My 2 year old son...

Question

My 2 year old son drinks between 16 and 40 ounces of Silk Organic Soy Milk every day. I just read something about estrogen in soy milk and an abundance of protein and now I'm worried. How much is too much?

Answer 1

You are right and that's too much, a child that age should only have 2-3 servings of dairy or a dairy alternatives a day, and toddler servings are smaller than adult servings - 4 ounces of milk (dairy or nondairy) are a serving.

So 8 to 12 ounces of soy milk is tops! Here's a full list of what to feed your 24 to 36 month child:

http://www.babycenter.com/0_age-by-age-g...

It's hard to say no to children - I have an 18 month old myself and when she wants something she will NOT leave me alone - but it's time to cut back on the soy milk. Past 2-3 servings it's just liquid calories and he can get chubby, and once a child is heavy it can become a lifelong problem. It's best to start to teach him to enjoy drinking water - this was a struggle but now my toddler will only drink water from her sippy cup.

The phytoestrogen in soymilk needs to be consumed in excess to even remotely affect your child, and these natural plant-based estrogens exist in foods other than soy - they are in many common plant foods, like flax seeds, sesame seeds, certain fruits and grains.

Phytoestrogens mimic estrogen activity but are very weak, your body metabolises them quickly, men produce estrogen on their own and need it for natural function anyway on top of it all, AND!!!!  it's recently been found in a Harvard study to harm obese men's reproductive health much more significantly than normal men's health. Once natural hormone function is impaired by a condition like obesity, then adding on lots of estrogen sources might be harmful, but a healthy male can handle it - just make sure your toddler doesn't get heavy and PLEASE cut back a bit, that's just too much, in any case.

What you SHOULD worry about more are xenoestrogens - much more harmful and SYNTHETIC estrogens that leach into food from plastic wrap, plastic lining in canned foods (there's a slick plastic lining and acidic food leaches the xenoestrogens most), Tupperware containers, plastic bottles, etc. When warmed especially, these harmful xenoestrogens are carcinogenic AT BEST, at worst they are linked to dozens of maladies. I would suggest not heating ANYTHING in plastic containers or with plastic wrap, and instead using glass and metal and other safe containers instead.

Answer 2

Talk to an actual doctor. You shouldn't be feeding your child soy milk to begin with.

Answer 3

  The answer to this should be found at your Pediatricians, not Answers.   Each child is different.

Answer 4

The main soy smearing is coming from the Weston A Price association and Mercola (who is out to sell you stuff) and they both advocate some odd stuff such as eating organ meats, sneaking those in to your family meals, and giving to your infants. Their data is based on a dentist's observations of skeletons in other countries but not science.

For the information debunking the Price and Mercola myths check out these links:

http://www.vegsource.com/articles2/fuhrm...

http://www.compassionatecooks.com/all_ab...

http://www.compassionatecooks.com/blog/2...

An article about men and soy:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn...

Further, most issues with thyroids (which regulate a lot of our hormones) come not from soy but from industrial chemical contamination (which is getting in a lot of our water and foods especially fish) and include perchlocate (rocket fuel and a fertilizer in some countries where we get produce) and PCBs (which were a Monsanto product they dumped all over and which are persistent and add up with exposure).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perchlorate

http://www.mindfully.org/Industry/Monsan...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn...

Veg*ns tend to eat more whole and organic soy products which are very healthy and a nice addition to a healthy diet even if you aren't a veg*n. But, a diet can also be healthy without it if one doesn't care for it or is allergic. There are a lot of other healthy beans, nuts, seeds, etc., to take the place of soy products.

Answer 5

you should talk to a doctor. Now.

Soy is an interesting issue. Some people say that it's a godsend and prevents cancer. Other people say that it's a fiend and causes cancer. See why I'm confused?

But you should seriously see a doctor