Mom Always Said to Eat your Broccoli!

An article in the online Cancer Research journal reminds us to eat our broccoli -- Mom is always right. . .

A concentrated extract of freeze dried broccoli sprouts cut development of bladder tumors in an animal model by more than half. . . This finding reinforces human epidemiologic studies that have suggested that eating cruciferous vegetables like broccoli is associated with reduced risk for bladder cancer. . .

There is strong evidence that the protective action of cruciferous vegetables derives at least in part from isothyiocyanates (ITCs), a group of phytochemicals with well-known cancer preventive activities. >Full Story: ScienceDaily

The animals were given amounts of ITCs that are much higher than typically consumed daily by humans, however, the authors postulate that humans may require much lower amounts of ITCs to protect against bladder cancer. Other cruciferous vegetables containing ITCs include kale, collard greens, cabbage, and others.