Soy Protein

Soy protein can improve levels of cholesterol and other fats in the blood, a new review found.

The study analyzed 41 randomized trials involving soy protein supplements.  On average, total cholesterol was reduced by five points, LDL cholesterol (the bad kind) was reduced by four points, triglycerides, a type of unhealthy cholesterol in the blood, was reduced by six points, and HDL cholesterol (the good kind) was increased by one point.

The improvements were found in adults with high and with normal cholesterol.

“Replacing foods high in saturated fat, trans-saturated fat and cholesterol with soy protein may have a beneficial effect on coronary (artery) risk factors,” the authors concluded.

The study was published in the American Journal of Cardiology.

Tomato juice

In a clinical study, drinking about 17 ounces a day for a month kept cholesterol from oxidizing and attaching to your artery walls – a process that hardens and blocks your arteries.

The study didn’t say that tomato juice reduced cholesterol.  It did something important, which is to keep the cholesterol moving along the blood stream rather than attaching to an arterial wall and creating plaque.

The 17 daily ounces of tomato juice nearly tripled levels of lycopene, a carotenoid proven to guard against heart attacks.

While the study didn’t look at other forms of tomato consumption such as fresh tomatoes, cooked tomatoes, tomato paste, salsa, ketchup, etc, one would think they would work as well.  It’s the lycopene that seems to be the important ingredient.

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