ARTICLE IN PRESS

JOURNAL OF
FOOD COMPOSITION
AND ANALYSIS
Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 18 (2005) 533–550
www.elsevier.com/locate/jfca

Original Article

Isoflavone content of foods with soy additives

Sabrina T. Umphress, Suzanne P. Murphy*, Adrian A. Franke, Laurie J. Custer,
Carrie L. Blitz
Cancer Research Center of Hawaii, University of Hawaii, 1236 Lauhala Street, Suite 407, Honolulu 96813, USA
Received 13 June 2003; received in revised form 9 April 2004; accepted 16 April 2004

Abstract

The health effects of consumption of isoflavones from soy products are being actively investigated, yet
food composition tables often have incomplete values for commercial foods containing soy additives.
Therefore, we analyzed 167 processed and fast foods with soy additives (e.g. isolated soy protein, soy
protein concentrate, soy flour, and hydrolyzed soy protein) for the isoflavones daidzein, glycitein, and
genistein. Total isoflavones were computed by adding these three isoflavones. Additionally, 12 traditional
soybean products were analyzed, including soy flour and Asian condiments made from soybeans. Foods
were sampled from food stores and fast-food restaurants in Hawaii. Concentrations of total isoflavones,
expressed as aglycones, ranged from not detected (ND, for 49 foods) to 149.9 mg/100 g. Ranges within food
groups were: bread and grain products (ND—93.9), gravies and sauces (ND—2.7), meat and poultry
products (ND—15.9), meat substitutes (0.3–149.9), nutritional products (0.4–36.5), reduced fat peanut
butters (0.1–4.0), seafood products (ND—1.6), and soybean products (2.9–109.3). For 56 foods on our food
composition table, we calculated composite isoflavone values reflecting the mean of multiple brands and the
proportion of brands containing soy additives. The resulting table now permits more accurate estimates of
total isoflavone intakes by participants in our research studies.
r 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Isoflavones; Daidzein; Glycitein; Genistein; Soy products; Soy additives

1. Introduction

Isoflavones are also known as phytoestrogens because they are found in plant foods (primarily
soy products) and appear to have estrogen-like activity. They are structurally similar to estrogen

*Corresponding author. Tel.: +1-808-564-5861; fax: +1-808-586-2982.

E-mail address: suzanne@crch.hawaii.edu (S.P. Murphy).

0889-1575/$ - see front matter r 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.jfca.2004.04.008
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534 S.T. Umphress et al. / Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 18 (2005) 533–550

and bind to estrogen receptors. Many potential health benefits of isoflavones in soy products have
been investigated, including effects on cancer, vascular disease, osteoporosis, menopausal
symptoms, and cognitive function (Anderson and Garner, 1997; Sirtori, 2001). Because the data
in humans are not conclusive for any of these possible benefits, it is important to continue to
conduct studies relating isoflavones and soy foods in the diet to health outcomes. An accurate
food composition database is crucial for such studies.
Many laboratories have reported analytic values for isoflavones in soybeans and soybean
products and several compilations of these values are available (Reinli and Block, 1996; Pillow
et al., 1999; USDA & Iowa State University, 2000; Murphy and Hendrich, 2002). However, these
foods may not be the major source of isoflavones in the diets of non-Asian cultures. Horn-Ross
et al. (2000b) demonstrated that baked products with added soy flour are a major source of
isoflavones in the diets of persons living in California. Although some isoflavone values have
been published for foods containing soy additives (Dwyer et al., 1994; Murphy et al., 1999;
Horn-Ross et al., 2000a; Murphy & Hendrich, 2002), the available information, in some cases,
is for composites of foods or lacks detail which identifies the exact food analyzed. Thus, it is
difficult to incorporate these values into other food composition databases. Furthermore, values
for glycitein are often lacking, and thus values for total isoflavones in foods may be
underestimated.
The objectives of the current study were to: (1) Analyze the content of daidzein, glycitein, and
genistein in a variety of soy-containing foods available in Hawaii; (2) Investigate variability within
and between brands of the same products; and (3) Create composite values for the three
isoflavones, and for total isoflavones, that are appropriate for the foods on our food composition
table.

2. Materials and methods

2.1. Collection and preparation of food samples

As reported by Horn-Ross et al. (2000a), soy flour and/or soy protein have been added to some
brands and varieties of breads, buns, English muffins, doughnuts, canned chilie’s, canned tunas,
diet shakes and nutritional supplements, nutritional bars, and soy/‘‘veggie’’ burgers. To determine
which foods in Hawaii contain such soy additives, dietitians canvassed grocery store chains and
health food stores in the Honolulu area to check food label ingredient lists. Additionally, we
obtained fast food ingredient information from company websites. A spreadsheet was developed
listing the names and brands of all foods in each category and the type of soy additive(s) present,
if any. From this list, foods were purchased and analyzed if a soy additive appeared on the food
label. (See Table 1 for a complete list of the soy additives used in the analyzed foods.)
Where possible, we selected different brands of the same food for analysis. However, there often
were not multiple brands of a particular food containing a soy additive. To investigate within
brand variability, an additional sample of some of the more commonly consumed baked goods
was collected from a different store later in the study.
Additionally, because soy flour and textured vegetable protein are the soy additives of choice in
many of the analyzed foods, two brands of soy flour and one brand of textured vegetable protein
 ARTICLE IN PRESS

S.T. Umphress et al. / Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 18 (2005) 533–550 535

were also analyzed. We also analyzed fermented soybeans and three Asian sauces because these
foods are commonly consumed in Hawaii.
Most foods, such as bread or canned chili, were ready to consume. Foods which required
cooking (e.g. frozen beef patties) were prepared according to package directions. Foods in
concentrated form, such as dry gravy mixes, powdered soup bases, or condensed soups were not
diluted for analysis. Appropriate dilution factors were applied later to the results of the analyses.
Foods were weighed and placed in two sealable plastic bags in 50-g aliquots each, and where
necessary, cut into bite size pieces.

