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Soy doesn't help avoid menopause symptoms
Last reviewed: 01.07.2025
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Soy does not help cope with hot flashes during menopause. This is the conclusion reached by scientists from the University of California. The specialists found that the consumption of soy products such as milk or cheese does not help to avoid menopause symptoms.
Unlike other studies, this study was large-scale and long-term. More than 1,600 women participated in the experiment and were monitored for more than ten years.
"Given that most women experience unpleasant symptoms during menopause, particularly hot flashes and night sweats, we were hopeful that a certain diet would be a good alternative to hormone therapy," said lead author Ellen Gold. "Unfortunately, based on our study, we can say that soy products do not have the magical effect that was previously attributed to them."
The researchers analyzed women across the country and looked at the lives of 3,000 women at the onset of menopause and over the next 10 years, as well as their annual doctor visits over that time period.
The authors focused their attention on 1,650 women who did not yet suffer from vasomotor symptoms. They were interested in the effect of specific foods on the subjects' well-being.
The primary interest in this study was to examine the effects of phytoestrogens, also known as plant estrogens, which are found primarily in tofu, soy milk, and other soy-containing foods. Phytoestrogens have a chemical structure similar to estrogen and were thought to mimic the effects of female hormones in the body.
Because estrogen levels may fall during menopause, the researchers speculated that a diet high in phytoestrogens might reduce menopausal symptoms.
The study found no consistent correlation between dietary phytoestrogens and the onset of menopausal symptoms in women who were not yet postmenopausal when the study began.
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