by Lisa Bolard
Get ready to put broccoli sprouts on your shopping list (or you can sprout them yourself). They are tasty and loaded with all things good. Three or four day old broccoli sprouts look like alfalfa sprouts and taste similar to radish. They can be added to smoothies and salads for taste and for their nutritional equity. One of the most powerful compounds found in these vegetables and their sprouts is called sulforaphane. It is sulforaphane that plays a remarkable role in preventing and fighting many forms of cancer, and it assists the liver in its ability to neutralize toxins more effectively.
The health benefits of broccoli sprouts abound, and even the medical establishment has done extensive research on broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables and sprouts, and has concluded that the benefits are indisputable. Broccoli shares some similar properties with its siblings of the cruciferous family, such as cabbage, Brussel sprouts, kale, mustard, turnip, radish and watercress.
But what makes broccoli, and especially broccoli sprouts so much more powerful is the concentration of sulforaphane in them. Just one ounce of broccoli sprouts contains the equivalent amount of sulforaphane found in one-and-a-half pounds of the mature broccoli plant. In addition to sulforaphane, broccoli is known to have high concentrations of vitamins A, B, K, and C, calcium, magnesium, potassium, iron, dietary fiber, and folic acid. (Research has also shown that small amounts of crucifer sprouts in general can provide at least as much protection against cancer as much larger amounts of the mature vegetables of the same variety).
Here is a partial list of those benefits which have already been established:
- Provides protection for DNA-damaging compounds in the skin when exposed to ultraviolet radiation
- Acts as an anti-inflammatory
- Supports production of proteins that suppress tumors
- Supports cardiovascular health
- Lowers LDL (bad) cholesterol, and Increases HDL (good) cholesterol
- Beneficial for blood pressure regulation
- Provides free radical protection, which are culprits in causing cancer
- Is a rich source of protein
- Can prevent blindness among the elderly (macular degeneration) by protecting retinas from UV light and other carcinogenic agents
- Reduces COPD, asthma symptoms, and respiratory illness in general
- May help reverse damage done by diabetes-related vascular disease
- Prevents ulcers caused by the bacteria H. pylori
It seems clear, that a diet high in broccoli sprouts, broccoli, and other cruciferous vegetables and their sprouts, goes a long way to ward off cancer and a long list of other typical ailments that plague the general population. Scarf down those sprouts and just imagine them coursing through your veins and nurturing your every cell!