2.2. Extraction and analysis of isoflavones in foods

Food samples were frozen, lyophilized, and then kept in a desiccator. Prior to extraction, a
representative sample of the dry food was ground to a fine powder with a mortar and pestle or in a
blender. Depending on the expected level of isoflavones, either 0.2 or 1.0 g of the food was
extracted and analyzed as follows: after addition of 30 mL 80% aqueous methanol the mixture
was vortexed for 30 min followed by centrifugation for 5 min at 1000 g. After removal of the clear
supernatant, the same extraction procedure was repeated for the residue. Additional repetitions of
the residue extraction did not lead to significant isoflavone increases, and were therefore omitted.
The organic portion of the combined supernatants was evaporated under reduced pressure at a
temperature below 40 C.
The residual solution was incubated at 39 C overnight after addition of 0.5 mL beta-
glucosidase (1 mg/mL in 0.2 M sodium acetate buffer pH 5) and 100 mL arylsulfatase in order to
hydrolyze the conjugated isoflavones to their aglycones. We decided in this study to apply
enzymatic instead of acid hydrolysis because the former method gave a shorter turn-around time
and achieved similar results. Four-methyl umbelliferone sulfate (0.25 mg/mL in 0.2 M sodium
acetate buffer pH 5), formononetin (1 mg/mL dissolved in methanol), and flavone (1200 ppm
dissolved in methanol) were added as internal standards to test hydrolysis efficiency and analyte
loss. The analytes were extracted 2 times with 3 mL diethylether. Shortly before high pressure
liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis was performed, the ether phases were dried by a stream
of dry nitrogen and redissolved in 500 mL acetonitrile and 500 mL sodium acetate buffer (0.2 M,
pH5).
HPLC photo-diode array-electrospray mass spectrometry (HPLC/PDA/ESI-MS) was carried
out as reported previously, except for the use of a model ‘‘LCQ Advantage’’ mass spectrometer
equipped with an orthogonal electrospray ionization unit (Thermo Finnigan Corp., San Jose, CA)
(Franke et al., 2002). In brief, 10 mL were injected onto a Hydrobond PS C18 pre-column
(25  3.2 mm i.d.; 5 mm) coupled to a Hydrobond PS C18 analytical column (100  3.0 mm i.d.;
5 mM) and eluted with 0.2 mL/min of methanol in water (% vol/vol) as follows: 25–95% linearly
in 30 min, at 95% for 4.5 min, 95–25% linearly in 0.5 min, and at 25% for 5 min prior to
subsequent injection. PDA detection was performed during the entire run at 220–400 nm.
Quantitation by PDA was performed for foods above 0.04 mg/100 g (total isoflavone levels) by
external calibration using peak areas obtained by monitoring at 260 nm after adjusting for an
internal standard (flavone). Highly linear PDA calibration curves were obtained from all three
isoflavone standards in the range 1–200 mM with r2>0.988 when monitored at 260 nm. The limit
of quantitation at a signal-to-noise ratio of 3 for daidzein, glycitein, genistein, and total
 536
Table 1
Daidzein, glycitein, genistein, and total isoflavone content (mg/100 g) of analyzed foodsa,b
Food USDAc Water Daidzein Glycitein Genistein Total IFL Soy Additived
Code (%) (mg/100 g) (mg/100 g) (mg/100 g) (mg/100 g)

Bread and grain products

S.T. Umphress et al. / Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 18 (2005) 533–550
Bread crumbs; Contadina Bread Crumbs, Italian Style 18376 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SF
Bread crumbs; Progresso Bread Crumbs, Plain 18079 0 0.4 0.0 0.3 0.7 SF
Bread, cinnamon roll; McDonald’s Cinnamon Rolls 18356 16 4.4 0.7 0.9 6.0 SF
Bread, cinnamon roll; Svenhard’s 4 Cinnamon Rolls 18356 14 0.6 0.1 0.6 1.4 SF
Bread, cinnamon roll; Svenhard’s Viking Size Cinnamon 18356 19 0.8 0.1 0.7 1.6 SF
Bun
Bread, French; Star Markets French Breade 18029 32 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SF
Bread, mixed-grain; Country Hearth 12 Grain Bread 18035 30 0.4 0.0 0.3 0.7 SF
Bread, mixed-grain; Country Hearth 12 Grain Bread 18035 30 0.4 0.0 0.3 0.8 SF
Bread, mixed-grain; Milton’s 99% Fat Free Healthy Multi- 18035 32 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SF
Grain Bread

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Bread, sweet; King’s Hawaiian Hawaiian Sweet Bread none 27 0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 DSF
Bread, sweet; King’s Hawaiian Hawaiian Sweet Rolls none 27 0.5 0.1 0.5 1.1 DSF
Bread, taro; Taro Brand Taro Rolls none 33 0.5 0.1 0.4 1.0 SF
Bread, taro; Taro Brand Taro Rolls none 30 0.4 0.0 0.3 0.8 SF
Bread, wheat; Love’s Golden Wheat Breade 18064 31 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SF
Bread, wheat; Times King Wheat Bread 18064 33 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SF
Bread, white; Holsum Sandwich White Enriched Bread 18069 35 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SF
Bread, white; Love’s Kid’s Choice White Bread 18069 40 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SFib
Bread, white; Love’s Sandwich White Bread 18069 33 0.6 0.1 0.4 1.1 SF
Bread, white; Love’s Sandwich White Bread 18069 34 1.0 0.1 0.8 1.9 SF
Bread, white; Star Markets White Butter Top Bread 18069 38 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SF
Bread, white; Times King White Bread 18069 34 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SF
Cake, snack; Hostess Cup Cakes none 19 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SPI
Cake, snack; Hostess Ding Dongs 18606 7 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SPI
Cake, snack; Hostess HoHos none 14 0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 SPI
Cake, snack; Hostess Twinkies none 19 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SPI
Cake, snack; Tastykake Bakery Fresh Iced Cupcakes none 13 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.1 SPI
Cereal; Harmony Vanilla Almond Oat 08398 2 1.4 0.2 1.9 3.6 SPI
Cereal; Kashi Go Lean 08393 1 8.4 1.4 7.7 17.4 SP, SG
Cereal; Kashi Good Friends 08390 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SPC
Cereal; Kellogg’s Smart Start Soy Protein Cereal 08385 0 41.9 10.2 41.9 93.9 S, SPC, TSP
Doughnuts, cake; Country Hearth Sugared Donuts 18250 19 1.8 0.3 1.7 3.8 SF
Doughnuts, cake; Country Hearth Sugared Donuts 18250 19 2.0 0.2 1.7 3.9 SF
Doughnuts, cake; Hostess Chocolate Frosted Donettes 18249 10 2.1 0.2 1.8 4.1 SF
Doughnuts, cake; Hostess Chocolate Frosted Donettes 18249 9 1.7 0.2 1.5 3.3 SF
Doughnuts, cake; Hostess Powdered Donettes 18250 0 2.6 0.3 2.3 5.1 SF
Doughnuts, cake; Hostess Powdered Donettes 18250 10 1.8 0.2 1.6 3.7 SF
Doughnuts, cake; Love’s 12 Finer Donuts 18250 14 4.1 0.5 3.6 8.2 SF
 Doughnuts, cake; Love’s Old Fashioned Donut, Powdered 18250 21 4.7 0.5 4.4 9.6 SF
Sugar
Doughnuts, cake; Safeway Bakery Old Fashion Cake 18250 13 0.5 0.1 0.5 1.1 SF
Donut, Glazed
Doughnuts, yeast; Safeway Bakery, Glazed 18255 18 0.3 0.0 0.2 0.6 SF
English muffins; Golden Cr"eme English Muffins 18258 45 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 SF
English muffins; Thomas’ English Muffins 18639 46 0.5 0.0 0.4 0.9 SF

