STORY AT-A-GLANCE
- After just 12 weeks of supplementing with sulforaphane, which is just one of broccoli’s claims to fame, older adults experienced better cognitive function.
- Sulforaphane also helps protect the heart, catalyzes a healthy balance of gut bacteria, and may be a weight management tool.
- A superior choice to supplements is broccoli sprouts; they contain up to 50 times the amount of chemoprotective compounds and are easily grown indoors.
Other cruciferous vegetables include Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage, collards, kale, and bok choy. Broccoli has decades of research behind it showing that it’s a valuable, health-promoting food. While several compounds have demonstrated positive effects on health, one of the most widely studied is sulforaphane. The compound may be best known for its cancer-fighting properties.
Older Adults Experience Better Cognitive Function and Mood
The featured Japanese study15 was published in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience. The researchers used 12 weeks of supplementation and found that the participants experienced greater processing speed and a reduction in negative mood as compared to the group that received a placebo.Researchers began with the premise from past studies showing sulforaphane with cognitive training had a positive effect on cognitive function. They sought to investigate whether consuming sulforaphane could improve cognitive performance and mood in older adults.
They used a 12-week, double-blind, randomized controlled trial in which 144 adults—73 men and 71 women—with an average age of 66.82 years were assigned to either a placebo group or a group that received sulforaphane supplementation.
The intervention group took 30 milligrams of glucoraphanin daily, which is converted to sulforaphane in the body. The researchers measured cognitive function, mood states, and serum and urine biomarkers at baseline and at the conclusion of the intervention.
The group that took the sulforaphane supplementation exhibited an improvement in cognitive processing speed and a reduction in negative mood. Additionally, the intervention group had a higher sulforaphane N-acetyl L-cysteine urine level, indicating they had consumed the glucoraphanin capsules. There were no other significant biomarkers of oxidative stress, neuroplasticity, or inflammation.
Sulforaphane’s Effect on the Heart, Leaky Gut, and Obesity
Research data have shown that sulforaphane can help lower the risk of cardiovascular disease18 and reduce high blood pressure in an animal model.19 In one animal study,20 researchers sought to evaluate the efficacy of sulforaphane in the lab. Past data using exogenous antioxidants weren’t conclusive, which led the researchers to theorize that inducing endogenous antioxidant activities could have a promising cardioprotective effect.- Sulforaphane was found to speed up tissue browning. Brown fat is a beneficial type of body fat that helps you stay slim. It’s a heat-generating type of fat that burns energy rather than storing it.
- Sulforaphane also decreased gut bacteria on the Desulfobivrionaceae family. These bacteria are known to produce toxins that contribute to metabolic endotoxemia and obesity.
Easy-to-Grow Sprouts Are a Concentrated Form of Nutrients
It has been my experience that it’s always better to get your nutrients from food as opposed to supplements whenever possible. However, there are times when it’s impractical or nearly impossible to achieve a therapeutic dose from food alone. You can get meaningful amounts of sulforaphane and diindolylmethane, or DIM, from eating broccoli, but it could be difficult to consistently eat enough to reach a therapeutic dose.You can have a ready supply of cancer-fighting nutrients by growing sprouts at home. It’s quite easy, it can be done indoors, and you don’t need a lot of space. Although sprouts are small, they’re packed with enzymes, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that protect against free radical damage. When I first started sprouting seeds, I used Ball canning jars, but I’ve since switched to growing them in potting soil.
Sprouts grown in Ball jars need to be rinsed several times a day to prevent mold growth, and it’s a hassle to keep them draining in the sink and taking up space. You would also need dozens of jars to get the same amount as in just one flat tray. When sprouts are grown in soil, they can be harvested in about a week, and one pound of seeds will produce more than 10 pounds of sprouts.
If you opt for boiling, blanch the broccoli for no more than 30 seconds and then immerse it immediately in cold water to stop the cooking process. If you prefer raw food, you'll get the most sulforaphane and nutrients from broccoli sprouts rather than mature broccoli.
