CHICAGO — Soy-enhanced chili mac, turkey patties with soy, soy-studded country gravy, soy-blend hot dogs, soy-spiked sloppy joes, Polish sausages packed with soy, soy chicken patties.
These aren’t items from the latest vegetarian diet, but rather dishes served over a week at Danville Correctional Center, according to a recent menu.
They’re also the basis of a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court this summer by nine plaintiffs who allege that the Illinois Department of Corrections is endangering the health of the inmates — especially those with allergies, sensitivities and existing gastrointestinal and thyroid problems — by serving them too much soy.
Tens of thousands of inmates in Illinois prisons are being fed “up to 100 grams” of soy protein a day, according to the Weston A. Price Foundation, which is funding the lawsuit. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommends consuming about 25 grams of soy protein per day.
Based in Washington, D.C., the foundation promotes the consumption of whole, traditional and largely unprocessed foods. Foundation president Sally Fallon called the soy diet served in Illinois prisons “the Tuskegee of the 21st century,” referring to the syphilis experiments performed on African-Americans from the 1930s to ‘70s.
“Never before have we had a large population like this being served such a high level of soy with almost no other choice,” she said.
The plaintiffs are “suffering irreparable, actual harm by being forced to continue to eat food that has too much soy in it,” according to an amended complaint filed in June.
The effects have ranged from acute allergic reactions and heart problems to gastrointestinal distress and thyroid dysfunction, it says.
Fallon said the foundation got involved after inmates from various Illinois facilities contacted her. Last month, the foundation hosted a local panel on the soy issue before its annual national conference in Schaumburg, Ill.
The plaintiffs are seeking an injunction that would stop the Department of Corrections from serving soy in Illinois prisons as well as damages from the prisons’ contracted health care provider.
The department says it started serving soy-enhanced foods in March 2004 as a cost-cutting measure. But it declined to comment on most aspects of the pending litigation and is awaiting a ruling on its motion to dismiss the suit.
Nancy Chapman, executive director of the Soyfoods Association of North America, said she doubts prisoners are consuming as much soy as the foundation alleges.
“One hundred grams of any protein from plants or animals would not be economically feasible and would be an enormous load on the kidneys,” Chapman said.
Prison menus indicate inmates are served as many as seven soy-enhanced “meat” entrees a week. But the foundation contends the inmates consume more soy through cooking oils and soy cheeses as well as baked products enhanced with soy protein concentrates.
Once the darling of the health-food community, soy — especially non-fermented and genetically modified soy — has fallen out of favor in some health circles. Last year the American Heart Association urged the FDA to stop recommending soy as a way to reduce heart disease risk, saying “direct cardiovascular benefits of soy protein or isoflavones are minimal at best.”
Scientific studies have volleyed back and forth on whether high soy consumption reduces or increases cancer risk, inhibits mineral absorption and affects sperm concentrations.
But most agree that soy, especially unfermented varieties, can cause problems with the thyroid function and digestion.
Recommendations vary on how much soy is healthy to consume. The American Dietetic Association “believes that up to two servings of soy per day for adults could be part of a healthy diet,” a spokeswoman said. Examples of a serving include a half-cup of edamame, a cup of soy milk, a half-cup of tofu or a slice of bread in which soy flour is a component.
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