S.T. Umphress et al. / Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 18 (2005) 533–550
Rolls; Love’s Dinner Rolls 18342 29 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SF
Stuffing mix; Safeway Turkey Flavor Stuffing Mix 18081 3 0.1 0.0 0.2 0.3 HSP, SF
Stuffing mix; Stove Top Stuffing Mix for Turkey 18567 2 0.3 0.0 0.2 0.5 HSP, SF

Gravies and sauces

Gravy, canned; Boston Market Roasted Turkey Gravy 06125 90 0.3 0.1 0.3 0.7 SF
Gravy, canned; Franco-American Chicken Gravy 06119 86 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Gravy, canned; Franco-American Mushroom Gravy 06121 91 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Gravy, canned; Heinz Home Style Roasted Turkey Gravy 06125 90 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SPI
Gravy, mix; Knorr Gravy Classics, Classic Brown 06118 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP

ARTICLE IN PRESS
Gravy Mix
Gravy, mix; Knorr Gravy Classics, Mushroom Brown 06122 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Gravy Mix
Gravy, mix; Lawry’s Brown Gravy Mix 06118 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Gravy, mix; McCormick Brown Gravy Mix 06118 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Gravy, mix; McCormick Mushroom Gravy Mixe 06122 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Sauce mix; Betty Crocker Hamburger Helper Salisbury 22700 0 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.2 HSP
Sauce mix; Betty Crocker Hamburger Helper Three Cheese 22700 0 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.2 SF
Sauce mix; Betty Crocker Scalloped 100% Real Potatoese 11386 0 0.2 0.0 0.2 0.5 HSP
Sauce mix; Betty Crocker Tuna helper creamy pastae none 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Sauce mix; Rice A Roni Beef Flavor none 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Sauce mix; Rice A Roni Chicken Flavor none 0 1.4 0.2 1.1 2.7 SF
Sauce mix; Safeway Scalloped Potatoes 11386 0 0.1 0.0 0.3 0.4 HSP, SF
Sauce; Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce none 72 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.2 HSP

Meat and poultry products

Beef patties, frozen; May’s Teriyaki Beef Patties 23501 42 3.4 0.5 3.1 6.9 TSF, S
Chicken patties, frozen; Banquet Grilled Breast Patties none 70 0.2 0.0 0.3 0.5 SPC, HSP
Glazed Chicken
Chicken patties, frozen; Fast Fixin Chicken Breast Patties none 52 0.3 0.0 0.3 0.6 SPC
Chicken strips, frozen; Armour Homestyle Chicken Breast none 47 0.3 0.0 0.3 0.7 TSPC, SPC
Strips
Chicken strips, frozen; Armour Homestyle Chicken Breast none 34 0.1 0.0 0.2 0.4 TSPC, SPC
Strips
Chili, canned; Dennison’s Chunky Chili con Carne with 22904 70 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.1 SPC
Beans
Chili, canned; Dennison’s No Bean Chili con Carne none 74 0.1 0.0 0.4 0.5 SPC
Chili, canned; Dennison’s Original Chili con Carne with 22904 63 0.8 0.1 0.7 1.7 SF, SPC

537
Beans
 538
Table 1 (continued)
Food USDAc Water Daidzein Glycitein Genistein Total IFL Soy Additived
Code (%) (mg/100 g) (mg/100 g) (mg/100 g) (mg/100 g)
Chili, canned; Hormel Chili No Beans 22705 76 1.7 0.3 1.7 3.6 TVP, HSP
Chili, canned; Hormel Chili Turkey No Beans none 85 1.2 0.2 1.2 2.5 TVP, HSP

S.T. Umphress et al. / Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 18 (2005) 533–550
Chili, canned; Hormel Chili Vegetarian With Beans 99% 22720 78 1.9 0.2 1.2 3.3 TVP, HSP
Fat Freee
Chili, canned; Nalley Original chili Con Carne With Beanse 22513 68 3.4 0.4 2.4 6.1 TVP, HSP
Chili, canned; Nalley Real Hearty Chili con Carne with 22513 71 0.8 0.1 0.9 1.8 TVP
Beans
Fast food; Jack in the Box Monster Taco, Beef Filling none 55 2.6 0.2 13.1 15.9 TVP, SG, HSP
Fast food; Pizza Hut Beef Topping none 47 0.2 0.0 0.3 0.5 TSPC, SPC, HSP
Fast food; Pizza Hut Pork Topping none 43 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.2 TSPC, SPC, HSP
Fast food; Subway Chicken Teriyaki Strips none 64 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SPC, SS, S
Fast food; Subway Meatballs none 57 3.0 0.3 2.7 6.0 SPC
Frankfurter; Armour, Quarter Pound Beef Franks 07022 49 1.0 0.1 0.8 1.9 SF

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Frankfurter; Ball Park, Fat Free, Beef Franks none 67 0.6 0.1 1.0 1.7 SPI, SPC
Frankfurter; Ball Park, Fat Free, Franks Made with Beef & none 69 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 SPC
Pork, Turkey
Frankfurter; Ball Park, Lite Franks Made with Pork & none 57 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.1 SPC
Chicken
Frankfurter; Redondo’s Hawaiian Winners 07023 52 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.3 SPC
Ravioli, canned; Chef Boyardee Beef Ravioli in Tomato & 22515 80 0.5 0.1 0.4 1.0 TVP
Meat Sauce
Ravioli, canned; Franco-American Beef Ravioli in none 71 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 TSPC
Meat Sauce
Ravioli, canned; Safeway Beef Ravioli in Tomato & none 80 0.6 0.1 0.6 1.2 TVP
Meat Sauce
Ravioli, canned; Springfield Beef Ravioli in Tomato & none 74 0.6 0.1 0.5 1.1 TVP, SP
Meat Sauce
Sausage, canned; Hormel Vienna Sausage 07083 61 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Sausage; Jimmy Dean Heat ‘N Serve Sausage Links 07065 39 0.3 0.0 0.5 0.8 SPI
Sausage; Swift Premium Brown ‘N Serve Original Fully 07065 48 0.2 0.0 0.3 0.6 SPC
Cooked Sausage
Spaghetti, canned; Chef Boyardee Spaghetti & Meatballs in 22518 78 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SPC, HSP
Tomato Sauce
Spaghetti, canned; Franco-American Spaghettios Meatballs none 76 0.2 0.0 0.3 0.6 SPI
A to Z’s

