Broccoli

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Broccoli May Be Tops in Health-Promoting Benefits

Cruciferous vegetables such as cauliflower, brussels sprouts, cabbage, and

kale are powerful anti-cancer agents, but among this group, broccoli may contain

the most life-extending nutrients. Rich in vitamins and fiber, broccoli also

boasts special ingredients that promote good health and prevent

disease.Broccoli is unusually rich in phytochemicals that fight cancer,

including indoles,

isothiocyanates, and glucoraphanin, which the body converts to sulforaphane.

These substances can prevent carcinogens from damaging cell DNA and causing

various forms of cancer.

Indoles can reduce the risk of breast cancer by stimulating enzymes that

weaken the female hormone estrogen. Isothiocyanates, which are up to 100% higher

in young broccoli sprouts than in adult broccoli stalks,1 stimulate glutathione

S-transferase and other enzymes that prevent carcinogens from entering the

cells. And sulforaphane can stimulate the production of phase II enzymes that

are powerful carcinogen detoxifiers.Since 1992, pharmacology professor Paul

Talalay and his group at Johns Hopkins University have been studying

broccoli’s can

cer-fighting properties. Their research has demonstrated that sulforaphane

can prevent breast and colon cancer in mice and also destroy Helicobacter

pylori, the bacteria linked to gastritis, stomach ulcers, and stomach cancer

(the

second most common form of cancer).2 Containing generous amounts of such vital

nutrients as calcium, manganese, beta carotene, vitamin C, and vitamin K,

broccoli’s health benefits are undiminished by cooking; in fact, heat actually

appears to increase indoles in broccoli.An average serving of cooked broccoli

has

more vitamin C than an orange and as much calcium as an eight-ounce glass of

milk, while an average broccoli spear has three times the fiber of a slice of

wheat bread. Broccoli sprouts have as much glucoraphanin as a pound and a

quarter of cooked broccoli. Those looking for a vegetable packed with essential

nutrients and life-extending components may want to reach first for the

broccoli.