Canada’s health claim for soy protein and cholesterol reduction is not impacted by the recent announcement from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposing to revoke a health claim in the United States linking soy protein consumption to reducing heart disease in humans.
“The soy health claim approved in Canada states that consumption of protein-rich soy food lowers cholesterol.This is not the same health claim that was approved in the United States. That claim essentially links the consumption of soy protein with a reduction in heart disease risk,” says Jeff Schmalz, CEO of Oilseed Innovation Partners, the group that spearheaded the Canadian health claim process.
Oilseed Innovation Partners, formerly Soy 20/20, worked with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) and Guelph-based Nutrasource Diagnostics Inc, a contract research organization and consulting firm specializing in regulatory and scientific affairs, on establishing the Canadian soy health claim.
This included a meta-analysis on all human research published to 2011 showing that soy protein consumption is effective in reducing total and LDL-cholesterol levels. A second meta-analysis involving human research published through to 2013 was completed by Health Canada and showed similar results. Collectively, evidence showed that soy protein consumption resulted in a 2.6% reduction in total cholesterol levels, and 4% reduction in LDL cholesterol levels, both of which were statistically significant differences.