Judge orders trial to decide if jail food really is 'torture'

A federal judge in Illinois has decided that a trial is needed to determine whether a common food product actually is "torture" when it is fed in large quantities to prison inmates.

After all, the prisoners have suffered: chronic and painful constipation alternating with debilitating diarrhea; vomiting after eating; sharp pains in the digestive tract; passing out; heart palpitations; rashes; acne; insomnia; panic attacks; depression and symptoms of hypothyroidism, such as low body temperature (feeling cold all the time); brain fog; fatigue;weight gain; frequent infections; and thyroid disease.

The dispute is over soy, which has been fed in large amounts to inmates of the state prison system in Illinois since about 2002, when Rod Blagojevich was elected governor.

The decision comes from U.S. District Judge Harold Baker in the central district in Illinois in litigation that challenges the heavy use of soy foods in Illinois prisons. His recent ruling denied motions by the state and Wexford Health Sources for a summary judgment, instead emphasizing the importance of scientific and medical testimony at trial.

The case involves six inmates who are being represented by the Weston A. Price Foundation. It alleges that when Blagojevich was elected governor of Illinois in 2002, he immediately made a change in the prison diets. Beginning in January 2003, inmates began receiving a diet largely based on processed soy protein, with very little meat.

"In most meals, small amounts of meat or meat by-products are mixed with 60 to 70 percent soy protein; fake soy cheese has replaced real cheese; and soy flour or soy protein is now added to most of the baked goods," the foundation reports.

"The governor's justification for replacing nutritious meat and cheese with toxic soy protein was financial – to lower the enormous costs of running the Illinois Department of Corrections. However, the likely reason is payback for campaign contributions from Archer Daniels Midland, the main supplier of soy products to the Illinois prisons," the organization charged.

The state and Wexford had argued that the inmates had failed to "exhaust" their administrative remedies – that is, complaint procedures within the prison system.

"In other words, the state and Wexford [argued] that none of the inmates, before they filed their complaint, properly complained to prison officials about the effects that the soy diet is having on their body," the foundation said.

However, "The inmates have opposed these motions for summary judgment and have presented a plethora of evidence that they have indeed, for several years, complained to prison officials about the harmful effects of soy on their bodies, but that the prison officials have ignored these complaints and have done nothing about it. The inmates have also presented a plethora of evidence to the court to show that they have also, for several years, complained to Wexford and its subsidiary doctors about the harmful effects of soy on their bodies and that the Wexford doctors have ignored these complaints."

Kimberly Hartke, a publicist for the Price Foundation, said soy has been found to be "not so healthy" for prison inmates who are fed high soy-content diets.

The foundation, which has been involved in the dispute since it arose in 2009, is seeking a return to a more balanced approach to food in the Illinois prisons system.

"The lawsuit claims that feeding of soy-laden food constitutes cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the 8th amendment to the Constitution, as well as a denial of plaintiffs' liberty in violation of their due process rights under the 14th amendment to the Constitution. The lawsuit also alleges that the private corporation and its private doctors, Wexford Health Sources, Inc. have been negligent in failing to provide adequate medical care to each of the plaintiffs who are suffering bodily injury and adverse health effects from being fed too much soy," the foundation said.

In 2007, the foundation started hearing complaints from inmates who were suffering a wide range of health problems "due to the large amounts of soy in the diet."

The controversy also has been cited in a related, second, case in Florida. That case, Eric D. Harris v. Keefe Commissary Network and others, is seeking class action status against the Florida Department of Corrections over the same issue.

WND reported previously when then-President-elect Obama was asked to intervene to halt the state feeding program that was causing health problems for inmates.

However, the nutritional organization's request to Obama fell on deaf ears, and the inmates eventually filed a lawsuit over the forced diet.

The Price Foundation suggests relatives send inmates money so they can purchase supplemental foods from the commissary, and inmates should buy "sardines, tuna and salmon, cheese, summer sausage … Spam (for vitamin D and healthy fats), pork cracklings and plain rice."

"Avoid sweets, chips, sodas, etc., as these make you more vulnerable to the harmful effects of soy," the organization said.

Soy products have been in the news on and off since a study from Harvard indicated consumption of soy lowers sperm count.

According to a Reuters report, the study was done by Jorge Chavarro of the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, whose work appeared in the journal Human Reproduction.

It reportedly is the largest study of humans to look at the relationship between semen quality and a plant form of the female sex hormone estrogen known as phytoestrogen, which is plentiful in soy-rich foods.

The earlier letter to Obama said soy protein and soy flour are toxic, "especially in large amounts."

"The U.S. Food and Drug Administration lists 288 studies on its database showing the toxicity of soy. Numerous studies show that soy consumption leads to nutrient deficiencies, digestive disorders, endocrine disruption and thyroid problems," the letter said.

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