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Soy - good and bad
There has always been a battle about soy as to is it helpful or hurtful, especially with regards to prostates and men’s health.
Phytoestrogens act to block estrogen receptors when taken in smaller amounts. Phytoestrogens are plentiful in soy and are commonly called isoflavones. These fill the estrogen receptor up but they don’t do the work of estrogen, so it can take on an anti-estrogen effect. Basically, blocking estrogen receptors would prevent estrogen from doing too much, which in men you don’t want too much effect from estrogen. But it seems too much soy and it can contribute to estrogenic effects, or act like a flood of regular estrogen.
The summary is that basically soy can have both estrogenic and anti-estrogenic effects. At low doses, they can block estrogen receptors, potentially reducing estrogen's impact, especially in men. However, higher doses of soy may mimic estrogen and lead to estrogenic effects
But how much is the right amount for benefit and how much is too much?
How much soy is enough for benefit but not too much – 25 grams a day is max according to this article:
https://www.health.com/is-soy-bad-for-you-11725145
Other potentially helpful videos
A helpful video from ASPI:
https://aspatients.org/meeting/eat-to-beat-prostate-disease/
Game Changers movie – illustrates the compounds in meat that are problematic and talks about plant-based diet. Advise watching whole thing though it is long and goes off track a real lot. Available on some streaming apps.
https://gamechangersmovie.com/
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https://www.icurology.org/DOIx.php?id=10.4111/icu.20240186
Fundamentally that study isn't really saying much to you as an individual. Prostate problems are often the result of incorrect ratios, such as T/E ratio, or too much T becoming DHT, these are known problems and why dutasteride is often prescribed. What soy can be about is if E might be a problem for you as an individual, such as your T/E ratio is well below 10 for example. That study posted talks about general trends in various countries and doesn't even address what soy does, which is help with a bit too much estrogen. Elevated estrogen is common today, plastics, and non stick coating and so on may push estrogens a bit too much for you to maintain a good ratio, so some soy can be helpful for some. It certainly isn't for everyone, and maybe in some countries there is less exposure to environmental problems so that study may relate to that, but when it comes down to it, you have to look at yourself as an individual and what may benefit you. This is sort of lost in todays medicine but anyway, we can bring it to doctors attention if one looks into these things.
bjroc, well, it's a compendium of 22 observational studies (each of which could use a little perusal), with a bibliography that would take a night and a day to advantage. Of course, observational studies of other people don't give you a good look at yourself as an individual. What would give you a personalized look is the genetic tests you can have of yourself, and, especially, if you have prostate cancer, the ever more realized somatic testing of the tumor itself. Even the doctors' attentions can't yield much without testing.
Oh, if only soy's antiandrogenic effect could eliminate the need for ADT. Sigh.