There is a huge variety of chemicals and compounds which play an important role in our bodies. They can provide us with various health benefits. One of the most well known phytochemicals is sulforaphane. It is a chemical that is part of the isothiocyanate family. This phytochemical occurs in plants and is bound to a molecule of sugar which is known as sulforaphane glucosinolate. This sugar molecule is found in various foods which we eat. As matter of fact, the sulforaphane is only released after we eat these foods. Which ones contain this phytochemical? Cabbage, kale, cauliflower and broccoli contain sulforaphane. Actually, the richest source of this nutrient is broccoli sprouts. According to nutritionists, sulforaphane has a number of benefits to our health and as incredible as it sounds sulforaphane can effectively reduce cancer risks, slow aging and more.
What are broccoli sprouts?
Broccoli plants that are three to five days old are known as sprouts. They resemble alfalfa and taste like radishes. Broccoli sprouts have two main compounds in their structure. One of these is known as glucoraphanin. It is a glucosinolate chemical that is contained within the vacuoles of the broccoli sprout plant cells. The other compound is myrosinase. This one is contained freely in the plant cell but does not come into contact with the other main compound. However, once the broccoli sprouts are cut or chewed, these two compounds come into contact, react and form sulforaphane.
What is sulforaphane?
sulforaphane is one of the most powerful detoxification compounds known to man. Adding it to your diet can tremendously reduce the risk of bladder, breast, prostrate, colorectal and stomach cancer. A scientific study at the Johns Hopkins Hospital showed that sulforaphane can effectively make you excrete any air pollutants more effectively. In addition to that, it was discovered that adding sulforaphane to your diet can reduce the symptoms of autism. Therefore, broccoli sprouts are a very important element to add to your diet so as to promote your overall health. By providing you with sulforaphane, they can help you to prevent cancer. Here is more about this.
What is cancer?
Cancer is actually a collection of diseases that are related. Examples of these are prostrate, ovarian, lung, throat, pancreatic and stomach cancer. Cancer occurs when the cells of your body begin to divide uncontrollably. When they do this, they begin to spread into the tissue that surrounds them. The dangerous fact about cancer is that it can occur anywhere in the body starting with any cell. This is critical since the body contains trillions of cells. Under normal conditions, our cells grow and divide to create new ones according to the demands of the body.
Once human cells grow old, they die and new ones are created to replace them. However, cancer disrupts this process. it causes cells to multiply when there is no need for new ones. Moreover, it makes existing cells abnormal and they begin to resist death and survive. When the uncontrollable cells and abnormal ones combine, a tumor is formed. There are two types of tumors. These are the benign and the malignant tumors. Benign tumors can be removed and do not grow back. However, malignant ones normally grow back after they have been removed. This may lead to a chain of events which can kill you. Thankfully, nutritionists and scientists have discovered that sulforaphane can successfully help in cancer prevention.
How does sulforaphane prevent cancer?
sulforaphane occurs naturally and has been scientifically proven to prevent cancer from developing. The richest source of this compound is broccoli sprouts. Those that are between three and five days old normally contain between 20 and 50 times the amount of cancer-preventing compounds that are found in mature broccoli. sulforaphane works in a very interesting way to prevent cancer. It boosts the amounts of a type of enzyme which is known as Phase 2 enzyme. This one has the job of neutralizing the growth process of any disease in the body. It is an essential part of the human immune system.
By activating this enzyme, sulforaphane stops cancer before it even starts to grow. As a result, the body stays free of this dangerous, often fatal disease. According to statistics, there are 10 million new cases of cancer discovered every year. Out of this, almost a quarter million are of invasive breast cancer. You can protect yourself from this disease by including broccoli sprouts and other cruciferous vegetables in your daily diet. This ensures that you consume enough sulforaphane to protect yourself from cancer.
Does sulforaphane also slow aging?
Broccoli contains a variety of compounds. One of the most well known is sulforaphane. This one works to prevent cancer. This vegetable also contains an enzyme which is known as nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN). This one is able to slow the process of aging in your body. It restores your metabolism to the levels you had when you were younger. As human beings age, our cells begin to lose their ability to produce energy. With lower amounts of energy being produced, the process of cell repair and regeneration also slows down and overall tissue degeneration begins to occur. NMN is processed in the body to produce nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD). This is a resultant enzyme which plays an active role in ensuring mitochondrial health and the metabolic processes necessary for the production of energy in the body.
As a matter of fact, Time Magazine reports that when NMN is dissolved in some water and consumed, it takes a total of only 3 minutes for it to be present in the blood. After it has arrived in the bloodstream, it is converted very quickly into NAD in a variety of body tissues and boosts cell energy. As such, it effectively empowers your cells to repair themselves faster and generate new ones on demand. Overall, you begin to age slower since your body has the energy to repair itself quicker. This is all thanks to a humble vegetable known as broccoli.
The Important Take Away
In addition to preventing cancer, sulforaphane also prevents the formation of cataracts in the eyes. It keeps high blood pressure at bay and performs the detoxification of free radicals in the body. It is one of the most potent, naturally occurring, health boosters available today. By consuming broccoli sprouts regularly, you can gain enough sulforaphane in your body to keep you cancer free for the rest of your life. Invest in your future health by including this vegetable in your daily diet.
