Soy milk – the healthy alternative?

From a thousand-year-old traditional Chinese drink to a trendy drink for the rich and famous: soy milk has undergone enormous change in recent years. When Hollywood stars order their low-fat soy milk latte with double espresso shot in the coffee shop, they probably think mainly of the calories they save with the drink. But soy milk doesn’t just help with weight loss — it also contains important  nutrients . The drink is also a practical alternative to  milk for vegans or people with lactose intolerance  . However, some ingredients in soy milk have also been criticized. How healthy is soy milk, how many calories does it contain and can you make soy milk yourself?

What is soy milk?

Soy milk was traditionally made from soaked soybeans that were ground and mixed with water. The mass was then boiled, pressed out and sieved. Production is a little different today: the drink is produced from peeled soybeans in a complex dairy process.

Soy milk is not only popular as part of a vegan diet: numerous coffee shops and cafés offer coffee specialties with the milk alternative and in the supermarkets a wide variety of products with soy milk fill the shelves. Even if the term “soy milk” is common in everyday language, plant milk in Germany can only be officially described as a soy drink, since the term “milk” is protected by law. Only products obtained through “normal udder secretion” of animals may be labeled as milk products.

The  taste  of soy milk is slightly tart and nutty. However, some products are also flavored, for example in vanilla or chocolate flavors  .

Soy milk: nutritional values

Soy milk is healthy – also in direct comparison to cow’s milk. Although the protein content is relatively high in both drinks, the soy proteins are biologically particularly valuable because they can be utilized by the human body almost one to one. Soy milk has a protein content of 3.3 grams per 100 milliliters. Carbohydrates  are not contained in soy milk.

How many calories does soy milk have?

Soy milk is well suited as a diet drink: at 2.2 grams, the fat content is not only lower than that of whole milk (3.5 grams), the fat itself is also of a higher quality, as it mainly consists of unsaturated fatty acids. In addition, the soy binds certain enzymes that break down carbohydrates.

100 milliliters of soy milk provide  54 kilocalories  (kcal), or 226 kilojoules, while whole milk has 64 kilocalories (268 kilojoules).

Soy milk: healthy and lactose-free

Soy milk also surpasses cow’s milk in terms of vitamin content: four times as much  folic acid , and there are also healthy saponins and  flavonoids  in the drink. Only  vitamin B12  is missing from soy milk, which is why the vitamin is sometimes added artificially.

Probably the most important property of the plant drink is that it  is free of lactose  , which is why it is an important food for people with  lactose intolerance  . In addition, soy milk contains no  cholesterol  and is therefore also suitable as part of a low-cholesterol diet.

Low calcium content

In addition to the lack of vitamin B12, a disadvantage of soy milk compared to cow’s milk is the low calcium content. Since soy drink is drunk by many people as an alternative to milk, some soy drinks have recently been fortified with calcium. The soy protein it contains can even improve the utilization of calcium in the body.

The content of vitamin B2 (riboflavin) is also slightly lower in soy drinks compared to cow’s milk.

Effect of phytoestrogens in soy milk

Soy contains isoflavones, which are secondary plant substances that are also known as phytoestrogens. Their chemical structure is similar to the female sex hormone estrogen. For this reason, they are said to have numerous health effects.

 According to a meta-analysis of 62 studies, soy-based phytoestrogens can improve symptoms such as  hot flashes or vaginal dryness during  menopause  .

In addition to the positive effect on menopausal symptoms, isoflavones are suspected of having a carcinogenic effect in women with an increased risk of breast or uterine cancer. This connection has not yet been scientifically proven.

To be on the safe side, according to the recommendations of the American food authority, adults should  not consume more than 800 milliliters of soy drink per day  . Dietary supplements with isoflavones should only be taken after consulting a doctor. According to the Federal Center for Nutrition, children should only consume soy milk occasionally.

Criticism of soy milk

Despite the numerous positive properties, the accusation that soy milk is unhealthy keeps coming up. A British study in 2004 identified possible negative effects of soy milk on male fertility. However, other studies could not prove this.

However, it is known that soy  can trigger allergies  . The soy protein it contains is occasionally responsible for food allergies. Cross-allergies with soy milk can occur, especially in the case of an allergy to birch  pollen  .

In addition, in a study by Stiftung Warentest in 2018, four out of 15 soy drinks tested had too high a chlorate or nickel content. While the former could have gotten into the plant milk through contamination during the production process, the high nickel content is due to heavy metals in the soil that the plant absorbed during its growth. This also applied to products with an organic seal.

Make your own soy milk

Soy milk can also be made at home using a method that is similar to traditional production methods. This is done with the following recipe:

• Put 100 grams of soybeans in a bowl and cover the  beans  with water. Let them soak overnight.
• Drain the liquid from the bowl.
• Add 1/3 liter of fresh water and process the mixture with the immersion blender to a pulp.
• Then bring 2/3 liters of water to a boil in a saucepan. Then add the bean mixture.
• Let the entire mixture simmer for ten minutes.
• Meanwhile, place a clean cotton cloth over a sieve and set it on a bowl.
• Pour the cooled puree into the colander and let the mass drain.
• Then pour 1/4 liter of cold water over the mass and wring out the cotton cloth over the pot.

This completes the homemade soy milk. Finally, just let it cool down and enjoy.

origin and distribution

Soymilk is thought to have been invented in 164 BC by the Chinese Han Dynasty and quickly spread throughout Asia. Here it is both a healthy thirst quencher and the basis for numerous other soy products such as tofu or soy yoghurt.

Soy milk has only found its way into Germany in recent years, where it quickly became very popular due to its healthy properties and lack of lactose.