Department of Foods and Nutrition, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2059, USA.
J Nutr. 2010 Dec;140(12):2335S-2343S. doi: 10.3945/jn.110.124925. Epub 2010 Oct 27.
Soy has been singled out for attention among other legumes as a valuable source of nutrients, phytochemicals, and bioactive compounds. Early epidemiological studies established that whole soy and traditional soy foods were implicated in health-protective effects in Asian populations. The same benefits attributable to soy have not been consistently proven in Western populations that, for various reasons, opt to consume more processed soy foods or various soy components. Soy researchers continue to isolate soy components in search of identifying its salubrious components and whole soy remains relatively underinvestigated despite what we know of the health benefits it may confer to those regularly consuming it. Various dietary guidelines advocate the regular consumption of legumes that tend not to be included in our diets in sufficient quantities. This paper highlights the possibility that whole soy may have a more unique effect on health than a select soy component(s). It explores the rationale for focusing research on whole soy in an attempt to understand it better rather than trying to replicate the health benefits by targeting various soy components, which has been plagued by inconsistent results.
大豆作为一种有价值的营养物质、植物化学物质和生物活性化合物的来源，在其他豆类中备受关注。早期的流行病学研究表明，大豆及其传统食品在亚洲人群中具有健康保护作用。然而，由于各种原因，西方人群更喜欢食用更多加工的大豆食品或各种大豆成分，因此，同样归因于大豆的益处并没有在西方人群中得到一致证明。大豆研究人员继续分离大豆成分，以寻找其有益成分，尽管我们知道它可能会给经常食用它的人带来健康益处，但大豆整体仍然相对研究不足。各种饮食指南都提倡定期食用豆类，但我们的饮食中通常没有足够的豆类。本文强调了大豆整体可能对健康有比选择的大豆成分更独特的影响。它探讨了将研究重点放在大豆整体上的理由，试图更好地理解它，而不是通过针对各种大豆成分来复制其健康益处，因为针对各种大豆成分的研究一直受到结果不一致的困扰。
