I was fascinated by a report/article in the July 31st edition of the K.C. Star entitled “Something On Their Chests.” It discussed the difficult time male youngsters are having with enlarged breasts, with some resorting to reduction surgery.
Today that condition affects from 40% to 70% of adolescent boys, according to the article. Last year 20,000 males underwent breast reduction surgery, and 70% were between the ages of 13 to 19. These kids take a terrible amount of abuse from their peers apparently resulting in more than a few suicides.
As a cause, the article mentions elevated estrogen levels from some medications, liver disease, testicular trauma, and steroids. I wondered why phytoestrogens weren’t mentioned, as that’s the biggest source of estrogen mimicking chemicals in our dietary environment, but it wasn’t.
In the initial clinical trials for adding soy into the diet, conducted in Puerto Rico among slum children, we saw prepubescent girls with adult genitalia, and pubescent boys with breasts (gynecomastia). The research was ignored because it didn’t support the outcome that the corporate sponsors wanted. Soy is a potent phytoestrogen, and before the soy revolution (thanks Monsanto), these kinds of problems didn’t exist at these horrendous levels.
I’ve been railing against soy products for decades, and once again I find I’ve been right. Oh, and not a mention of soy in the newspaper article.
