Soy Lecithin: Benefits, Side Effects, and Uses of This Common Food Additive

Soy lecithin is one of the most widely used food additives today. This natural emulsifier and stabilizer derived from raw soybeans can be found in everything from chocolate to baked goods to natural supplements.

But what the heck is soy lecithin exactly? This single ingredient has people talking about and questioning it, stirring up both excitement and curiosity.

But are we celebrating it or shunning it?

Are we adding it for health reasons or staying far, far away to protect our health?
Hang tight as we explore soy lecithin, its health benefits and side effects, foods containing it, and how it’s used.

What is Soy Lecithin?

Soy lecithin, aka soybean lecithin, is an emulsifier extracted from soybeans (don’t worry, they don’t feel a thing) using a chemical solvent like hexane in the extraction process. What’s an emulsifier, you say?

An emulsifier helps two unmixable liquids to play nice and mix. Think of oil and water holding hands, skipping into the sunset rather than fighting in Nerf wars. Soy wasn’t always the unsung hero, though. Egg yolks used to be the all-hail emulsifier, but in 1846, a French chemist named Theodore Gobley strode in, performed some science wizardry, and uncovered the magic of soy lecithin. Dumbledore would be proud.

First Up: Benefits of Soy Lecithin

While further research is still required to fully understand the depths of soy lecithin benefits, there are plenty of key potential upsides of adding soy lecithin to your routine. 

1. Cholesterol Management
2. Improved Immune Function
3. Better Digestion
4. Cognitive Advantages
5. Breastfeeding Assets

1. Cholesterol Management

One of soy lecithin’s biggest flexes is how it manages high cholesterol levels.

LDL cholesterol is the “bad” cholesterol, and having high levels of it increases your risk for heart disease and stroke. Soy lecithin swoops in and helps to raise healthy HDL levels (we’re rooting for the good guys to win) and take down the bad guys. One small study found that 500mg of soy lecithin daily for two months reduced LDL cholesterol levels.

Luckily, because of soy lecithin’s ability to break down both fat-soluble and water-soluble molecules (remember that oil and water are teammates now), it’s able to give LDL the VIP escort out of your body, protecting your arteries from plaque buildup.

2. Improved Immune Function

Thanks to the phospholipids—fat plus phosphate—found in soy lecithin, our immune system may get powered up by lecithin’s ability to process nutrients and remove waste at a cellular level.

Microscopic housekeeping at your service!

This type of clean-up helps cells function optimally, including immune cells.

A study out of Brazil found that daily lecithin shots in rats increased the natural killer cells called lymphocytes, which are vital to our immune system, by 92%. These cells help our immune system fight cancer, foreign viruses, and bacteria.

3. Better Digestion

If you’ve been hitting the Pepto hard recently, I’ve got some info for you that could help you put down the bottle.

Soy lecithin acts as an emulsifier, blending and breaking down fats so your body can absorb nutrients properly. It also helps to keep things moving along in your digestive tract, putting you on a more regular schedule.

Up to 907,000 people in the United States suffer from ulcerative colitis—a form of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)—and lecithin could provide some digestive relief by increasing phosphatidylcholine (PC) levels. You can read more about it here.

4. Cognitive Advantages

Soy lecithin has a natural compound called choline. Choline is a crucial nutrient that plays a significant role in memory and cognitive function.

When you consume soy lecithin, your body uses choline to produce acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter essential for memory formation and retention.

In an article by University of North Carolina, researchers state, “When rat pups receive choline supplements (in utero or during the second week of life), their brain function is changed, resulting in lifelong memory enhancement.”

The article continues to state that “These changes are so important that investigators can pick out the groups of animals whose mothers had extra choline even when these animals are elderly.”

People with Alzheimer’s disease have been found to have a relative lack of the enzyme responsible for converting choline into acetylcholine within the brain.

Because soy lecithin is so rich in choline, it helps boost the production of acetylcholine and possibly reduce some symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

Further research is needed in this area, but the results so far are promising.

5. Breastfeeding Assets

If you’ve ever witnessed a new mom who has experienced clogged milk ducts, she will be the first to tell you that she would do just about anything (aside from handing over her precious cherub) to gain relief and avoid this painful situation.

Luckily, soy lecithin is also helpful in the treatment of clogged milk ducts. Kelly Bonyata, who is a certified lactation consultant, suggests taking lecithin at doses of 3600-4800 mg/day. If you find sweet, sweet anti-blockage relief in the first two weeks, you can decrease the dose.

How does it work? I’m happy you asked. Soy lecithin helps reduce the thickness of breast milk, making it easier to flow freely, resulting in fewer clogged ducts. Hallelujah!

Later down the line, soy lecithin can also help relieve menopause symptoms.

Soy Lecithin Side Effects

1. Allergic Reactions
   Soy is one of the nine major food allergens, but soy lecithin may not provoke allergic reactions in people with a soy allergy. Even though it contains very little soy protein, if you are allergic, consuming soy lecithin might result in mild symptoms like hives and itching to more severe reactions like difficulty breathing. Those with soy allergies should avoid soybean lecithin until they speak with their healthcare provider.
2. Gastrointestinal Distress
   In rare cases, the consumption of this soy protein can lead to stomach cramps, diarrhea, or nausea. These symptoms may be more likely to occur in individuals with existing stomach sensitivities.
3. Headaches
   If you’ve ever had a headache after consuming soy, here might be the reason why. Soy contains a high level of tyramine. Tyramine dilates the blood vessels in the brain, which can result in increased blood flow and contribute to headache pain.

Soy Lecithin FAQ’s