Daily Dose of Broccoli Sprouts May Protect Against Ulcers, Cancer
By Dr. Andrew Weil, M.D.
The active constituent here is sulforaphane, a component of broccoli sprouts that interferes with the activity of the bacteria Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). These bugs live in the gastrointestinal tract and can cause stomach ulcers (which are treated with antibiotics) and gastritis, two conditions that are associated with stomach cancer. In a small study in Japan, researchers from Johns Hopkins gave 25 subjects infected with H. pylori two and a half ounces of broccoli sprouts daily for two months. Another 25 infected individuals received alfalfa sprouts instead. The study subjects were monitored with breath, blood and stool sample tests before, during and after the study to check the severity of their H. pylori infections, colonization by the bacteria and the degree of inflammation in the stomach lining. After two months, levels of a substance that indicates the presence of H. pylori had dropped 40 percent in the broccoli group, but remained unchanged in the subjects eating alfalfa sprouts. Eight weeks after the study ended H. pylori levels returned to where they had been in the first place, suggesting that the sulforaphane they contain reduces H. pylori colonization but doesn’t eliminate it. The study was published in the April 6, 2009 issue of Cancer Prevention Research.
From Dr. Andrew Weil, M.D., found at http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/WBL02136/How-Quickly-Should-You-Walk.html#
| Name |
Retail Price |
Discount Price |
|
| Organic Broccoli Sprouting Seeds 8 oz |  |
$15.95 |
