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Cited by 105Phytoestrogen effects and researchEstrogen and related hormone effectsMenopause: Health Impacts and Treatments

The specific role of isoflavones on estrogen metabolism in premenopausal women

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Kumar, Nagi B., Cantor, Alan, Allen, Kathy, Riccardi, Diane, Cox, Charles E.·2002·Cancer
DOI 10.1002/cncr.10320PMC PMC2377415
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Abstract

BACKGROUND: There is increasing evidence that dietary factors may play a role in the production, metabolism, and bioavailability of sex hormones and their impact on target tissues. The specific objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of supplementing a group of premenopausal women who were free of breast carcinoma with a dietary supplement of isoflavones (40 mg per day) in producing a change in steroid hormones and menstrual cycle length. METHODS: Sixty‐eight consecutively recruited, premenopausal, omnivorous women of all races and ethnicities between the ages of 25 years and 55 years were admitted to the study and randomized to an experimental group supplemented with soy (40 mg genistein per day) or to a control group that consumed a placebo for a 12‐week period. Changes in their anthropometric, nutritional, and hormonal biomarkers from early follicular phase were analyzed at baseline and postintervention. RESULTS: Serum‐free estradiol and estrone levels decreased moderately in the experimental group. Serum hormone‐binding globulin levels increased in 41.4% of women in the experimental group compared with 37.5% of women in the placebo group. Free estradiol decreased in 53.85% of women in the experimental group compared with 37.5% of women in the placebo group. Estrone decreased in 55.56% of women in the experimental group compared with 42.86% in the placebo group. Those women in the experimental group who were consuming soy had their mean menstrual cycle length increased by 3.52 days compared with a mean decrease of 0.06 days for women in the placebo group (P = 0.04) from baseline to the third menstrual cycle. In addition, women who were taking soy had their mean follicular phase increase by 1.46 days compared with a mean increase of 0.14 days for women who were taking the placebo (P = 0.08). CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that increased isoflavone intake affects estrogen metabolism by altering the steroid hormone concentrations and menstrual cycle length, thereby demonstrating a potential to reduce the risk for breast carcinoma. Cancer 2002;94:1166–74. © 2002 American Cancer Society. DOI 10.1002/cncr.10320

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  • The most common adverse event associated with soy consumption was mild to moderate gastrointestinal discomfort, usually occurring with comparable frequency in soy and placebo groups.

    “The most common adverse event associated with soy consumption was mild to moderate gastrointestinal discomfort, but this usually occurred with comparable frequency in both the soy and the placebo groups [128,130,131,136,142,147,150]; only in one study was there considerable difference in the frequency of GI upset, 47% in the soy group compared to 22% in the control group [130].”

    From Soy, Red Clover, and Isoflavones and Breast Cancer: A Systematic Review (2013) · cites this paper as [150]

    The Results (page unavailable) report that product intolerance involving bloating or nausea led to withdrawal of two women in the soy group and two in the placebo group. That supports comparable frequency for those withdrawals, but the paper does not establish that gastrointestinal discomfort was the most common adverse event, grade it as mild to moderate, or show comparable frequency for all gastrointestinal symptoms. (LLM, conf=0.83)

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  • A total of 18 RCTs assessed circulating estrogen levels; 15 of 18 found no significant impact from soy compared to control.

    “A total of 18 RCTs assessed circulating estrogens levels (E1, E2, and/ or E3) Fifteen of 18 studies found no significant impact from soy compared to the control group (p>0.05) [129,132,133,138,140,143,145,147,149,150,155,156,158,160,163].”

    From Soy, Red Clover, and Isoflavones and Breast Cancer: A Systematic Review (2013) · cites this paper as [150]

  • Two of five RCTs assessing menstrual cycle length reported significant increases of 1.8 to 3.5 days in cycle length associated with soy consumption compared to control; remaining studies found no effects.

    “Two of five studies assessing menstrual cycle length reported significant increases of between 1.8 to 3.5 days in cycle length associated with soy consumption compared to control subjects [149,150]; the remaining studies found no effects [147,156,158].”

    From Soy, Red Clover, and Isoflavones and Breast Cancer: A Systematic Review (2013) · cites this paper as [150]

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Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Kumar, N. B., Cantor, A., Allen, K., Riccardi, D., & Cox, C. E.
Affiliations
University of South Florida (US)
Corresponding author
Kumar, Nagi B.
ORCID
Venue
Cancer
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2002-02-15
Volume
94
Issue
4
Pages
1166-1174
ISSN
  • 0008-543X (ISSN-L)
  • 1097-0142
DOI
10.1002/cncr.10320
PMC
PMC2377415
OpenAlex
W2092597427
Cited by
105
References
0
Citations by year
2025: 2 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 5 · 2017: 1 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 8 · 2012: 3
FWCI
5.51
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor (vor, 5 d)
Locations
  • Cancer (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • U.S. Department of Defense (DAMD 17-98-1-8659)
  • National Institutes of Health
  • National Cancer Institute (R03CA072588, R03 CA72588-01A1)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pathology and Forensic Medicine › Phytoestrogen effects and research
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Estrogen and related hormone effects
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Menopause: Health Impacts and Treatments
Keywords
isoflavones, genistein, soy supplementation, estrogen metabolism, premenopausal women, free estradiol, estrone, sex hormone-binding globulin, menstrual cycle length, follicular phase, breast cancer risk, dietary supplements
MeSH terms
Administration, Oral, Adult, Anthropometry, Breast Neoplasms, Estradiol, Estrone, Female, Humans, Menstrual Cycle, Middle Aged, Nutritional Status, Placebos, Anticarcinogenic Agents, Premenopause, Genistein

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