A new study revealed that consuming high levels of some soy products including tofu can increase the risk of memory loss.

Tofu, which is made by coagulating soy milk from the soya plant, is not only low in calories but has plant hormones believed to have advantageous effects on human health.

But, a recent study funded by the Alzheimer’s Research Trust, discovered that high tofu consumption (more than once a day) was associated with a 20% lower level of memory functioning as compared to those having very little of the product.

In recent years, soy consumption has gone up in the West where it is often promoted as a ‘superfood.’

Researchers at Loughborough and Oxford Universities worked with Indonesian fellow workers to study the effects of high soy consumption in elderly Indonesians living in urban as well as rustic regions of Java.

The study researchers noticed that high tofu consumption was linked with worse memory, particularly among individuals over 60 years of age.

Also there are worries that older people on a soy rich diet may be getting an extra boost of oestrogen-like hormones at a time of life when they are likely to harm brain functioning rather than bettering it.

The study also looked at the dietetic habits of 719 Javanese people aged between 52 and 98.

Lead author Prof. Eef Hogvervorst of Loughborough University stated, “Soy consumption is on the increase in the West and it is often promoted as a 'superfood'.”

“Soy products are rich in micronutrients called phytoestrogens, but it is not entirely clear what their effect on the ageing brain is,” Prof. Eef added.

The Loughborough University-led study will be published in the journal Dementias And Geriatric Cognitive Disorders this month.