Walk through almost any grocery store today and you’ll find soy everywhere.

• Soy milk
• Soy protein powders
• Soy burgers
• Soy oil
• Soy lecithin
• Soy flour

It has quietly become one of the most dominant ingredients in the modern food system.

But despite its popularity, soy is something I rarely eat.

That doesn’t mean I’ve never eaten soy. I have experimented with traditional foods like organic miso and natto, both of which are fermented soy foods with long histories in traditional Asian diets.

But after years of studying nutrition, agriculture, and cardiovascular health, I’ve come to a simple conclusion.

Soy rarely fits into the way humans are meant to eat today.

And it certainly does not fit well into the Natural Heart Doctor philosophy of real, nutrient-dense food from healthy ecosystems.

Let’s explore why.

Soy Was Never Traditionally Eaten the Way We Eat It Today

Soybeans originated in East Asia thousands of years ago and were domesticated in China long before spreading across the world. (National Geographic)

Historically, soy was not eaten in the forms that dominate our modern food system.

Instead, traditional cultures transformed soy through fermentation, producing foods such as:

• Miso
• Tempeh
• Natto
• Soy sauce

Fermentation was essential because soybeans naturally contain anti-nutrients and compounds that interfere with digestion and mineral absorption.

Through fermentation, microbes break down many of these compounds while creating beneficial enzymes and nutrients.

In other words, traditional cultures understood that soy needed processing through fermentation before it was suitable for regular consumption.

Today, however, soy is commonly consumed in highly processed forms like:

• Soy protein isolate
• Soybean oil
• Soy flour
• Soy lecithin

These products are not traditional foods.

They are industrial ingredients.

Soy Became an Industrial Crop, Not a Traditional Food

Soy did not become a staple in the modern Western diet because people suddenly wanted it.

It became dominant because it became one of the most profitable crops in global agriculture.

Soybeans were introduced to the United States as an experimental crop and eventually evolved into one of the nation’s largest agricultural exports.

Today soy is used primarily for:

• Animal feed
• Industrial oils
• Processed food ingredients

This explains why soy appears in thousands of packaged foods.

It is cheap, versatile, and widely subsidized.

But the fact that something is profitable does not mean it is healthy.

Most Soy Is Genetically Modified

One of the biggest reasons I rarely eat soy is how it is grown today.

More than 90 percent of soybeans grown in the United States are genetically engineered varieties. (Economic Research Service)

These genetically modified crops were not created to improve nutrition.

They were designed to tolerate herbicides.

The most famous example is glyphosate-tolerant soy, often called “Roundup Ready.”

These crops allow farmers to spray herbicides directly on fields while the soy plants survive.

This fundamentally changed agriculture.

Instead of controlling weeds mechanically or through crop rotation, entire fields can now be sprayed with herbicides during the growing season.

Soy Is One of the Most Heavily Sprayed Crops

Glyphosate is now one of the most widely used herbicides in modern agriculture.

And soybeans are one of its primary targets.

Studies show glyphosate-tolerant soybeans dominate global production, and the widespread use of these crops has dramatically increased glyphosate application and residues in soy products. (PMC)

Testing of food products has also detected herbicide residues frequently.

In one round of testing, glyphosate residues were detected in about 59 percent of corn and soy samples analyzed. (U.S. Food and Drug Administration)

Other testing has reported residues in over two-thirds of soybean samples. (Food Safety News)

Research comparing different farming systems has also shown that genetically modified soy can contain higher levels of glyphosate residues due to repeated spraying during the growing season. (ScienceDirect)

In simple terms:

Modern soy is frequently grown in a chemical-dependent agricultural system.

That alone makes me cautious.

The Chemical Arms Race in Agriculture

Ironically, herbicide-tolerant crops were originally marketed as a way to reduce pesticide use.

But the opposite happened.

As weeds developed resistance to glyphosate, farmers began spraying larger amounts and using additional herbicides.

Some modern soybean varieties are now engineered to tolerate multiple herbicides, including glyphosate and dicamba.

This is an agricultural arms race.

And it places even more chemicals into the food production system.

Organic Soy Is Different

To be fair, organic soy is a completely different story.

Organic farming prohibits:

• Genetically modified seeds
• Synthetic herbicides like glyphosate

Studies consistently show organic soybeans do not contain glyphosate residues because these chemicals are not allowed in organic production.

If someone chooses to eat soy, I believe it should always be:

• Organic
• Traditionally fermented
• Consumed occasionally

Even then, I personally still choose other foods more often.

There Are Simply Better Protein Sources

If I want protein, I choose foods that humans have thrived on for generations.

• Wild fish
• Pasture-raised eggs
• Grass-fed meat
• Organ meats like our Kickstart My Heart
• Seafood like our Wild Salmon Roe

These foods provide:

• Complete amino acids
• Highly bioavailable minerals
• Fat-soluble vitamins
• Essential fatty acids

They are nutrient dense and minimally processed.

Soy simply does not compete with these foods in terms of nutritional value.

My Personal Approach to Soy

I don’t fear soy.

But I don’t prioritize it either.

I’ve tried organic miso and natto.

I understand their traditional role in fermented foods.

But because of the realities of modern agriculture, soy is not something I choose to eat regularly.

When I want a similar flavor to soy sauce, I often use coconut aminos, which fits much better into a Paleo-style approach.

And when it comes to protein, I simply prefer foods that humans have relied on for thousands of years.

The Bottom Line

Modern soy is very different from traditional soy foods.

Today most soy is:

• Genetically modified
• Heavily sprayed with herbicides
• Highly processed into industrial food ingredients

Traditional fermented soy foods may have a place in some diets.

But the soy dominating modern food systems is something entirely different.

For my patients and my family, I focus on foods that are:

• Real
• Nutrient dense
• Minimally processed
• Produced in healthier agricultural systems

When you eat that way, soy becomes unnecessary.

And that’s why I rarely eat it.