Soy Protein Powder Supplements

Soy Protein has been used for centuries in Asia as a nutritional source and also as a medicine. Despite this, the first use of soy formula in the U.S. was in 1909, and at which time, the soy protein based formulas used soy flour, which often caused gastrointestinal problems. It wasn't until mid 1960 that a soy protein isolate was used, reducing gastrointestinal problems.

It wasn't until October 1999 that soy protein products got a big boost, when FDA approved manufacturers to label their soy protein products stating soy protein products help reduce the risk of heart disease.

Soy Protein Powder Quality

If you read our article on Whey Protein Supplements, you'll know there are several measures to quantify the quality of a protein, such as Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score, Biological Value, and Protein Efficiency Ratio. Compared to highend proteins like Whey Protein supplements, Soy Protein falls a little short in most respects. It doesn't mix as well, and its taste also falls a little short.

Despite this, most studies have found soy proteins helps improve the nutritional value of other foods. Even better yet, soy proteins are found to help lower cholesterol and help reduce risk of heart related diseases. Below are some quality measures of Soy Protein.

Soy Protein Amino Acid Composition

Soy protein provides all the essential amino acids required by us for growth, maintenance, and to deal with physical stress. Of all vegetable proteins, the soy protein amino acid composition is the most complete, and is most like that of high quality animal proteins. Soy protein can also improve the nutritional value of other foods - soy protein contains extra amounts of some amino acids, which can make up for the deficiencies in other foods.

Soy Protein Digestibility

Protein digestibility-corrected amino acid score (PDCAAS) is based on a food protein's amino acid content, digestibility, and its ability to supply essential amino acids. The highest possible PDCAAS score is 1.0, and soy protein scores 1.0. Whey protein actually scores the highest at 1.14, but it's reported at 1.0.

Human clinical studies have also shown that soy protein has comparable digestibility to higher-quality protein sources like meat and milk. In a study of 2 to 4 year old children, the digestibility of soy proteins were found to be equal to the digestibility of milk proteins. In another study of adult males, the digestibility of soy proteins were found to be in the 97 to 99% range.

Soy Protein In Your Diet? Soy Protein Powder Supplements

You can either get soy protein from the foods you eat, or if you're not into soy products, you can get soy protein powder supplements. For many people, it might seem 'weird' or awkward to add soy foods to their diet like tofu and soy milk. Personally, I've been using soy products all my life - I regularly cook tofu, and drink soy bean milk. Aside from the weight lifting stuff I do, I try to maintain a health, low fat-cholesterol diet. Below are some most common sources of soy protein:

Tofu - there are several types of tofu such as soft tofu, firm tofu, and dried tofu. Visit Healthy Cooking Recipes for some very good tofu recipes.

Soy Milk - also called soy bean drink, is made by grinding soybeans and mixing with water. The ones you buy will usually be sweetened, and taste very good. But you can also get un-sweetened soy milk. I prefer soy milk over milk, since I'm lactose intolerant.

Miso - is a fermented soybean paste that's just mainly for seasoning in Japanese soup.

Soy Flour - made from grinded soy beans. Can be used in baked foods.

You can also get soy protein in foods like soy burgers, soy cheese, soy yogurt, and more. So there's plenty of different soy products you can get.

Supplementing Soy Protein Powders

Many people prefer to supplement soy protein in their diet, you can, by all means, supplement your weight lifting with soy protein as well. The best thing is probably to mix your soy protein powder with some type of whey protein supplement. This way, you get the benefit of all types of the proteins and their amino acid make up.

Genisoy is a well known brand for making soy protein supplements. Shop online for soy protein powders, and you can find some very good priced soy supplements.

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