Perhaps soy milk isn’t as healthy as it promises…
Soy milk is a great option for those who can’t drink regular milk. Not only is it a vegetarian/vegan friendly alternative, but it’s also very low in fat–saturated fat, particularly. For those who are suffering from heart problems, soy milk is a great option that will allow them to enjoy the taste of milk without having to worry about increasing their heart attack risk.
But is soy milk going to make you fat? Should you be worried about drinking a lot of soy milk? To understand this question, you need to know how soy milk is made.
To make soy milk, the soybeans must first be soaked in water. The soaking process softens the beans, making it easier for them to be ground up. The ground beans are then strained, and the resulting mixture of soy bean pulp and water is what we call “soy milk”. It isn’t actually milk, but it’s basically ground soy bean water.
Your average cup of soy milk has roughly the same number of calories as a glass of milk. You get about 120 calories from a glass of whole fat milk, and you get 118 from an 8-ounce glass of soy milk. That means that drinking too much soy milk can be just as fattening for you as regular milk, in terms of calories alone.
The reason that most people drink soy milk is due to the fact that it contains almost no saturated fat, the stuff that causes heart attacks. By drinking soy milk, you reduce your risk of heart attacks, strokes, and other cardiac disorders, as you are avoiding putting saturated fat into your body. That being said, there is still about 5 grams of fat in every cup of soy milk, so you’re not avoiding fat altogether.
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There is also no lactose in soy milk. Lactose is the natural sugar that is found in milk, and it is the stuff that many people are allergic to. If you cannot drink regular milk due to a lactose intolerance or allergy, soy milk is the milk for you. You’ll be able to enjoy your smoothies, milkshakes, and cereal, but without worrying about causing digestive upset.
Finally, there is no cholesterol in soy milk. Cholesterol isn’t necessarily bad–in fact, it’s a good thing in moderation. Your body needs cholesterol in order to protect your cells, produce hormones, and more, but your liver already manufactures a good deal of cholesterol. Adding a lot more cholesterol in your diet can lead to heart disorders, so avoiding the consumption of excess cholesterol is important. Thanks to soy milk, you can enjoy milk WITHOUT adding cholesterol to your diet.
Now we have to ask the question: will soy milk make you fat?
If you drink lots of soy milk throughout the day, there is a very real chance that you will gain weight. Weight gain is all about calories, so consuming too many calories in any form can lead to weight gain. If drinking soy milk causes you to consume more calories in a single day than you burn, the result will be weight gain.
Soy also contains nutrients called phytoestrogens–essentially a plant-based form of estrogen, the female sex hormone. These phytoestrogens affect your body similar to the way regular estrogen does, leading to the formation of stubborn fat. This means that soy milk could cause you to gain weight, as it causes your body to form new fat cells as well as cling to the fat cells it currently has stored. It also enlarges the size of your body’s fatty tissues, leading to bloating and puffiness.
If your goal is to find a lactose-free alternative to milk, you’d be better off with coconut or almond milk. Neither of these two types of milk contain phytoestrogens, and they are both lower in calories and fat than regular milk.
