Broccoli is one of the cruciferous vegetables and is related closely to cabbage and cauliflower. Broccoli is an excellent accompaniment to stir fries and makes an excellent soup. It is also delicious raw or lightly steamed, cooked with a cheese sauce.

Health benefits of broccoli include cancer prevention, healthy eyesight, strong bones and healthy iron and haemoglobin levels. Juicing is a wonderful way to get the most out of vegetables. Drinking broccoli juice daily can prevent many diseases.

The health benefits of broccoli can be traced back to its superior nutritional content. Broccoli is one of the most nutritious vegetables in the world. It is a rich source of the fat-soluble vitamins, A, E and K, as well as vitamins C, folate and B6.

It also contains high doses of the minerals such as iron, calcium potassium, magnesium and phosphorous. Broccoli also contains additional antioxidant compounds known as indoles and sulphoraphane and is a good source of lutein.

Broccoli plays a crucial role in cancer prevention. Broccoli contains a photochemical called indoles and isothiocyanates that can boost the activity of enzymes in the body that suppress cancer-causing agents.

Antioxidants in broccoli may help fight cancer. The anti-oxidant product of indole-3-carbonol in particular has promise in protection against hormone sensitive cancers like breast cancer. This is due to its ability to deactivate a potent oestrogen (hormone) metabolite that can promote breast tumour growth.

Indol-3-carbonol has also been shown to help stop other cancers from metastasising (spreading). Indol-3-carbonol has also shown some promise in protecting against prostate cancer cell growth

Sulphoraphane another anti-oxidant compound is a potent detoxifier (removal of toxic products). It helps to boost the liver detoxification enzymes and has also been shown to cause programmed cell death of abnormal and cancerous cells. Compounds in cruciferous vegetables may also be associated with a lower incidence of lung, colon, ovarian and bladder cancer.

The role of broccoli in eye sight; because it contains lutein, broccoli can also help prevent blindness by offsetting cataracts and age-related macular degeneration.

Broccoli for Strong bones and osteoporosis prevention: Broccoli is rich in calcium and phosphorous, needed for strong bones and teeth. Broccoli is also rich in vitamin C, which aids the absorption of calcium. Eating calcium rich foods can help prevent bone loss and osteoporosis.

i for Healthy Iron and Hemoglobin Levels: Broccoli is a good vegetarian source of iron, the mineral that helps form hemoglobin, which carries oxygen around the blood. The presence of chlorophyll in green vegetables also helps with oxygen transport.

Because it is rich in folate, eating broccoli before conception can help prevent neural tube defects in the newborn.

The vitamins and amino acids in broccoli make it an effective detoxifier that assists the body in ridding itself of toxins and free radicals--cleansing the blood and helping it eliminate the harms such toxins can cause.

Types

The calcium, folic acid, iron, proteins, anti-oxidants, detoxifiers, phosphorus and other vitamins in broccoli provide ideal nutrition for women who are pregnant, helping them maintain regular tissue growth.

Significance

Broccoli is rich in cholesterol-reducing fiber, chromium and potassium, which can help control blood sugar and blood pressure in addition to decreasing blood cholesterol levels.

Prevention/Solution

The vitamins and minerals in broccoli act as strengtheners for a person’s immune system and defend the body from different types of infections.

Potential

The health benefits of broccoli have been associated with the prevention and restriction of medical conditions such as arthritis, osteoporosis, vitamin deficiencies, diabetes, heart conditions, cancers and Alzheimer’s disease.

Although broccoli can be prepared and cooked in various ways, steaming it or having it raw is the best way to eat broccoli because the nutrients are preserved at their highest content.

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