Meat substitutes
Bacon bits; Betty Crocker Baco’s 16104 2 93.9 10.0 45.9 149.9 DSF, SS, HSP
Bacon bits; McCormick Bac’n Piecese 16104 4 49.6 7.5 45.7 102.8 TSF, HSP
Boca Burgers All American Classic none 62 0.5 0.1 0.5 1.1 SPC, SS
Boca Burgers Original Vegane none 64 0.7 0.1 0.6 1.4 SPC, HSP, SS
 Casbah Original Perfect Burger Mix none 0 11.2 1.2 12.4 24.8 TSF
Fantastic Nature’s Burger Mix none 0 2.6 0.6 2.0 5.2 TSF, SS
Gardenburger Originale none 60 0.2 0.0 0.1 0.3 SPC
Morningstar Farms Breakfast Patties 22122 46 2.0 0.3 2.3 4.6 TVP, HS
Morningstar Farms Breakfast Strips 16104 39 1.6 0.2 2.7 4.5 TSPC, SPI, S
Morningstar Farms Chik Patties none 55 1.8 0.4 2.2 4.4 TVP, HSP
Morningstar Farms Garden Veggie Patties 22118 57 0.8 0.2 1.1 2.2 TVP, SS, S, SPI

S.T. Umphress et al. / Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 18 (2005) 533–550
Morningstar Farms Grillers Original Veggie Burgers none 48 1.7 0.3 1.7 3.7 TVP, S
Morningstar Farms Harvest Burgers none 63 1.3 0.2 1.9 3.4 SPC, SPI, HSP
Morningstar Farms Low Fat Veggie Dog 22119 49 0.4 0.0 0.6 1.0 HSP, SPI, SFib

Nutritional bars
Balance Oasis Chocolate Peanut Crisp Flavor none 4 4.6 0.7 6.9 12.2 SPI
Balance Yogurt Honey Peanut Flavor none 5 11.8 1.2 13.6 26.6 SPI, S
Cliff Bar Crunchy Peanut Butter Flavor none 5 13.3 0.6 13.0 26.9 SPI, SF, S
Cliff Luna Nuts Over Chocolate Flavor none 3 8.1 1.2 8.4 17.7 SPI, SF, SPI
Ensure Chocolate Maple Nut none 6 2.8 0.6 5.1 8.5 SPI

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Ensure Cookies ‘n Cream none 5 2.3 0.5 4.4 7.3 SPI
Slim Fast Meal-On-The-Go Milk Chocolate Peanut none 5 3.5 0.4 4.6 8.4 SPI
Flavored
Slim Fast Meal-On-The-Go Oatmeal Raisin Flavored none 9 2.3 0.2 4.0 6.4 SPI
Tiger’s Milk Protein Rich none 4 4.9 0.7 5.9 11.5 SPI

Nutritional beverages
Ensure Plus Strawberry Flavor none 69 0.3 0.0 0.5 0.8 SPI
Ensure Plus Vanilla Flavor none 68 0.1 0.0 0.2 0.4 SPI
Ensure Strawberry Flavor none 77 0.2 0.0 0.4 0.7 SPI
Ensure Vanilla Flavor none 78 0.3 0.0 0.4 0.8 SPI
Glucerna Strawberry Flavor none 79 0.3 0.1 0.4 0.7 SPI, SFib
Glucerna Vanilla Flavor none 79 0.5 0.1 0.8 1.4 SPI, SFib
Ultra Slim Fast Chocolate Royale Flavored powder none 0 2.8 0.4 4.8 8.1 SPI, SFib
Ultra Slim Fast French Vanilla Flavored powder none 0 3.2 0.5 5.3 9.0 SPI, SFib
Ultra Slim Fast with Soy Protein Chocolate Delite Flavor none 0 12.9 2.5 21.1 36.5 SPI, SFib
powder

Peanut butters, Reduced fat

Skippy Reduced Fat Creamy Peanut Butter Spread none 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 SP
Best Yet Reduced Fat Creamy Peanut Butter Spread none 0 1.5 0.1 0.7 2.3 SP
Jif Reduced Fat Creamy peanut butter spread none 0 2.2 0.1 1.6 4.0 SP
Safeway Reduced Fat Creamy Peanut Butter Spread none 0 1.5 0.1 0.4 2.0 SP

Seafood products
Crab, imitation; Kanimi Imitation Crabmeat 15138 73 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Crab, imitation; Okuhara Surimi Seafood Imitation 15138 72 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.2 SPI
Crabmeat Sticks

539
 540
Table 1 (continued)
Food USDAc Water Daidzein Glycitein Genistein Total IFL Soy Additived
Code (%) (mg/100 g) (mg/100 g) (mg/100 g) (mg/100 g)
Tuna, canned; Bumble Bee Chunk Light Tuna in 15119 72 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Vegetable Oil

S.T. Umphress et al. / Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 18 (2005) 533–550
Tuna, canned; Bumble Bee Chunk Light Tuna in Water 15121 79 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.1 VB
Tuna, canned; Bumble Bee Solid White Albacore in 15124 70 0.6 0.1 0.9 1.6 HSP
Vegetable oil
Tuna, canned; Bumble Bee Solid White Albacore in Water 15126 69 0.2 0.0 0.3 0.5 HSP
Tuna, canned; Chicken of the Sea Chunk Light Tuna in 15119 70 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Canola Oil
Tuna, canned; Chicken of the Sea Chunk Light Tuna in 15121 78 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Spring Water
Tuna, canned; Chicken of the Sea Albacore in Canola Oil 15124 68 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.1 HSP
Tuna, canned; Chicken of the Sea Albacore in Spring Water 15126 71 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.1 HSP
Tuna, canned; Coral Hawaiian Chunk Light Tuna in Oil 15119 76 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP

