If your mother told you to eat your vegetables, you were given good advice. Although she may not have known it at the time, certain vegetables, like broccoli, help to fight cancer, even lung cancer. While the health-conscious practice of eating sprouts became a movement in the 1970s, a report issued in the 1990s gave this trend new flavor. According to research, broccoli sprouts contain up to 100 times the concentration of a cancer-fighting plant chemical than mature plants do.
Background
The discovery that broccoli sprouts provide more protection from cancer than the grown vegetable was presented in a study published in the Sept. 16, 1997 issue of "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America," better known as simply "PNAS." The study showed that broccoli sprout extracts significantly reduced the incidence and severity of tumor formation in cancer-induced rats. The scientists also reported that sprouts lack potentially toxic chemicals found in mature broccoli in trace amounts that assist precancerous chemicals in the body to progress into cancer-producing agents.
Chemical Composition
According to the American Cancer Society, broccoli contains phytochemicals collectively referred to as isothiocyanates. Of particular interest are the compounds sulforaphane and indole-3-carbinol, or I3C. The authors of the PNAS study found that three-day old broccoli sprouts contain a high concentration of glucoraphanin, an organic compound that is converted into sulforaphane in the body. The American Cancer Society says that sulforaphane may trigger the body to manufacture higher levels of enzymes that counter cancer-causing toxins. The Cancer Society also says that this substance protects against different types of cancers. In addition, people with certain glutathione S-transferase types who eat a lot of broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables enjoy a reduced risk of lung cancer. Glutathione S-transferases, or GSTs, are specialized enzymes that detoxify the body.
Lung Cancer Protection
In an article published on Nov. 19, 2008 by MedPage Today, staff writer Todd Neale reported on the results of a case-control study presented at the American Association for Cancer Research's Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research meeting. According to lead study author, Li Tang, M.D., Ph.D., smokers who consume at least 4.5 servings of cruciferous vegetables each month lower their risk of lung cancer by 22 percent to 50 percent. A subsequent control study published in the April 27, 2010 issue of "BMC Cancer," also led by Dr. Tang, confirmed that eating cruciferous vegetables reduced lung cancer risk in smokers and former smokers.
Future Outlook
In a review published in the June 15, 2011 issue of "Mutation Research," scientists from the Wayne State University School of Medicine in Michigan reported that another broccoli compound called 3,3'-diindolylmethane, or DIM, prevents and reverses cancer by targeting cancer cells for apoptosis, or programmed cell death. As such, the research team concluded that DIM is a promising new chemopreventive therapy agent for cancer. DIM is synthesized in the body from digesting indole-3-carbinol, which is found in higher concentrations in broccoli sprouts than in the mature vegetable.
References
- "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America"; Broccoli Sprouts: An Exceptionally Rich Source of Inducers of Enzymes That Protect Against Chemical Carcinogens; J.W. Fahey, et al.; 1997
- "The New York Times"; Researchers Find a Concentrated Anticancer Substance in Broccoli Sprouts; Natalie Angier; Sept. 16, 1997
- American Cancer Society: Broccoli
- MedPage Today: AACR: Broccoli May Help Prevent Lung Cancer in Smokers; Todd Neale; Nov. 19, 2008
- "BMC Cancer"; Cruciferous Vegetable Intake is Inversely Associated with Lung Cancer Risk Among Smokers: A Case-control Study; L. Tang, et al.; 2010
- "Mutation Research"; Attenuation of Multi-targeted Proliferation-linked Signaling by 3,3'-diindolylmethane (DIM): From Bench to Clinic; S. Banerjee, et al.; 2011
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