2 January 2013

Soy, Soy Everywhere!

I knew soy was a common ingredient, but I had no idea exactly how common it is. Because Leo cannot tolerate me eating even tiny amounts of soy, I've had to purge it from my diet. I didn't have it much anyway because of how it affects my chart (soy mimics oestrogen; because the cervical mucus pattern is determined by oestrogen and progesterone, soy can affect the mucus observations) but I didn't care too much about checking labels to see if soy was hidden.

Once I knew soy adversely affected Leo, though, I started checking labels. Every so often, though, I forget to check a label until I notice Leo's discomfort after I've eaten. I'm finding that soy really is everywhere. It's in some breads. Many vegan alternatives to dairy and meat are soy-based. Standard vegetable oil is actually soybean oil. I've yet to find packed tuna that is soy-free - I'd thought tuna in water would be safe, but it isn't. Even vitamins contain soybean oil! While it is possible to avoid soy, I'm realising just how difficult that is. Eating out is a complete nightmare. It's a good thing I like making everything from scratch, even if I'm having to adapt some things.

2 comments:

  1. You have my sympathy. It's the same with garlic. I am going into panic attacks trying to figure out how we're going to travel next summer with no garlic and no dairy and still manage to eat. It makes me want even more to have a little hobby farm and be mostly self sufficient.

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