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Sulforaphane, found in cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, acts as an antioxidant and cancer preventative. It also stimulates detoxifying enzymes and promotes immune function. Sulforaphane can be found in many plants in the cruciferous family and has a wide variety of health benefits, including reducing the risk of cancer and heart disease. Broccoli sprouts have the highest concentration of sulforaphane.
Sulforaphane is a fairly simple organic compound found in the highest concentrations in the cruciferous or mustard plant family, including broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage. It is a phytochemical, which means it is biologically activated when the human body releases its chemical constituents from the glucosinolate sugar molecule it is bound to in plants. There are a number of health benefits that the compound brings to the human diet, but chief among them is its ability to act as an antioxidant and bind to oxygen molecules of free radicals that can cause cellular damage. Because of this activity, it is a natural cancer preventative and has been specifically shown to reduce the risk of breast cancer and prostate cancer.
Another key aspect of sulforaphane as a dietary health promoter is its ability to stimulate the production of detoxifying enzymes. Research at the UK College of London in 2010 showed that it activated a heart-protective protein known as Nrf2 that naturally becomes inactive in blood vessels when they show plaque buildup. This can lead to the prevention of heart disease. Further research at the University of California at Los Angeles showed that sulforaphane promotes immune system function in dendritic cells, which process antigens to protect the body from infection, preventing the reproduction of bacteria and viruses.
Laboratory tests have shown that both natural forms of the compound or the sulforaphane extract that is made into a sulforaphane supplement has a wide variety of health benefits. The antioxidant value of sulforaphane has been shown to lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels if you consume just 3.5 ounces (100 grams) of broccoli per week. Sulforaphane cancer research has also shown that the chemical prevents the production of benzo-a-pyrene which can lead to stomach tumor growth. It is also able to act as an inhibitor for a particularly robust type of antibiotic resistant bacteria known as Heliobacter pylori.
Broccoli sprouts are known to have the highest concentration of sulforaphane, but it can also be found in many other plants in the cruciferous family such as cabbage, radish, and turnips. If broccoli sprouts are harvested before the plant can mature, the sulforaphane concentration is 30 to 50 times higher than in mature plants. To reduce cancer risk in humans to half the statistical average, this would require consuming one ounce of broccoli sprouts per week (28 grams) compared to the equivalent of two pounds (907 grams) of ripe broccoli.
Among other beneficial effects of sulforaphane content in the diet is evidence that it can be used to prevent and treat arthritis and to protect against respiratory ailments such as asthma, rhinitis, and lung disease. Drinking broccoli juice has also been shown to stimulate the skin’s production of an enzyme called glutathione S-transferase, which neutralizes compounds that damage DNA during exposure to ultraviolet light from the sun. Because the compound has beneficial effects against the most common health threats to the human population, including cancer and heart disease, it remains the focus of concentrated and repeated study by medical science.
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