soy based formula

ok so the boys have had issues with colic, acid reflux, etc. so we've been on all sorts of formula, organic, hypoallergenic, milk and soy. recently they were on soy and started out fine with the transition from hypoallergenic to soy but then started to loose their appetite. they were still displaying signs of reflux, excessive vomitting, and our GI said that it didn't matter what type of formula they were on, if they were going to display signs of reflux it will show up on all forms of formula - milk, soy, hypo. so based on that info from the doc we put the boys back on milk based since they tolerate it, they aren't constipated, and keep it down just as well as they do with the other types - plus it's cheaper. well a friend of mine suggested that perhaps the soy formula caused a minor tummy issue that developed slowly and might explain why they have suddenly stopped wanting to eat sooooo i looked it up and found this...

"soy is making kids gay"

and then i dug a little deeper and found a TON of mom's that are fearful and scared to death to give their son/daughter soy in fear that it will make their sons more feminine, have smaller penises and not develop masculine traits and cause their daughters to start puberty as early as 4 years old and become infertile.

i mean really...are people this gullable? my pedi only said not to use soy because it tends to be more constipating and the boys were having problems with their BMs not because it would turn them gay.

what's even worse is that my MIL called DH and told him that we should take the boys off of soy because it would give them too much estrogen and make them feminine!

 

:rotflmbo: That's ridiculous. My DH had a milk intolerance as a child and drank soy milk for years! He's far from being gay (or small).

 

I've heard some of this as well- not making boys gay, per se, just messing up their reproductive abilities/hormones when given too much. I was inclined to believe it as just recently it was discovered that Lavender scented stuff does similar things to little boys (such as Johnson & Johnson lotions...)

I'm breastfeeding & the boys cannot tolerate dairy, so soy is a good alternative. I figure it's probably fine as long as it's not a staple in my diet.

 

Ok it is redonculous to hear that it makes kids gay. HOWEVER, there is some merit to the estrogen effects on boys and girls. Soy is used in menopause heavily for its estrogen causing effects. For those who have infertility issues (like myself/hubby), soy could really damage my children, who are already at an increased risk to have problems. It doesnt make them small or gay, but can cause further reproductive issues. I had my babes on soy for about a week before I really started looking into the research after someone mentioned it to me and there is some scary stuff about it being equivalent to giving your child a birth control pill per day! I went back to similiac advance shield after that!

Oh and cheesewiz, please check out http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/index.php?nothanks=1
re Johnson and Johnson products. I stopped using them with some of the ingredients in their stuff. Most of the baby products have a rating of 6-9 with 0/1 being the safest for our babies. I got an organic lavender soap instead with a rating of 0 and a few other soaps (aveeno lightly scented is a 3 as well as the burts bees soaps and all smell great)... They have stuff like formaldehyde and other crazy stuff in our baby soaps...the website is so interesting and at least gives us the ability to make an informed decision about what we are putting on our babies skin. Not to be preachy, but for me, I looked into it b/c of the clear links with infertility some of these chemicals have and wanting to limit as much exposure as possible when they will already have to deal with this awful disease.

 

my son was on soy from 2 mos till a year and I can assure he doesn't have boobs or a small penis

 

Dang, guess my boys are about to be gay cause we've been using soy the past week and they seem to be doing a lot better with their reflux. Minus Riley literally projectile vomiting all 3 of the 4 ounces he drank this morning :headbang:

 

1.) Thank you-that site is awesome. I will be facebooking about it today :thanks:
2.) CRAP. I've gotta go through what we have. I'm slowly turning into a hippie due to these kids, LOL.

 

there have only been a small handful of "studies" that show this. if this were infact a real issue the FDA would have all soy contained items have this clearly labeled on the packaging, just as they do with peanut allergies. also the AAP would not even recommend the use of soy formula AT ALL or at least mention that this *could* be a possibility, which they don't. the credibility of this "evidence" is so untrustworthy. millions and millions of people have been raised on soy or strict vegan/vegetarian diets directly from birth and there is no study to show that soy directly contributes to an increase in estrogen and being the equivelant of taking birth control pills. everything is based on opinion, there are entirely too many factors, nutrionally, environmentally and within your own unique DNA to single out soy as being the cause or a contributing factor to infertility or higher estrogen levels.

 

First a disclaimer, I have long disliked soy. I believe that the two primary factors involved in my feelings about soy are the way I became aware of it (tofu… yuk) and the fact that I have an allergic reaction to it.
So when we began looking at available baby formulas while my wife was pregnant I worried that our hospital might use a soy based formula and looked into what soy contains. As one would expect the contents of soy are well documented, and it turns out that soy does contain a disturbing list of toxins and phytochemicals. The question is the long term effect of consuming soy, especially in large amounts (relative to body mass), but the verdict is still out. That said, soy (or soy based formula) isn’t going to alter your child’s sexual orientation (though some claim that the phytoestrogens in soy may affect sexual development). Still, it’s worth thinking about some of the phytochemicals and toxins contained in soy…

Isoflavones, Genistein, Saponins, Beta-Sitosterol, Daidzein, Phytic acid, Protease inhibitors, Haemagglutinin, Nitrosamines, Soyatoxin.

