To bean, or not to bean, that is the question.
New research finds that isoflavones in soybeans and soy products can enhance attention and processing speed in school-aged kids.
“Soy foods are often not a regular part of children’s diets in the United States,” said Ajla Bristina, a neuroscience doctoral student at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. “Our study adds evidence of the importance of nutrients found in soy foods for childhood cognition.”
The study included 128 children, ranging in age from 7 to 13. Bristina’s team used seven-day diet records to calculate each child’s consumption of macronutrients, micronutrients, vitamins and isoflavones.
The naturally occurring plant compounds are structurally similar to estrogen — they have been shown to exhibit anti-oxidant, anti-cancer, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties.
For the study, the kids took pencil-and-paper tests to showcase their intellect and completed a computerized task to demonstrate their attention skills.
Researchers recorded their electroencephalographic — also known as an EEG — activity to determine their information-processing speed and attention.
“No other studies have examined the association between soy isoflavones and attentional abilities using EEG or similar measures to record electrical activity generated by the brain,” Bristina said.
She reported that the children in the study consumed 0 to 35 milligrams of isoflavones a day, with the average being 1.33 milligrams. She called this amount “relatively low,” but said it “aligns with previously reported values” for the US.
The kids who ate more soy foods had faster responses during the attentional tasks and quicker processing speed. No association was observed between isoflavone intake and intellectual ability.
Bristina recommends incorporating more soy into children’s diets via roasted edamame, soy nuts, soy milk, tofu, tempeh or soy-based nuggets.
She noted that 8 fluid ounces of soy milk contain about 28 milligrams of isoflavones, a serving of tofu boasts about 35 milligrams and half a cup of steamed edamame provides about 18 milligrams.
Bristina presents her research Tuesday at Nutrition 2024, the annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition.
“Correlational studies like this are only the first step,” she said. “To better understand the effects of eating soy foods on children’s cognitive abilities and the precise amount of isoflavone intake necessary to elicit faster response times will require intervention approaches.”
The research team recently began a trial exploring the effects of soy foods on thinking abilities, sex hormones, metabolic health and gut health.
