybean, soymilk, soy protein
powder, et cetera, or you just somebody who enjoys consuming soy as part of their diet
in general.
So soy protein and testosterone, is there any connection?
First off it is true that soy contains compounds that are known as vito estrogen so guys will
often hear that and then freak out because they think that soy’s going to increase
their estrogen levels and lower their testosterone and basically turn them into a woman, but
keep in mind that vito estrogen are derived from plants and they’re different from the
estrogen that’s found in the human body.
So just because soy contains those compounds doesn’t mean that it’s going to have an
actual negative impact and if we actually look at the research that is available then
we can pretty much see that that does appear to be the case.
The data basically shows that soy protein does not lower testosterone levels in men
to a statistically significant degree.
There have been some studies that have shown a decrease but those studies either involved
a huge over consumption of huge amounts of soy or the decrease was minor and temporary
and testosterone levels went back to baseline fairly quickly meaning that it wouldn’t
have any actual noticeable effect.
And in 2010 there was a meta-analysis done on this which basically means combining the
data from multiple studies, in this case it was fifteen controlled studies and thirty
two other reports and as you can see the results of this meta-analysis suggest that neither
soy food nor isoflavone supplements alter measures of bio available T concentrations
in men.
There is also research that compared the effects of supplementing with soy protein versus whey
protein.
One study that was done over twelve weeks showed that no difference between the two
groups, and the other study did show that soy temporarily lowered testosterone levels
directly after training but the decrease was minor and it went back to baseline within
thirty minutes, so probably not something to be concerned about.
I’ll link those studies that I’ve mentioned in the description box below if you do want
to check them out.
So what’s the underlying take away here and what do I recommend when it comes to soy
protein and testosterone.
Well the bottom line is that the vast majority of studies out there show that eating soy
foods or soy protein in practical amounts isn’t a cause for concern when it comes
to testosterone levels.
However that’s said, there is still data that shows a certain connection between the
two and it’s probably in a dose dependent fashion, so I wouldn’t necessarily just
say, “Go ahead and eat all the soy you want every single day and you’re guaranteed to
have no negative effects from it”, this stuff is rarely black and white and it is
possible that if you’re eating large amount of soy can consistently over an extended period
of time that it could have some negative effects.
I wouldn’t go and completely rule that out.
So if you do want to include soy protein in your diet and you just want to be on the save
side then I would say just exercise in basic moderation, one or two servings per day and
maybe cap it at 25 or 30 grams of actual soy protein just to ere on the side of caution.
Again it’s entirely possible that consuming more than that could be totally fine but that’s
what I would do just to be sure.
And really, in any case most people are going to be consuming a variety of proteins in their
diet anyway and I would definitely recommend that if you’re a vegan just to make sure
that you’re getting a sufficient amounts of all of the amino acids that you need.
So I really don’t think there’s too many people out there who would even want to consume
very large amount of soy protein every day in the first place.
So this whole is likely a non-issue in most cases.
If you’re having a typical size serving of some tofu, some tempe or soybeans, one
or two times a day and you’re eating soy foods in practical amounts like most people
are going to be doing then I really don’t see this being any cause for concerns.
Guys if you find this advice helpful and you want to learn step-by-step how to layout an
effective nutrition and training plan to maximize your muscle growth and fat loss then you can
download my Body Transformation Blueprint by clicking here or by visiting www.BodyTransfomationTruth.com
using the link in the description box.
Make sure to follow me on social media here if you aren’t already.
The official website is www.SeanNal.com and feel free to like, share or comment and subscribe
to the channel to stay up to date on future videos.
Talk to you guys again soon.