Consumption on Inflammatory and Cardiovascular Risk Factors among Overweight and Obese Female Adults

Soymilk replacement in the diet might have beneficial effects on inflammation and cardiovascular risk factors for non-menopausal overweight and obese female adults. We evaluated the effects of soymilk compared to cow's milk on inflammation and cardiovascular risk factors among overweight and obese female adults.

This was a cross-over randomized clinical trial on 24 subjects. All of them were on a weight reducing diet. There were two trial periods for four weeks (soymilk period and cow's milk period) and a washout period for 2 weeks. In the soymilk period, only one glass of cow's milk (240 cc) was replaced with one glass of soymilk (240 cc).

Mean values of low density lipoprotein (LDL) and waist circumference reduced significantly following soymilk period compared to cow's milk period (LDL: -11.22 ± 3.85 vs. -1.18 ± 2.82; P = 0.01 and waist circumference: -3.79 ± 0.51 vs. -1.78 ± 0.55; P = 0.02). However, inflammatory markers, liver enzymes, blood pressure, other lipid profiles, and glycemic control index did not change significantly after soymilk period compared to cow's milk period.

A diet including soymilk can play an important role in reducing lipid profiles and waist circumference among non-menopausal overweight and obese female adults even in a short time trial. However, diet with soymilk had no significant effects on glycemic index, plasma inflammatory markers, liver enzymes, or fibrinogen level compared to cow's milk in a short term trial.