What Is The ‘Broccoli Pill’ And How Can It Help Prevent Cancer?

This may be the “pharmaceutical” we’ve been waiting for. Researchers at Texas A&M Health Sciences Center ran a small study and found that our tumor suppressing gene (called p16) works a lot better when we eat this one thing.

So what is it?

Sulforaphane.

Ok, so what’s sulforaphane? It’s a compound found in cruciferous vegetables like Brussels sprouts, kale, cauliflower, cabbage, and, most importantly, broccoli. The highest concentration of sulforaphane is found in young broccoli sprouts or in the dietary supplement broccoli sprout extract (BSE).

During their studies, researchers monitored the eating habits of 28 volunteers over the age of 50. These subjects were undergoing routine colonoscopies, and researchers focused on how much cruciferous vegetables they ate.

A Broccoli Pill?

The researchers knew that sulforaphane doesn’t last very long in the human body (about 24 hours), but found that the subjects who ate more servings of dark-green veggies had higher levels of the tumor suppressing gene (p16) than those who at fewer or no cruciferous veggies.

Furthermore, the researchers found that the colon-cancer suppressing benefits of p16 persisted even if the test-subject hadn’t eaten vegetables that day.

“This hints at the possibility that epigenetic mechanisms are initially triggered by sulforaphane and its metabolites, and downstream mechanisms could be sustained, at least in the short-term, even after compounds are eliminated from the body,” said one of the researchers, Praveen Rajendran.

So, the more cruciferous vegetables (or broccoli sprout extract) we eat, the more we’ll be able to charge the tumor suppressing gene and, with more study, we may be able to ensure that cancer is prevented instead of beaten.

But for now, eat your veggies!

We still need to get sulforaphane. In the long run, you could supercharge your genes to help your body become better at preventing tumors, but for now all we can do is hope this idea disrupts Big Pharma’s way of dealing with this deadly disease.

Although the research team had run animal-based tests, they were happy to find that the effects of sulforaphane extend to the human body. With more research and more testing, we may soon find a preventative measure to tumor growth.

“Our work provides comprehensive proof-of-principle using cell-based, animal and human studies that dietary compounds like sulforaphane can be chemopreventive,” said Rajendran. “However, we’re not quite ready to recommend everyone take a BSE supplement, and it’s certainly worth reiterating what nutritionists have said for years: eat your vegetables.”

Since the study has been published, however, more scientists have made progress! Another study led by a team of researchers from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden tested a sulfurophane extract on 97 human subjects. “The concentration of sulforaphane given was around 100 times that found naturally in broccoli. “It was the same as eating around five kilograms of broccoli daily,” says lead researcher Rosengren. The results showed that people who took the broccoli extract had an average of 10% lower blood glucose levels, a promising result.

Eating your dark leafy greens helps to prevent and deter cancer, but they also help to alkalize your body, keep your blood healthy and happy, and reverse the dangers of inflammation, which extend to your internal organs, lymphatic system, and even your brain.

To get the most out of cruciferous veggies for every meal, look right here.