Daily MOS: Phytoestrogens & “Soy Boys”

If you’re a human on the internet today, you probably know a few things about it here; there is porn about everything, cats are in charge, and for whatever reason, ‘soyboy’ somehow became an insult of choice in the sadder bowels of the place. Because somewhere, insecure manchildren heard the word “phytoestrogen,” did little to no fact checking, throttled their battle cry of “facts don’t care about your feelings,” and patted themselves very hard on the back.

I did some fact checking, so.

Today’s Moment of Science… soy misunderstood.

Estrogen is thought of as “the female hormone,” which is not entirely wrong. There are different types of estrogen, the amount of it our bodies produce varies at different stages of our lives, and men produce a form of it as well. As with most chemicals our bodies pump out, balance is the key. In women, an estrogen imbalance can cause libido changes, fatigue, hot flashes, mood changes, and even vaginal atrophy. In men, a range of symptoms from gynemasticomia to low libido are associated with an estrogen imbalance.

When soy became a trendy part of a health-conscious, less meat-focused diet, someone was going to find a way to bitch about it.

Phytoestrogens have entered the chat.

Phytoestrogen literally just means ‘plant estrogen.’ True, they have a similar structure to estradiol, the type of estrogen that both men and women produce. And, true, technically phytoestrogens can be classified as endocrine disruptors.

But what do they actually do in the body? Can they be helpful? Harmful? What, if any, provable and measurable effects does the consumption of soy containing phytoestrogens have on your body?

Give or take, none.

There are some studies showing evidence of minor biological activity of phytoestrogens, but what does that mean for you in practice? Probably nothing. Per Healthline, “currently, no good evidence associates common phytoestrogens with adverse health effects in humans.”

There are epidemiological studies showing that diets high in foods containing phytoestrogens seem to be protective against a variety of ailments, including cancer and heart disease, but that’s an overall diet and not just the one compound. Someone with a diet high in phytoestrogens is likely to be eating a diet that’s generally healthful as a whole, making it nearly impossible to tease out any effects attributable directly to phytoestrogen or other phytonutrients (i.e. plant nutrients).

Study after study have shown that, in men, phytoestrogens don’t lower testosterone or sperm count, affect sperm quality, or delay puberty. There are no studies indicating it will cause you gynecomastia (otherwise referred to with deep cringe as ‘manboobs’). If it could increase breast size, there would likely be fewer boob jobs and more advertising for highly successful soy-based bust-enhancing diets.

I did find one study showing that soy can interfere with male fertility. In cheetahs. And though it’s true that on the internet, nobody knows you’re a cat, I’m pretty sure your tadpole squad’s in the clear, hoomans.

This has been your daily Moment of Science, reminding you that on the internet, maybe your lawyer is a cat.

The featured photo is from a video made by one of my favorite youtubers, Hbomberguy. He gorged himself on soy for a month to see what would happen. Obviously an n=1 is not the best data, but it was a great demo. All his videos are great but this is one of my favorites: https://youtu.be/C8dfiDeJeDU

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