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"I'm president of the United States, and I'm not going to eat any more broccoli!" proclaimed George H.W. Bush in a 1990 news conference. America's 41st president disdained broccoli so much that he banned the vegetable from the White House menu. Now 84, Bush may live to regret his broccoli bullying: New scientific evidence suggests that a chemical in broccoli may rejuvenate the immune system enough to ward off common diseases of aging. At the University of California- Los Angeles, Andre Nel and colleagues recently discovered that sulforaphane, a phytonutrient in broccoli, activates antioxidant pathways at the cellular level. Injected...

I had to preserve the image below, since it says so much. I've struggled against the weather, here in Columbus, Ohio, trying to get some of the normally well-performing vegetables to grow, given the greatly reduced sunlight levels and temperatures here, this year. Pampered the little plants with Miracle Grow fertilizer, watered them religiously (or at least agnostically), hired their own personal masseuses, and generally played the part of the expectant father ready to pass out cigars- "Look, everyone..., it's a squash!" Yet, as if to make a point- around the side of the house, near the garage side door,...

CLIFTON PARK, N.Y. - T.G.I. Friday's said a severed snake head found in a dish of broccoli at one of its upstate New York restaurants was likely planted in the meal. Diner Jack Pendleton said he found the snake head the size of his thumb mixed in with his vegetables at T.G.I. Friday's in Clifton Park on Sunday. The Ballston Lake man said he thought at first it was a mushroom.

Miami, FL (AHN) - Eating baby broccoli, or broccoli sprouts, may prevent stomach ulcers and even stomach cancer, according to a new study. The study's researchers from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, said that broccoli sprouts suppress Helicobacter pylori infections, which are one of the most common bacterial infections worldwide and are a common cause of stomach cancer, according to an American Association for Cancer Research press release. Stomach cancer is the second most common and the second deadliest cancer in the world, according to the AACR. "Broccoli has recently entered the public awareness as a preventive dietary agent. This...

Levels of the beneficial, cancer-fighting compound sulforaphane in broccoli are reduced by 90 percent when the vegetable is cooked, according to a study conducted by researchers from TNO Quality of Life in the Netherlands, and published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. "Consumption of raw broccoli resulted in faster absorption, higher bioavailability, and higher peak plasma amounts of sulforaphane, compared to cooked broccoli," the researchers wrote. Eight male participants were fed 200 grams of crushed raw or crushed cooked broccoli as part of a warm meal; researchers then measured the men's blood and urine levels of sulforaphane. Based...

How Vegetables Cooked Makes DifferenceBroccoli appears to lower the risk of lung cancer in smokers and ex-smokers, according to a new study. Li Tang of the roswell Park Cancer Institute said that cruciferous vegetables don't eliminate the threat of cancer, but they help. "Broccoli is not a therapeutic drug, but for smokers who believe they cannot quit nor do anything about their risk, this is something positive," Tang said. "People who quit smoking will definitely benefit more from intake of cruciferous vegetables." Other common cruciferous vegetables include kale, collard greens, cabbage, brussels sprouts, cauliflower and bok choi. A team studied...

Besides lowering the risk of cancer and coronary heart disease due to high levels of vitamin C and beta carotene which are important antioxidants, broccoli also appears to benefit people suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). COPD is often caused by smoking and is the fourth-leading cause of death in the United States, affecting more than 16 million people. The disease is characterized by emphysema and chronic bronchitis, which obstructs air flow to the lungs. There is no cure for this deadly disease and the current drugs do not slow its progression. How exactly broccoli helps in COPD? Well,...

That's one six-year-old's take on the facts of life. ... Frederica, 6: They come from Mummy's tummy. They start like an egg. I'm not sure how the egg gets there to begin with. I think it comes from food. You eat lots of food, very healthy food, and that makes the egg. But you do have to eat very healthy food, even like 18 broccolis a week...

A substance found in broccoli may limit the damage which leads to serious lung disease, research suggests. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is often caused by smoking and kills about 30,000 UK residents a year. US scientists found that sulforapane increases the activity of the NRF2 gene in human lung cells which protects cells from damage caused by toxins. The same broccoli compound was recently found to be protective against damage to blood vessels caused by diabetes. Brassica vegetables such as broccoli have also been linked to a lower risk of heart attacks and strokes. Cell pollutants In the latest...

Professor Paul Thornalley and his team from the University of Warwick have found a broccoli compound called Sulforaphane. This compound can encourage the body to produce more enzymes to protect the vessels, as well as reduce high levels of molecules which cause significant cell damage. Past studies have shown that a diet rich in vegetables – particularly brassica vegetables such as broccoli – is linked to decreased risk of heart disease and stroke. People with diabetes have a particularly high risk of heart disease and stroke and other health impairments, such as kidney disease, are linked to damaged blood vessels....

