Cruciferous vegetables, particularly when eaten raw, are well-known for their antioxidant properties as well as anti-cancer effects.
Recent research at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute has linked the consumption of raw cruciferous vegetables to lowered risk of getting bladder cancer.
One study was carried out on rats, with bladder cancer occurrence decreasing with an increase in t he amount of freeze-dried broccoli sprout extract fed to them.
Another study found that people who consumed as little as three servings of cruciferous vegetables every month had 40% lower risk of getting bladder cancer. Important point though – the vegetables must be eaten raw, as no benefit was found for people who cooked them before eating.
The ability of cruciferous vegetables to fight cancer is mainly attributed to naturally occurring phytochemicals called isothiocyanates, which have been associated with reduced risk of cancerous as well as benign tumors. In fact, at least one specific type of isothiocyanates has been found to induce cell death in cancer cells which are resistant to chemotherapy.
Isothiocyanates, together with other compounds in cruciferous vegetables, are believed to play a part in regulating an enzyme response, which then assists in protecting the body against cancer. Other cancers which cruciferous vegetables have been found to offer protective effects against include breast cancer, cervical cancer, colon cancer, endometrium cancer, liver cancer as well as lung cancer.
But, as mentioned earlier, they must be eaten raw in order to attain their maximum health benefits, as cooking is said to be able to destroy between 60% and 90% of their isothiocyanate content.
“When they are eaten raw, they induce a kind of enzyme that may detoxify carcinogens,” said James Marshall from Roswell Park Cancer Institute.
Cruciferous vegetables include arugula, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collard greens, daikon, garden cress, horseradish, kale, kohlrabi, mustard, radish, rape (canola), rapini, rutabaga, tatsoi, turnip, wasabi as well as watercress.
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