Health nuts swear by it.
Meat lovers shun it.
Ah, the joy of soy.
This April is the Soyfoods Association of North America (SANA)'s 11th annual "Soyfoods Month," a month in which lovers of soy products can revel in their culinary lifestyle.
For years, vegans and those of similar ingestion orientations have championed the health benefits behind soy, often passing on the pork and other animal products in favor of soymilk, nuts and other foods.
Followers of these eating habits have often struggled to supply their personal soy diets in a culture wrought with meat-hungry ideologies, and yet some recent findings from health institutions around the world have provided them with national backing for their cause.
The National Institute of Health and Nutrition in Japan confirmed this month the previous findings of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that soy protein can help lower bad cholesterol in the blood, lowering the risk of heart-related health problems, according to an April 10 Press Newswire article.
Such news is no surprise to long-time consumers of soy products.
Nichole Reynolds, a freshman geology major at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, has been a vegetarian since age 7 and a vegan since 13.
She said that the health effects of soy can vary from culture to culture, yet she maintains that soy is still healthier than the alternative.
"Certain people from certain cultures can digest soy better than others," Reynolds said. "Asian cultures, for example, can handle soy much better than most Western cultures because they have been exposed to it for much longer."
Soy selections cover a broad range of foods, including milk, nuts, cheeses and pastas. With so many options available to the soy-consuming populace, Reynolds warns that too much soy can cause negative side effects.
"Some of my vegan friends drink a lot of soy milk, and when they do they tend to get upset stomachs," she said. "It's important to balance out soy with other dairy substitutes."
Reynolds cites lower cholesterol counts and a tendency for fewer chemicals in soy food as reasons for switching over to soy products.
But in a world constantly discovering new information about the health effects of all kinds of foods, soy is not immune from controversy surrounding its nutritional value.
Recently, medical reports have surfaced that call into question the extent of soy's health benefits, some even calling soy consumption a danger to young children.
Kaayla T. Daniel, the author of 2005 book "The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America's Favorite Health Food," said in an article from The Associated Press that "excess soy can be a problem for anyone, particularly babies and children. The ill effects we see most often are thyroid disorders, reproductive system damage and allergic reactions."
For Daniel, consumers around the world have been caught up in a kind of health-food hysteria, granting credence to long-held beliefs about health benefits of soy and playing into a corporate money-making scheme.
The Israeli Health Ministry, the French Food Agency and the Swedish National Food Administration have all warned parents and manufacturers about the possible detrimental effects of soy on young children and increased breast cancer risk for adult women, explained Daniel.
"The Soyfoods Association would have us believe that soy foods are healthy for people of all ages," she said. "I hope the public will recognize Soyfoods Month for what it is - a month-long marketing ploy that puts industry profits before public safety."
In the end, the answer to the question of how good soy is for your health may depend on who you talk to, as medical research will continue to affirm or disprove the mainstream thought concerning soy products.
For Nichole Reynolds and other vegans, the best strategy may be moderation.
"I've done my research into the health effects of soy," she said. "I try to find a healthy balance to my consumption."
