Study confirms soy protein's ability to lower cholesterol

Solae unveiled a new study today at the 8th International Symposium on the role of soy in health promotion and chronic disease prevention and treatment in Japan last week.

A new meta-analysis confirms that soy protein consumption can lead to a meaningful and significant reduction in blood cholesterol levels.

Solae has also presented a poster that defines one of the possible mechanisms by which soy lowers cholesterol and protects against heart disease.

Numerous studies show that soy consumption may be associated with a lower incidence of certain chronic diseases, notably heart disease.

These findings led to the approval of the health claim for soy protein in the prevention of heart disease risk by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) in 1999.

The FDA-approved health claim helps promote the daily consumption of 25 grams of soy for lowering cholesterol levels and reducing the risk of heart disease.

Solae's research team conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the totality of the evidence, that is, studies from before and after the original health claim to determine the net effect of soy on blood cholesterol reduction.

Solae's research team reviewed and ranked more than 150 studies using the FDA's 2007 evidence-based review guidance for scientific evaluation of health claims.

About 46 of the studies that were deemed high or moderate quality were included in the final meta-analysis.

The meta-analysis found reductions in total cholesterol of 9.54 mg/dL and reductions in LDL cholesterol of 7.12 mg/dL (which is about a 4 and 5 percent reduction respectively).

The meta-analyses also looked at individuals who had high and normal blood cholesterols and found that soy protein consumption resulted in a significant reduction in blood cholesterol for both groups.