ARTICLE IN PRESS
Tuna, canned; Coral Hawaiian Chunk Light Tuna in Oil 15119 75 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 VB
Tuna, canned; Coral Hawaiian Chunk Light Tuna in Water 15121 75 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 VB
Tuna, canned; Coral Hawaiian Chunk Light Tuna in Water 15121 76 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Tuna, canned; StarKist Chunk Light Tuna in Spring Water 15121 75 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 VB

Snacks
Chips, potato; Maui Kettle Style Potato Chips Sweet none 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Maui Onion
Chips, potato; Ruffles Flavor Rush Big BBQ & Cheddar none 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SF, HSP, SS
Chips, potato; Thin & Crispy Sweet Maui Onion Flavor none 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Chips; Sun Chips none 0 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.1 HSP
Snack mix; Chex Mix Traditional 19033 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Snack mix; Gardetto’s Snakens Original Recipe Snack Mix none 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SF

Soups, Soup bases

Soup base; Sapporo Ichiban, Japanese Style Noodles & 06581 0 0.2 0.0 0.1 0.3 HSP, SS
Beef Flavored-Soup
Soup base; Sapporo Ichiban, Japanese Style Noodles & 06581 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Chicken Flavored-Soup
Soup base; Top Ramen, Beef Flavore 06581 0 0.4 0.0 0.1 0.5 HSP, SS
Soup base; Top Ramen, Chicken Flavor 06581 0 0.0 0.0 0.3 0.4 HSP, SS
Soup, bouillon, dry; Herb Ox Beef Flavor Bouillon 06075 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 HSP
Soup, bouillon, dry; Best Yet Beef Flavor Granulated 06075 0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 HSP
Bouillon
Soup; Campbell’s Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup 06043 82 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SPC
Soup; Campbell’s Condensed Soup Vegetable Beefe 06071 85 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Soup; Campbell’s Condensed Soup 98% Fat Free Cream of none 77 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.1 SPC, SPI
Chicken
 Soup; Campbell’s Condensed Soup Homestyle Chicken 06059 77 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SPI
Noodle
Soup; Progresso Turkey Noodle Soup 06465 78 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SPI
Soup; Safeway Chicken Broth 06413 97 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Soup; Safeway Chicken Broth, Fat Free, Reduced Sodium none 98 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP
Soup; Safeway New England Clam Chowder 06205 76 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SPI
Soup; Swanson Chicken Broth, 99% Fat Free none 98 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 HSP

S.T. Umphress et al. / Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 18 (2005) 533–550
Ramen; Nissin Cup Noodles Beef Flavor 06582 0 1.4 0.2 1.1 2.7 TSP, SS, HS

Soybean products
Frozen dessert; Glace Soymilk Frozen Dessert Whole Soy none 0 7.0 0.9 6.2 14.0 SM
Swiss Chocolate
Frozen dessert; Tofutti Nondairy Original Premium Frozen none 0 1.1 0.1 1.7 2.9 SP, T
Dessert
Sauce, hoisin; Lee Kum Kee Hoisin Sauce 06175 29 2.2 0.2 1.7 4.1 FS, FB
Sauce, hoisin; Wing Hoisin Sauce 06175 25 10.0 0.9 4.8 15.7 S
Sauce, kochujang; Koha Ko-Chu-Jang (Hot Bean Paste) none 23 6.6 1.1 6.0 13.7 S

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Soy beans, fermented; Family Salted Black Beans none 27 32.9 9.2 21.6 63.6 FS
Soy flour; Arrowhead Mills Whole Grain Soy Flour 16115 0 47.6 7.3 51.4 106.2 SF
Soy flour; Arrowhead Mills Whole Grain Soy Flour 16115 0 45.6 13.6 50.1 109.3 SF
Soy flour; Bob’s Red Mill Stone Ground Whole Grain 16115 0 45.8 9.8 46.3 102.0 SF
Soy Flour
Soy flour; Bob’s Red Mill Stone Ground Whole Grain 16115 0 44.2 10.7 50.6 105.5 SF
Soy Flour
Textured vegetable protein; Bob’s Red Mill Textured none 0 48.2 10.6 46.9 105.8 SF
Vegetable Protein
Textured vegetable protein; Hawaiian Healthy Gourmet none 2 34.5 3.9 33.5 71.9 SF
Soy Ground Beef
a
Limit of detection: 0.014 for daidzein, 0.014 for glycitein, 0.015 for genistein, and 0.043 for total isoflavones (mg/100 g). Values less than 0.05 are
considered insignificant and are rounded to 0.0 in the table. Therefore, some zero values are above the detection limit.
b
Values are for foods as purchased except for frozen beef patties and frozen chicken strips, which were cooked prior to analysis.
c
USDA code may not be exact match.
d
Soy Additive Key.
SF = Soy Flour; DSF = Defatted Soy Flour; SFib = Soy Fiber; SPI = Soy Protein Isolate; SP = Soy Protein; SG = Soy Grits; SPC = Soy
Protein Concentrate; S = Soy; TSP = Texturized Soy Protein; HSP = Hydrolyzed Soy Protein; TSF = Textured Soy Flour; TSPC = Textured Soy
Protein Concentrate; TVP = Textured Vegetable Protein; SS = Soy Sauce; HS = Hydrolyzed Soy; VB = Vegetable Broth (includes Soy); SM =
Soy Milk; T = Tofu; FS = Fermented Soy; FB = Fermented Bean Curd.
e
Values for these foods are the mean of duplicate analyses; except for these foods, values in the table represent a single analysis.

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isoflavones was 0.014 mg/100 g, 0.014 mg/100 g, 0.015 mg/100 g, and 0.043 mg/100 g, respectively.
Final levels were adjusted for water content and are given for each food as purchased. Total
isoflavones were computed by adding the three individual isoflavones.
Quantitation by mass spectrometry was performed for foods with a total isoflavone
concentration below 0.04 mg/100 g. However, for the purpose of quantifying intakes, levels
below 0.05 mg/100 g were considered insignificant and are not reported here. These data may be
obtained from the authors.
All samples showed complete hydrolysis to umbelliferone from its sulfate, indicating sufficient
removal of methanol thereby suggesting that the activity of the enzymes required for hydrolysis of
analytes was not impaired (Franke et al., 1998; Horn-Ross et al., 2000a). The addition of
arylsulfatase improved recovery of analytes confirming the glucosidase activity of this enzyme
preparation as was shown previously for glucuronidase and glucuronidase/sulfatase mixtures
(Goodman et al., 1998; Andlauer et al., 2000). Higher enzyme specificity can be achieved by using
more highly purified enzyme preparations (Fanti et al., 2003).
Replicate analyses (n=12) of a soy protein powder used as an external standard to test inter-
assay variability showed excellent precision with inter-assay coefficients of variation of 3.9%,
3.9%, 3.0%, and 4.5% for daidzein (mean 34.48 mg/100 g), glycitein (mean 6.18 mg/100 g),
genistein (mean 56.37 mg/100 g) and total isoflavones (mean 97.03 mg/100 g), respectively.
Replicate analyses of 12 different (wet) foods with mean levels for daidzein, glycitein, genistein,
and total isoflavones of 5.47 mg/100 g (range 0.01–49.6 mg/100 g), 0.80 mg/100 g (range 0.01–
7.5 mg/100 g), 5.11 mg/100 g (range 0.01–45.7 mg/100 g), and 11.38 mg/100 g (range 0.04–
102.8 mg/100 g) showed mean inter-assay coefficients of variations of 9%, 10%, 12%, and 6%,
respectively.

