Prostate Cancer

According to Jirtle, certain environmental factors before birth can alter the way a specific gene behaves, without changing the genetic sequence in any way.

The Duke researchers found that genistein acted on a particular gene in mice, called the agouti gene.

And although this does not act in the same ways in humans, the scientists claim that “soy's potential benefits could exert themselves” through other human genes.

"Our study demonstrates there are highly sensitive windows early in development when environmental exposures can permanently alter the offspring's adult susceptibility to disease," said Jirtle.

"Therefore, we need to examine the effect of environmental exposures during pregnancy, not just in adulthood, if we want to accurately assess their risk or benefit to humans." And according to the scientists, genistein may not be the only compound that can reduce the risk of obesity.

Previous research by Jirtle showed that folic acid and vitamin B12 had the same affect when fed to pregnant mice.

However, Jirtle pointed out that it is still unclear as to how different nutrients interact in combination or in extremely high doses, suggesting the need for further research before the health benefits can be confirmed.

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