Eating broccoli could reverse the damage caused by diabetes to heart blood vessels, research suggests.A University of Warwick team believe the key is a compound found in the vegetable, called sulforaphane. It encourages production of enzymes which protect the blood vessels, and a reduction in high levels of molecules which cause significant cell damage. Brassica vegetables such as broccoli have previously been linked to a lower risk of heart attacks and strokes. People with diabetes are up to five times more likely to develop cardiovascular diseases such as heart attacks and strokes; both are linked to damaged blood vessels. The...

LONDON (Reuters) - Just a few more portions of broccoli each week may protect men from prostate cancer, British researchers reported on Wednesday. ADVERTISEMENT The researchers believe a chemical in the food sparks hundreds of genetic changes, activating some genes that fight cancer and switching off others that fuel tumors, said Richard Mithen, a biologist at Britain's Institute of Food Research.

Broccoli May Help Boost Aging Immune SystemBroccoli. (Credit: Image courtesy of University of California - Los Angeles)ScienceDaily (Mar. 10, 2008) — Eat your broccoli! That's the advice from UCLA researchers who have found that a chemical in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables may hold a key to restoring the body's immunity, which declines as we age. Published in the online edition of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, the study findings show that sulforaphane, a chemical in broccoli, switches on a set of antioxidant genes and enzymes in specific immune cells, which then combat the injurious effects of molecules...

Extract Of Broccoli Sprouts May Protect Against Bladder Cancer ScienceDaily (Feb. 29, 2008) — A concentrated extract of freeze dried broccoli sprouts cut development of bladder tumors in an animal model by more than half, according to a report in the March 1 issue of Cancer Research. This finding reinforces human epidemiologic studies that have suggested that eating cruciferous vegetables like broccoli is associated with reduced risk for bladder cancer, according to the study's senior investigator, Yuesheng Zhang, MD, PhD, professor of oncology at Roswell Park Cancer Institute. "Although this is an animal study, it provides potent evidence that eating...

How broccoli can reduce risk of a heart attack By Nic Fleming, Medical Correspondent Last Updated: 1:42am GMT 22/01/2008 Eating steamed broccoli reduces the risk of a heart attack by boosting the body's ability to fight off cell damage, researchers have found. Previous studies have found people who eat broccoli, especially if raw or lightly cooked, are at lower risk of heart disease and some cancers. Now scientists have found a clear link between high levels of certain substances found in the vegetable and reduced damage caused by hearts being deprived of oxygen. Normal biological processes associated with eating and...

Broccoli juice 'better than sunscreens' Last Updated: 2:41am BST 23/10/2007 Broccoli juice is better than conventional sunscreens when it comes to protecting against the sun's harmful ultraviolet rays, research has shown. Tests on six volunteers exposed to pulses of UV radiation showed the extract reduced sunburn symptoms by up to 78 per cent. Conventional sunscreens used in the same experiments were essentially ineffective. The ointment was made from extracts of three-day-old broccoli sprouts rich in protective compounds called sulphoraphanes. Unlike a normal sunscreen, it does not absorb UV light to prevent it entering the skin. Instead, it works inside the...

Eating more cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower is associated with a reduced risk of aggressive prostate cancer. Several studies have demonstrated an association between eating vegetables and a reduced risk of prostate cancer, but study results have not been consistent and many have not investigated the association among patients with aggressive prostate cancer. Victoria Kirsh, Ph.D., of Cancer Care Ontario in Toronto and colleagues evaluated the possible association in 1,338 prostate cancer patients diagnosed in the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial. Each of the men completed a 137-item food-frequency questionnaire. They found that eating fruits and...

Broccoli and tomato -- two vegetables known to help fight cancer -- are more effective against prostate cancer if they're eaten together as part of a daily diet than if they're eaten alone, a new study with rats suggests.University of Illinois researchers fed a diet containing 10 percent broccoli powder and 10 percent tomato powder to a group of rats that had been implanted with prostate cancer cells. Other groups of rats received either tomato powder or broccoli powder alone; a supplemental dose of lycopene (the red pigment in tomatoes believed to be an anti-cancer agent); or finasteride, a drug...

Vegetable Compounds Combat Cancer In the ongoing war on cancer, researchers have enlisted a new series of soldiers: roots and vegetables. New findings presented at the American Association for Cancer Research show that a grocery list of vegetables including ginger, hot peppers and cauliflower show promise as cancer-combating agents. Pharmacologist Shivendra Singh of the University of Pittsburgh and his colleagues showed that a chemical released when cruciferous vegetables--such as cauliflower, broccoli and cabbage--are chewed helps control human prostate tumors grafted into mice. Phenethyl-isothiocyanate, or PEITC, prompted the prostate cancer cells to kill themselves in a process called apoptosis. By the...

Broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower: the vegetables that may prevent cancer · Foods contain chemicals that help repair DNA· Study backs link between diet and disease Ian Sample, science correspondent Wednesday February 8, 2006 The Guardian (UK) Natural chemicals found in soya beans and vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower boost the body's ability to repair damaged DNA and may prevent cells turning cancerous, scientists said yesterday. Studies have suggested that eating vegetables appears to provide some protection against certain cancers, but until now the reason why has been a mystery. Researchers at Georgetown University in Washington DC believe the answer...