3. Results

Table 1 shows the aglycone concentrations (mg/100 g) of daidzein, glycitein, genistein, and total
isoflavones in the foods analyzed. Values are for foods as purchased, except for frozen beef patties
and frozen chicken strips, which were cooked according to manufacturer directions prior to
analysis. The soy additive, as listed on the food label, is also shown. Of the 179 foods analyzed, 47
contained no detectable level of daidzein, 65 contained no detectable level of glycitein, and 49
contained no detectable level of genistein or total isoflavones. Breadcrumbs, white and wheat
breads, snack cakes, highly flavored potato chips, snack mixes, imitation crabmeat, canned
sausage, gravies, sauce mixes for pasta and rice mixes, canned soups, dry soup bases, canned pasta
products, hot dogs, and canned tunas contained very low or undetectable levels of isoflavones.
The concentration of total isoflavones in the sampled foods ranged from not detected (ND) to
149.9 mg/100 g. Highest concentrations of total isoflavones were found in imitation bacon bits:
102.8–149.9 mg/100 g. Isoflavone-fortified cereals had total isoflavone concentrations ranging
from ND to 93.9 mg/100 g. Nutritional beverage products contained total isoflavone concentra-
tions of 0.4–36.5 mg/100 g, while nutritional bars contained 6.4–26.9 mg/100 g. Meat substitutes,
such as meatless burgers or burger mixes, yielded 0.3–24.8 mg/100 g of total isoflavones. Fast food
meats exhibited total isoflavone concentrations from ND to 15.9 mg/100 g. Baked goods, such as
doughnuts and cinnamon rolls, contained modest total isoflavone levels, of 0.6–9.6 mg/100 g.
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S.T. Umphress et al. / Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 18 (2005) 533–550 543

Frozen teriyaki beef patties, canned chili products, and reduced fat peanut butters contained low
levels of total isoflavones, of 0.1–6.9 mg/100 g.
From the 179 analyzed foods, daidzein, glycitein, genistein, and total isoflavone values were
calculated for 56 food composites for inclusion in our food composition tables. The results are
shown in Table 2. The food name as used in our food composition table is listed. The daidzein,
glycitein, genistein, and total isoflavone values presented are averaged values of the analyzed
individual foods comprising the composite. The ratio represents the number of brands containing
a soy additive to the total number of brands we found of a particular food, and is to be applied to
the respective values listed. Additionally, the proportion, which is the percentage the analyzed
food contributes to the ready-to-consume food item on our database, is also to be applied to the
respective values listed. Neither of these factors has been applied to the data in Table 2, as other
users may wish to derive different values for the ratios and proportions.

4. Discussion

Many studies have reported isoflavone concentrations of soy-based foods, but few have
presented values for foods in which a soy product is merely an ingredient. As can be seen in Table
1, manufacturers incorporate several different soy additives into a wide variety of foods. The
widespread use of these soy additives in foods makes this a previously unsuspected source of
isoflavones. Horn-Ross et al. (2000a) reported daidzein and genistein values for various foods
with added soy flour or soy protein, but many of the values are for food composites. Lack of
details on the foods in each composite makes it difficult to use these values in other food
composition tables. In contrast, our analyses provide concentrations of daidzein, glycitein,
genistein, and total isoflavones for specific brands of foods. We also provide calculated composite
values to illustrate the steps that might be used to incorporate these data into a food composition
table, although other database developers may choose to use different procedures.
In general, the soy products used as additives in the foods we investigated are very concentrated
sources of daidzein, glycitein, and genistein. Thus, these ingredients have the potential to increase
isoflavone levels in nontraditional soy-containing foods, depending on the amount used in the
food. Table 1 shows that no correlation exists between the type of soy additive and the level of
isoflavones found in a food, with the exception of hydrolyzed soy protein. When hydrolyzed soy
protein, a flavor enhancer, is the sole soy additive, isoflavones are usually undetectable or present
only in trace amounts. Although the position of the soy additive on the product’s ingredient label
might be an indicator of the level of isoflavones in the food item, we did not find that this
information could be used reliably to determine actual amounts present in the food. However, a
general trend toward higher isoflavone concentrations can be seen when the soy additive is among
the first three ingredients.
One of the difficulties in selecting foods for analysis is deciding how to perform the sampling.
For foods with added soy products, we first considered foods previously identified as having soy
additives. After reviewing hundreds of food labels in several grocery store chains and health food
stores in Honolulu, we also identified and analyzed additional soy-containing foods, such as fast
food meats, frozen chicken breast products, sausages, canned ravioli and spaghetti, reduced fat
peanut butters, breakfast cereals, cinnamon rolls, Hawaiian sweet bread, Oriental ramen soup
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Table 2
Averaged isoflavone levels in analyzed foods (mg/100 g)
Food description on database Daidzein Glycitein Genistein Total IFL Ratioa Proportionb
(mg/100 g) (mg/100 g) (mg/100 g) (mg/100 g)
Bacon bits, imitation 71.8 8.8 45.8 126.3 1
Bread crumbs, dry 0.2 0.0 0.1 0.3 3/5
Bread, French 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1/4

