Diet Rich In Soy Can Help Improve Bone Strength In Women

Menopause causes decrease in bone health due to which women face many issues like osteoporosis. That might change according to a new finding by the researchers at the University of Missouri-Columbia. They’ve found that a diet rich in soy protein can help improve bone health of women provided they are following it well before their menopause.

Improve Bone Health With Soy

“The findings suggest that all women might see improved bone strength by adding some soy-based whole foods, such as tofu and soy milk, to their diet,” said Pamela Hinton, professor of nutrition and exercise physiology while speaking with Science Daily. “We also believe that soy-based diets can improve metabolic function for postmenopausal women.”

Rats with and without ovaries (thus showing menopause) were used to study the effects of the soy diet as compared to a corn-based diet. “Prior research has shown that these rats are good models, as average American women are relatively inactive both before, and especially after, menopause,” Vieira-Potter said. “As such, understanding how dietary protein sources, such as soy, can impact metabolism and bone health in these rats can help us better understand how such diets might impact women’s health across the lifespan.”

The findings were that the tibia bones of the rats who were on the soy diet were stronger than rats consuming the corn-based diet. “Bottom line, this study showed that women might improve bone strength by adding some soy-based whole foods to their diet,” Hinton said. “Our findings suggest that women don’t even need to eat as much soy as is found in typical Asian diets, but adding some tofu or other soy, for example foods found in vegetarian diets, could help strengthen bones.”