Quotes About Sulforaphane

Several natural compounds that turn on antioxidant and detoxification pathways through activation of the Nrf2 system have been identified. Among these are curcumin from turmeric, green tea extract, silymarin (milk thistle), bacopa extract, DHA, sulforaphane (contained in broccoli), and ashwagandha. Each

Sadly, commercially-produced, frozen broccoli lacks the ability to form sulforaphane because the vegetables are flash-cooked before they are frozen.

Certain ITCs detoxify and/or remove carcinogenic compounds—especially the green cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli and brussels sprouts, which are rich sources of the ITC sulforaphane.4 Sulforaphane prevents carcinogens from binding to the DNA and being able to initiate cancerous changes in the cell, and it activates enzymes that protect cells from any DNA damage that has occurred.

For instance, sulforaphane, considered one of the more active components in cruciferous vegetables, kills human leukemia cells in a petri dish while having little impact on the growth of normal cells.8 As we've discussed, cruciferous vegetables include broccoli, cauliflower, and kale, but there are many others in this family, such as collard greens, watercress, bok choy, kohlrabi, rutabaga, turnips, arugula, radishes (including horseradish), wasabi, and all types of cabbage.

If you chop the broccoli (or brussels sprouts, kale, collards, cauliflower, or any other cruciferous vegetable) and then wait forty minutes, you can cook it as much as you want. At that point, the sulforaphane has already been made, so the enzyme is no longer needed to achieve maximum benefit. It's already done its job. (You can also buy bags of fresh greens and other crucifers that are prechopped or shredded, which can presumably be cooked immediately.)

Commercially produced frozen broccoli lacks the ability to form sulforaphane because the vegetables are blanched (flash-cooked) before they're frozen for the very purpose of deactivating enzymes.11 This process prolongs shelf life, but when you take the veggies out of your freezer, the enzyme is inert. At that point, it doesn't matter how much you chop or how long you wait—no sulforaphane is going to be made.

If you sprinkled some mustard powder on frozen broccoli that's been cooked, would it start churning out sulforaphane? Yes!

So, if you don't have forty minutes to spare between chopping and cooking, or if you're using frozen greens, just sprinkle the crucifers with some mustard powder before you eat them, and you'll be all set. Daikon radishes, regular radishes, horseradish, and wasabi are all cruciferous vegetables and may have the same effect. All it appears to take is a pinch to revitalize sulforaphane production.

of significant sulforaphane buildup.114 In other words, we now know that the cancer-fighting nutrients in broccoli do find their way to the right place when we swallow them. To reach the concentration of sulforaphane in the breast found to suppress breast cancer stem cells, however, you would have to eat at least a quarter-cup of broccoli sprouts a day.115 You can buy broccoli sprouts in the produce aisle, but they are cheap and easy to grow at home.