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Bread, mixed grain 0.2 0.0 0.2 0.4 4/5
Bread, Hawaiian sweet 0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 1/6
Bread, taro 0.4 0.0 0.4 0.9 1/3
Bread, wheat 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 2/4
Bread, white, enriched 0.2 0.0 0.1 0.3 4/6
Chicken breast, frozen, patties or strips 0.2 0.0 0.3 0.6 1
Chili, con carne, no beans, canned 0.9 0.2 1.0 2.1 2/3
Chili, con carne, with beans, canned 1.2 0.2 1.0 2.4 2/4
Chili, vegetarian, canned 1.9 0.2 1.2 3.3 1/3
Chips, potato, specialty-flavored 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1
Crab, imitation, made from surimi 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.1 2/4
Doughnuts, cake-type, sugared or glazed 2.2 0.3 2.0 4.4 1
Doughnuts, yeast-type, sugared or glazed 0.3 0.0 0.2 0.6 3/4
English muffins, plain 0.3 0.0 0.2 0.5 2/6
Flour, soybean 45.8 10.4 49.6 105.8 1
Gravy, brown 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 7/8
Hamburger Helper with pasta 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.2 1 5%
Jack in the Box Monster Taco 0.6 0.0 3.0 3.6 1 23%
Meatless Burger Mix, Casbah Original Perfect Burger 11.2 1.2 12.4 24.8 1 44%
Meatless Burger Mix, Fantastic Nature’s Burger 2.6 0.6 2.0 5.2 1 44%
Meatless Burger, ‘‘garden’’ type burgers 0.5 0.1 0.6 1.2 1
Meatless Burger, Boca Burger products 0.6 0.1 0.6 1.3 1
Meatless Burger, Morningstar Farms products 1.5 0.2 1.8 3.6 1
Nutritional bar 6.0 0.7 7.3 13.9 1
Nutritional beverage, Ensure 0.3 0.1 0.5 0.9 1
Nutritional beverage, Ensure Plus 0.2 0.0 0.3 0.6 1
Nutritional beverage, Ultra Slim Fast, powder 6.3 1.1 10.4 17.9 1
Peanut butter, reduced fat 1.3 0.1 0.7 2.1 1
Potatoes, scalloped, prepared from dry mix 0.2 0.0 0.2 0.4 1 4%
Ravioli, beef in tomato and meat sauce, canned 0.4 0.0 0.4 0.8 1
Rice-A-Roni 0.7 0.1 0.5 1.4 1 2%

S.T. Umphress et al. / Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 18 (2005) 533–550
Rolls and buns, dinner 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1/4
Rolls, cinnamon, with frosting 2.6 0.4 0.7 3.7 1/2
Sauce, hoisin, ready to serve 6.1 0.6 3.3 9.9 1
Sausage, frankfurter, beef 1.0 0.1 0.8 1.9 2/3
Sausage, frankfurter, beef and pork 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.3 2/3
Sausage, frankfurter, beef and pork, low fat 0.2 0.0 0.4 0.6 3/4
Sausage, smoked link 0.2 0.0 0.4 0.7 2/3
Snack cake, cupcake, chocolate with cream filling 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 1
Snack mix 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1
Soup, bouillon 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 1 3%

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Soup, chicken broth 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1
Soup, Cup Noodles 1.4 0.2 1.1 2.7 1 29%
Soup, oriental broth with noodles (e.g. ramen, saimin) 0.2 0.0 0.1 0.3 1 1%
Spaghetti and meatballs, canned 0.1 0.0 0.2 0.3 1
Stuffing, bread, prepared from dry mix 0.2 0.0 0.2 0.4 1 27%
Textured vegetable protein 41.4 7.3 40.2 88.8 1
Tofu frozen dessert 4.0 0.5 3.9 8.5 1
Tuna helper creamy pasta 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1 6%
Tuna, light meat, canned in oil, drained 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1
Tuna, light meat, canned in water, drained 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1
Tuna, white, canned in oil, drained 0.3 0.1 0.4 0.8 1
Tuna, white, canned in water, drained 0.1 0.0 0.2 0.3 1
a
Ratio represents the number of brands containing a soy additive to the total number of brands of a food and is to be applied to the averaged
analytic values listed on the same row.
b
Proportion is the percentage of the analyzed food, which is an ingredient in the food on the food composition database, and is to be multiplied by
the averaged analytic values listed on the same row in order to obtain concentrations of isoflavones in the food as found on the database. When not
listed, the proportion is 100%.

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bases, and sauce mixes for skillet dinners and sides, as well as locally-produced hot dogs, frozen
teriyaki beef patties, imitation crab, and taro bread. We also selected the following traditional
soy-based foods for analysis because they are commonly consumed in Hawaii and/or are soy
additives which can be used as ingredients in a food composition database: soy flour, textured
vegetable protein, imitation bacon, hoisin sauce, Korean hot bean paste (kochujang), fermented
soy beans (tau si), and soy-based frozen desserts.
From our investigation of food labels, we also found that the soy additives used in a particular
product vary from brand to brand. Therefore, where possible, we selected different brands of the
same food for analysis, in order to investigate brand-to-brand variability. Indeed, our analyses
clearly show that isoflavone concentrations of a particular food vary greatly from brand to brand.
Additionally, we wanted to investigate within brand variability, especially for baked goods. At
different times and from different stores, we purchased two samples of 12 commercial products.
For four of the samples (Country Hearth 12 Grain Bread, Country Hearth Sugared Donuts,
Arrowhead Mills Whole Grain Soy Flour and Bob’s Red Mill Stone Ground Whole Grain Soy
Flour), the total isoflavone coefficient of variation (CV) between samples was low (2–6%). For
another five of the samples (Hostess Frosted Donettes, Love’s Donuts, Svenhard’s Cinnamon
Rolls, King’s Hawaiian Sweet Bread, and Taro Brand Taro Rolls), the total isoflavone CV ranged
from 11–15%. The CV was 24–39% for the remaining three samples (Hostess Powdered Donettes,
Love’s Sandwich White Bread, and Armour Homestyle Chicken Breast Strips). For these last two
foods, mean total isoflavone concentrations were very low (1.5 mg/100 g and 0.5 mg/100 g,
respectively), so a small variation in levels yielded a relatively large CV. It is unclear what
accounts for the variability seen within these brands, but it is likely that manufacturers
periodically adjust product formulations. If we had collected multiple samples of the same food
over a longer time period, it is possible that the variability would increase for many of the sampled
products.
Another difficulty in adding values to a food composition table is determining the procedure for
resolving variability. What is the best way to combine replicate analyses (within sample
variability), different brands (between brand variability), and duplicate samples (within brand
variability)? Coefficients of variation were low for replicate analyses of the same sample (9–12%
for the individual isoflavones and 6% for total isoflavones). Thus, we used the mean of these
replicate analyses. Variability was considerably higher between brands of the same food product.
Thus, for isoflavone values, brand specificity and product identity are clearly important, but most
food composition tables do not carry the same degree of brand specificity as these analyses. Where
possible, we preserved brand identity by matching an analyzed food to its identical food in our
food composition database. When this was not possible because we do not carry the analyzed
brand on our database, we averaged the isoflavone values of different brands of the same food,
thereby creating a composite. In addition, we applied a ratio to the composite values to account
for brands that do not contain soy additives (and therefore are not expected to contain significant
isoflavone levels), and applied a proportion for foods that were analyzed in undiluted form or
were part of a mixture. For example, two different brands of breadcrumbs were analyzed, so the
first step was to average their two sets of isoflavone values. Of the five brands of breadcrumbs we
found on store shelves in Hawaii, only 3 contained a soy additive; hence we will multiply the
averaged values by 3/5 to obtain the final values for our food composition table. Fantastic
Nature’s Burger, a meatless dry burger mix, illustrates the use of a proportion. The values
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S.T. Umphress et al. / Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 18 (2005) 533–550 547

