Frequent consumption of soy protects postmenopausal Japanese women from stroke and heart attack

In a study that followed 40,462 Japanese men and women over a 12.5 year period on average, it was found that soy intake at a rate of five or more times per week protected these women from a stroke or heart attack. The study participants were between the ages of 40 to 59 at the start of the study and were free of cancer and cardiovascular disease at the start of the study.

Specifically, frequent soy intake lowered the risk of a stroke by 36%, and lowered the risk of a heart attack by 45%. Cardiovascular mortality dropped by 69% compared with women who consumed soy two or fewer times per week. If the level of isoflavones was factored, those women with the highest intake had a 65% lower risk of stroke and a 63% reduced risk of heart attack, and a decrease in cardiovascular mortality. The study is published in the November 27th, 2007 issue of the journal Circulation.