Soy Isoflavones Improve Attention and Processing Speed in Children

A new study has recently revealed that school-aged children who eat more isoflavones from soy foods show improved thinking and attention. This study will help experts to find new treatments as it shows a positive impact on cognitive abilities. Isoflavones that are found in soybeans and soy products have been linked to memory improvement in adults. But their effects on children were not known completely. 

This study was recently presented at NUTRITION 2024. It is the annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition.  In this study, researchers used the data of 128 children. These children were aged between 7 and 13 and participated in a previous study. Researchers mainly wanted to understand the benefits of soy isoflavones. They calculated the average dietary intake of vitamins, nutrients and isoflavones in each child. Researchers utilized pencil and paper tests to check children’s intellectual ability. They also used a computerized task called the flanker task and electroencephalographic (ECG) activity to check their attention abilities and information processing speed and attention respectively. 

When researchers observed the collected data, they found that children who ate more isoflavone-containing soy foods showed faster attentional responses and processing speed. But they did not find any connection between soy isoflavone intake and general intellectual ability. The participated children in this study ate around 1.33 mg of isoflavones every day. It is not a lot but is similar to what other studies have found in the United States. Some of them didn’t eat any isoflavones and others ate up to 35 mg per day. To give you an idea, a serving of soy milk has about 28 mg of isoflavones, tofu has about 35 mg. 

One of the researchers said that no other research has studied the link between soy isoflavones and attentional abilities by using ECG or similar brain electrical activity measures. But this correlational study is just the beginning. There is a need for further research to understand how soy foods affect and improve the thinking abilities of children. They also want to understand how much isoflavone children need.  

The results of this study clearly shows that isoflavone form soy foods can effectively improve children’s thinking ability. Hence healthcare professionals should consider this study and suggest children eat more soy foods. This will help them improve their thinking ability.  This study is very important as it can reduce the risk of diseases that are related to thinking ability such as Alzheimer’s and dementia.