Soy product consumption in 10 European countries: the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study

Abstract

Objective:The aim of this study was to describe the variation of soy product intake in 10 European countries by using a standardised reference dietary method. A subsidiary aim was to characterise the pattern of soy consumption among a sub-group of participants with a habitual health-conscious lifestyle (HHL), i.e. non-meat eaters who are fish eaters, vegetarians and vegans.Design:A 24-hour dietary recall interview (24-HDR) was conducted among a sample (5–12%) of all cohorts (n = 36 900) in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC). Study participants totalled 35 955 after exclusion of subjects younger than 35 or older than 74 years of age. Soy products were subdivided into seven sub-groups by similarity. Distribution of consumption and crude and adjusted means of intake were computed per soy product group across countries. Intake of soy products was also investigated among participants with an HHL.Results:In total, 195 men and 486 women reported consuming soy products in the 24-HDR interview. Although soy product intake was generally low across all countries, the highest intake level was observed in the UK, due to over-sampling of a large number of participants with an HHL. The most frequently consumed soy foods were dairy substitutes in the UK and France and beans and sprouts among mid-European countries. For both genders, the sub-group of soy dairy substitutes was consumed in the highest quantities (1.2 g day−1 for men; 1.9 g day−1 for women). Participants with an HHL differed substantially from others with regard to demographic, anthropometric and nutritional factors. They consumed higher quantities of almost all soy product groups.Conclusions:Consumption of soy products is low in centres in Western Europe. Soy dairy substitutes are most frequently consumed. Participants with an HHL form a distinct sub-group with higher consumptions of fruit, vegetables, legumes, cereals and soy products compared with the other participants.

Dietary intakes and food sources of phytoestrogens in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) 24-hour dietary recall cohort

“…20 The UK health-conscious cohort is made up predominantly of lacto-ovo vegetarians and vegans; therefore they consume more plant foods, especially soy products that are the most abundant food sources of phytoestrogens. 33 Despite this, phytoestrogen intake was not statistically associated with healthy lifestyle characteristics, such as be active physical activity or never smoker, in the whole cohort. Our results are in concordance with previous results using plasma phytoestrogen concentrations in a sub-sample within the EPIC-Europe cohort.…”

“…32 Moreover, the UK healthconscious group form a distinct subgroup with higher consumptions of fruit, vegetables, legumes, nuts and seeds, cereals and soy products compared with the other EPIC centres. 33 These models were adjusted for sex, age, centre, BMI and energy intake. All models were weighted by season and day of the week of the 24-HDR using generalized linear models to control for different distributions of 24-HDR interviews across seasons and days of the week.…”

No Association between Dietary Phytoestrogens and Risk of Premenopausal Breast Cancer in a French Cohort Study

“…In comparison, mean isoflavone intakes were f15 mg/d in European soy consumers (7) and varied between 5 and 45 mg/d in Asian populations (8,9). Our dietary questionnaire did not cover soy foods, but the proportion of soy consumers is marginal in France, with only 1% to 3% women (10,11). Chronic intake of >1 g/d soy protein, corresponding to >3 mg/d isoflavones (9), was recently suggested for reducing premenopausal breast cancer risk (1).…”

The gap between food-based dietary guidelines and usual food consumption in Belgium, 2004

“…The consumption of vegetables, fruits, dairy products, soya products, fat and meat was compared among ten European countries participating in the EPIC study (30)(31)(32)(33)(34) . Subjects were 35-74 years old (n 35 955).…”