How Cruciferous Vegetables Fight Cancer

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How Cruciferous Vegetables Fight Cancer

 

 

Cruciferous vegetables treat potential carcinogens the way Soprano does a snitch. By the time members of the cruciferous family

(see list below) are through with them, there's nothing left but

harmless substances to be excreted.

 

Cruciferous vegetables' anti-cancer firepower comes from

phytochemicals called isothiocyanates, which stimulate our bodies to

break down potential carcinogens. Sulforaphane, found in broccoli and

in even more concentrated form in broccoli sprouts, is a well-known

isothiocyanate. It stimulates the body to produce enzymes that

detoxify carcinogens. Among men and women aged 50 to 74 in a study

from Harbor UCLA Medical Center in Torrance, Calif., participants who

ate the most broccoli (average: 3.7 half-cup cooked servings weekly)

were only half as likely to develop colorectal cancer as subjects who

said they never ate broccoli.

 

Broccoli sprouts contain 20 to 50 times the amount of sulforaphane in

mature broccoli. That means you'll get as much sulforaphane in a few

tablespoons of broccoli sprouts as in a pound of broccoli. When

scientists at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore fed broccoli

sprouts to rats for several days, and then gave them carcinogens, the

animals developed smaller, fewer and slower-growing tumors than the

ones that didn't eat sprouts.

 

Watercress contains a powerful compound called PEITC (phenethyl

isothiocyanate, if you're wondering), which is not only cancer-

preventive in general, but specifically blocks the nicotine in

cigarette smoke from causing lung tumors in animals. PEITC is at its

highest levels in raw watercress, although some remains after cooking.

 

Many cruciferous vegetables also contain indole-3-carbinol, a

compound that affects sex-hormone metabolism involved with the

progression of prostate, breast and ovarian cancers. Men between 40

and 64 who ate three or more half-cup servings of cruciferous

vegetables a week were 41 percent less likely to develop prostate

cancer, according to researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer

Research Center in Seattle.

 

MEET THE CRUCIFERS

 

Arugula

Beet greens

Bok choy

Broccoli

Brussels sprouts

Cabbage

Cauliflower

Chinese cabbage

Collard greens

Daikon

Horseradish

Kale

Kohlrabi

Mustard greens

Radishes

Rutabaga

Swiss chard

Turnips

Watercress