presented in Table 2 are the concentrations of the dried mix, as purchased. When reconstituting
the mix with water, according to the package instructions, the dry mix constitutes 44% of the
prepared burger before cooking. Thus, we will multiply the isoflavone values of the dry mix by
0.44 to give appropriate values for the ready-to-cook burger. Note that moisture changes during
cooking were not included in the proportion because our food composition table automatically
applies them during recipe calculations.
When comparing published values for isoflavones, it is important to know if the data are for the
conjugated or the aglycone forms. We chose to hydrolyze the isoflavonoids to their aglycone
forms in order to simplify the HPLC analysis and to increase the likelihood of detecting the
analytes. While conjugated forms may be below the detection limit for some foods, hydrolysis to
the aglycones can yield levels that are above the detection limit (Franke et al., 1994).
Daidzein and genistein values of the foods with soy additives that were analyzed for this study
are compared to those found in other publications in Table 3. For most foods, differences were
small. Larger differences may be due to differences in product sampling, as well as the variation in
isoflavone concentrations across and within brands. When comparing isoflavone values for
nutritional bars, ours are higher than those presented by Horn-Ross et al. (2000a) and Pillow et al.
(1999), reflecting a recent trend by manufacturers to increase the soy protein fortification of these
products, in response to the research on the health benefits of phytoestrogens. Most likely, the
products sampled in previous studies contained less soy additives than those sampled in our study.
Murphy and Hendrich (2002) reported 2.2 mg/100 g of total isoflavones in canned tuna with
hydrolyzed soy protein, which supports the data in Table 3 showing that isoflavone levels are low
in this product. Their values for doughnuts (8.5–10 mg/100 g) are higher than the values in Table
3, but similar to those shown in Table 1 for the doughnut samples from Love’s Bakery.
We also compared isoflavone concentrations of soy flour analyzed in this study to mean values
from three other studies (Pillow et al., 1999; USDA and Iowa State University, 2000; Liggins et al.,
2002). Our values were lower (44.2–47.6 mg/100 g for daidzein and 46.3–51.4 mg/100 g for
genistein), but they are within the range of the USDA-Iowa isoflavone database values (USDA
and Iowa State University, 2000): 1.7–123.3 and 2.8–144.0 mg/100 g (textured soy flour), 22.6–93.9
and 46.5–100.5 mg/100 g (defatted soy flour), and 18.2–130.9 and 6.4–145.2 mg/100 g (full-fat soy
flour) for daidzein and genistein, respectively. Variable isoflavone concentrations exist in soybean
and soybean products, because they are affected by environmental, genetic, harvesting, and
processing conditions (Tsukamoto et al., 1995; Wang and Murphy, 1996). For example, Murphy
and Hendrich (2002) reported a large range for total isoflavones in hydrolyzed soy protein
samples, from 12.7 to 162.1 mg/100 g. However, we found little variation in total isoflavones
across two different brands of soy flour, or across samples of the same brand purchased at two
different stores (CV of 2.0% and 2.4%). It is possible that the lower values for the soy flours
purchased in Hawaii indicate a reduced isoflavone content due to consistent differences in one or
more of these conditions.

5. Conclusions

Foods with added soy products often contain significant levels of isoflavones. When consumed
regularly, they can provide an important source of isoflavones in the diet. Because many effects of
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S.T. Umphress et al. / Journal of Food Composition and Analysis 18 (2005) 533–550
Table 3
Comparison of daidzein and genistein concentration of foods with soy additives (mg/100 g)
This publication Horn-Ross et al.a Liggins et al.b Pillow et al.c USDAd
Food Daidzein Genistein Daidzein Genistein Daidzein Genistein Daidzein Genistein Daidzein Genistein
Bread, English muffins 0.26 0.21 0.18 0.23
Bread, white 0.16 0.13 0.61 0.83 0.14 0.16

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Bread, whole grain 0.20 0.16 0.16 0.14 0.37 0.46
Canned chilli 1.24 1.06 0.54 0.71 1.37 1.87
Canned tuna 0.09 0.11 0.41 0.73
Doughnuts 1.86 1.67 1.97 3.21
Imitation bacon 71.78 45.78 53.03 70.43
Nutritional bars 5.97 7.32 1.80 3.27 0.05 0.08
Nutritional beverages 0.56 0.91 0.09 0.15 2.58 6.39
Soy/veggie burgers 1.40 1.56 3.05 2.02 4.90 13.90
Textured vegetable 41.39 40.18 47.85 66.00 59.62 78.90
protein
Yogurt, frozen 1.07 1.71 0.30 1.80
non-dairy (Tofutti)
a
Horn-Ross et al. (2000a).
b
Liggins et al. (2002).
c
Pillow et al. (1999).
d
USDA and Iowa State University (2000).
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isoflavones on health have been proposed, researchers are actively examining associations
between dietary intakes of soy products and various health outcomes. However, at least in US
populations, accurate estimates of total isoflavone intake depend on food composition tables
which reflect isoflavones in all foods, not just in foods which have been traditionally considered
sources of these compounds. Because the use and level of soy additives can vary widely among
similar food products, even greater accuracy could be achieved by carrying brand-specific entries
on the food composition table, and by collecting correspondingly specific food intake data. For
nutrition monitoring at the national level, our estimates of isoflavones in food products sold in
Hawaii should be extended to other geographic locations.

Acknowledgements

Support for this work was provided by a Cancer Center Support Grant, NIH # 2P30 CA 71789.
We thank Donna Lyn MT Au and Naomi Stephens for assistance in sample collection, and
Douglas M. Crowley for assistance in sample preparation and extraction.

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