Even without the concern that my boys might have my intolerance for soy this isn’t a recipe for something that I would want them consuming as a base for their primary intake.

 

Soy is controversial, no doubt. I don't believe all the anti-soy hype -- the gay thing is ridiculous. But the fact that soy contains isoflavones, which can act as endocrine disruptors in the body, has been proven. Problem is, no one knows exactly how much damage they can cause.

I do think the feeling that the FDA protects us from dangerous substances in our food supply is false. There are tons of things that our gov't allows, and even subsidizes, that humans really shouldn't consume -- such as high fructose corn syrup, trans-fats, artificial colors, MSG.

There's a lot of gray area between believing all the scare tactics that Dr. Mercola and others throw out there, and pooh-poohing all of them and continuing to believe that anything on a supermarket shelf is safe.

 

Part of the reason there are only a handful of studies is because soy is essentially a fairly new development in the baby formula world. 7 yrs ago when my son was a baby, and had horrible reflux, and I had to quit nursing him at 6 months old, I don't even recall seeing a soy formula on the shelf. There may have been I just don't recall seeing it as prominently as it is now. I believe there was soy when my dd was a baby 3 yrs ago, but it wasn't commonly used even then, unless recommended by your dr.

Even my ped said to try soy as a last resort for the twins. To try the other gentler formula's first before attempting soy. He didn't say it was bad, or that it was going to hurt them, but that other options should be exhausted first.

Personally, I'm unsure of the long term effects of something like soy. I'm not saying it's going to turn anyone gay or anything, but no one really knows the long term effects on a baby, because it hasn't been around long enough to study. And as you said, everyone's unique DNA plays a part in things, and who knows how it's going to react with my babies DNA. I've been down the infertility road, my girls are already at risk of following in my shoes, and like all parents, I'm going to do what I feel is best for my children.

I'm not putting down anyone who chooses to use soy, I'm glad it's an alternative to kids who have milk allergies, and I'm glad it's a viable option for those who chose it. For me personally, I chose not to because I don't feel there's enough long term information about it to satisfy MY curiousity. But that's just me, I'm just a "tried and true" kind of gal!

I kinda compare a debate like this to a debate over which brand of carseat is safer for your kids. Formula, and carseats, are all tested to be "safe" for your kids, and it's more a matter of personal choice as to which one you are going to use!

 

now im stressing! we use soy bc of reflux and gas as per our pedi.
HMM...our insurance covers it too. LOL. is there another non-soy formula that my insurance will cover?

 

Will the cover the hypoallergenic stuff like Alimentum or Nutramigen?

 

im sure if they cover soy for reflux, right?

 

That is what I was thinking. ardon: I would have loved for our insurance company to cover the "liquid gold" that we fed for a year.

 

Me too. We spent $50/week on that stuff.

 

I've heard the whole soy linked to estrogen thing. But, to say that it makes boys gay is just ridiculous. Now, my DH has Hodgimoto's thyroid and he was told to stay away from soy b/c it can lower your thyroid even more. He was eating a bunch of roasted edamame and told me he shouldn't be eating it so much anymore.

 

soy has been on the market for over 60 years. when it first came out they said it was "better then breastmilk" which is not true, obviously, and they have since stopped saying that. many many people have been on soy formula, myself included and i am almost 30. soy has been around since my parents were babies.

 

It's definitely been around a long time. My older kids all were on it at some point and the oldest is almost 14.

 

I am really worried about this. My twins are on soy in addition to breastmilk. One of my sons has a true milk allergy and was admitted overnight to the hospital for blood in his stools so he was switched to soy. I reintroduced BM about 2 weeks ago after cutting out all dairy, but he still receives quite a bit of formula. My supply is very low.

Should I switch to a hypoallergenic formula??

 

I would be very careful about giving soy formula or a lot of soy products to a baby or child. Our Pedi recommends cow's milk formula over soy. I like soy beans, but eat them only in moderation. Women at risk for estrogen fueled breast cancer are often told to avoid soy based products. Clearly there is a link between soy and estrogen in the body.

 

One of my sons was on soy formula for a while at 3 months because the pedi was trying to determine if his eczema was caused by a milk allergy. (It wasn't.) It definitely is controversial; I admit I was relieved when we were able to put him back on milk-based formula. I know most pediatricians will say milk-based formula is preferable unless there is a milk allergy. From the research I did at the time, I felt like soy formula was *probably* OK but I definitely had some reservations.

 

We saw a Ped GI for a milk protein allergy and severe reflux. He said that the majority of children who are allergic to dairy are also allergic to soy. So for us, we went right to the hypoallergenic and did no soy or dairy until 13 months. Personally, I would switch. It made a huge difference in their temperaments for mine.