Fight Cancer with Brussels Sprouts
I absolutely love Brussels sprouts and make sure that I eat them regularly. My dad on the other hand despises them. He remembers back in the old days when his grandmother would force him to eat boiled Brussels sprouts.So as I am currently visiting my family, I decided it was time that my dad got some of these amazing super power foods down him. The key to loving Brussels sprouts… cut them up into tiny pieces. I believe that anyone can enjoy the benefits of Brussels sprouts if they are eaten in the right way.
Christopher and I always cut them up and put them into a salad. For my father, I made wild salmon in a soy sauce, orange juice and garlic sauce with a vegetable medley of broccoli, leeks and Brussels sprouts! MMMM. The verdict, even my father adored it! Okay, he didn’t exactly adore the Brussels sprouts, but he loved the dinner and was over the moon that he managed to eat masses of them without tasting them!
Plant phytonutrients found in Brussels sprouts boost the body’s natural defense systems to protect against cancer and other diseases. Brussels sprouts and other cruciferous vegetables disarm cancer causing chemicals and encourage the body’s detoxification enzymes.
Evidence in the Netherlands suggests that Brussels sprouts keep the body free from cancer by promoting healthy DNA. DNA is responsible for cell division in the body. When DNA gets damaged, cells may begin to replicate much more rapidly than normal, which can cause a cancerous tumor to begin to form. Several studies reveal that Brussels sprouts have the ability to help protect DNA from damage.
Researchers compared two groups of healthy men. Half of these men ate 300 grams of Brussels sprouts daily, while the other men didn’t have any cruciferous vegetables in their diet. After three weeks, the men who ate their daily dose of Brussels sprouts had a 28% decrease in measured DNA damage.
Diminish Digestive Cancers with Brussels Sprouts
The phytonutrients in Brussels sprouts have been shown to protect against heterocyclic amines, which are the carcinogenic compounds found in grilled and charbroiled meat. These carcinogens are particularly associated with colon cancer. The study, published in Carcinogenesis, found that animals that were given Brussels sprout juice and heterocyclic amine carcinogen were less likely to develop the cancer.
The animals given Brussels sprouts had a reduction in pre-cancerous cells in the colon of 41-52% in the colon and 27-67% in the liver, and drastically diminished the size (85-91%) of pre-cancerous lesions in the liver. These amazing results seem to be a result of Brussels sprouts potent ability to detoxify the body and clear out the colon.
Brussels sprouts are also packed with fiber, which nourishes the cells lining the walls of the colon and prevents colon problems including cancer.
Brussels Sprouts Fight Bladder Cancer
Research published in the International Journal of Cancer shows that Brussels sprouts protect against bladder cancer. The diets of 697 people who were recently diagnosed with bladder cancer were compared with 708 people with the same age, gender and ethnicity who were healthy. The average daily intake of Brussels sprouts and other cruciferous vegetables was significantly lower in those with bladder cancer than in their healthy counterparts. Those who had the highest intake of Brussels sprouts and cruciferous vegetables had a 29% lower risk of bladder cancer that those who ate the least.
The benefits of these vegetables were highest in those who have the highest risk of bladder cancer, including men, smokers and older individuals.
Brussels sprouts’ bladder cancer properties appear to come from their high levels isothiocyanates, which are potent anti-carcinogens. Isothiocyanates travel through the bladder to be excreted, making them particularly powerful against this form of cancer.
Breast Cancer Protection
Sulforaphane is released by Brussels sprouts and has been proven to trigger the liver to produce enzymes that detoxify the body of cancer-causing chemicals They have been shown to inhibit chemically-induced breast cancers in animal studies. Research published in the Journal of Nutrition shows that sulforaphane can halt the proliferation of breast cancer cells, even in the later stages of their growth.
Defend Against Prostate Cancer
Research at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle studied 1,000 men. It was shown that eating 28 servings of different vegetables a week reduced their risk of prostate cancer by 35%. But those who ate 3 or more servings of cruciferous vegetables each week had a 44% lower prostate cancer risk.
This means that Brussels sprouts are anti cancerous on many levels, and are most certainly a good cancer fighting Christmas super food.
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