If cartoon strips are anything to go by, broccoli is the most widely loathed vegetable of them all. However, since it is such an excellent source of fiber, as well as vitamins A, K and D, parents everywhere are valiantly fighting to get their kids to eat this much-maligned member of the cabbage family. Now, in addition to its anti-inflammatory and detoxification properties, scientists have unearthed another health benefit to this super food.
According to a press release from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, researchers have discovered that broccoli contains a beneficial compound called sulforaphane, which, in a concentrated form, may be able to treat a common form of leukemia.
The American Cancer Society states that roughly 6,050 people are diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia every year, most of whom are children under the age of 5. The press release points out that, though 80 percent of these leukemia patients can be cured through chemotherapy and other conventional treatments, sometimes the cancer cells simply don’t respond.
Since sulforaphane has been shown to limit the spread of blood-based cancers, study lead author Dr. Koramit Suppipat reportedly decided to test its effects on leukemia. To do so, he exposed leukemia cells and lymphoblasts from younger patients to the compound. Through this method, he discovered that the sulforaphane killed off the cancerous entities without harming any healthy human cells. Because of this promising result, Dr. Suppipat expressed optimism that the compound could be used in future cancer treatments.
However, he was also quick to note that, though sulforaphane is found in broccoli, the study involved a “concentrated purified form” of the compound.
“So while eating cruciferous vegetables is good for you,” explains Suppipat,”it will not have the same effect as what we saw in the lab.”
Even so, broccoli has enough substantial health benefits on its own to warrant a place on any dinner plate. To further enhance the nutritional value of your diet, click to read information about our multivitamins for children and adults.