For stomach problems, vegetables containing sulforaphane may cure what over-the-counter pills merely mask.
By Tom Sturm
Throw away the Pepto-Bismol, the Alka-Seltzer and any other hyphenated tummy helpers you’ve been pouring onto your ulcers; all you need is a regimen of broccoli sprouts. Though it obviously might signal a boom in sales for the Jolly Green Giant and a bit of gloom and doom for the Tums tycoons, this dose of folk wisdom via extensive medical research is not likely a conspiracy contrived by the broccoli growers of the world because of one simple fact: it works too well.
By now it might seem like common knowledge to those of us who pride ourselves on being in tune with current home remedies and natural alternatives to harsh conventional medicines and antibiotics, but it’s surprising how many people are still in the dark about this one. Even people who’ve sought out naturopathic relief from these symptoms using things like licorice or marshmallow root (both good for sour bellies as well) seem not to have heard about it for some reason. So pay close attention, oblivioids: this is good information and you’ll be glad you have it even if (perhaps especially if) the whole modern world as we know it goes down the crapper.
It’s not too much coffee or alcohol or spicy food that are ripping your guts apart, my ulcerated friend. It’s a tiny spiral-shaped bugger that goes by the name of heliobacter pylori, a common bacterium that’s present in some two-thirds of the global population. There isn’t much you can do to protect yourself from it, though washing your hands a lot and making sure to wash foods, cook them thoroughly and try to drink only from certifiably clean water sources does help reduce your risk of acquiring it. It is more prevalent in older people, so chances are that by the time you’re 60 years old, you’ve as likely as not picked some up along the way. In severe cases, the bacteria are also suspected as a primary cause of cancers of the stomach and other parts of the digestive tract.
Even so, being infected with the h. pylori bacteria does not guarantee that you’ll develop any symptoms. Many people never experience ulcers even though the bacteria have set up shop long ago in the lining of their stomachs. There is no official explanation for why this is, though both genetic and lifestyle factors (such as the vices mentioned above) may all play parts in the equation. Whatever the reasons, for those who do suffer, help is only a produce aisle away.
Broccoli and especially broccoli sprouts (tiny little peppery-tasting three-day old plants that resemble alfalfa sprouts) are rich in a natural compound known as sulforaphane, which is also present to a lesser extent in cruciferous vegetables such as cauliflower, kale, red radishes, collard greens, cabbage and others. While researching the effects of isothiocyanates (the class of antioxidant compounds to which suforaphane belongs), scientists at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore determined that the young broccoli sprouts, in a way perhaps reminiscent of the power of stem cells in mammalian biology, actually contain 30 to 50 times the concentration of the protective chemicals as the mature broccoli plant. If you are a bona fide ulcer sufferer, this is exactly what you’re looking for.
Sulforaphane (C6H11NOS2 for the chemists out there) also has anti-carcinogenic properties, though the efficacy of these processes may depend on enzymatic action that occurs during the maceration (dissolving) of the vegetables in one’s stomach. This has further complicated efforts to isolate and synthesize the positive effects of sulforaphane in that, for their beneficial actions to engage, they need to be combined with these enzymes (also found in the vegetables) and coaxed to react as they do when the vegetables are digested. Medicine moves fast when it stumbles upon a good thing, however, and there are several such products available these days.
One can now purchase sulforaphane in a few different formulations, usually in combination with other phytochemicals, and though an “optimal” dosage is not yet known, some doctors recommend that those seeking to fight ulcerous conditions and reduce the risk of growing stomach cancer (and cancers in general) should take about 200 to 400 mcg daily of the compound, extracted from broccoli sprouts. Sulforaphane glucosinolate, or SGS, is now a touted ingredient in antioxidant teas and supplement capsules, some of which can be purchased from Jarrow Formulas (www.jarrow.com), C S Agra (www.yoursgs.com) and Brassica (www.brassicatea.com).
Some champions of the antioxidant point to more recently published studies (again from Johns Hopkins as well as from Stanford University and the University of Saskatchewan) that also extol suforaphane’s benefits in fighting off prostate cancer, hypertension and other cardiovascular disease and retinal damage caused by macular degeneration. All the anti-cancer studies point to the boosting of something they call “Phase 2 enzymes,” part of the human body’s natural defenses against carcinogenic chemicals, and the reduction of the action of “Phase 1 enzymes.”
The balance of the actions between these two types of human enzymes is the key to maintaining the best chemical environment in one’s body for deterring or eliminating cancer-causing agents and generally promoting healthy cell replication. In this regard, suforaphane merits the label of “monofunctional inducer”–i.e. it boosts the activity of Phase 2 enzymes while inhibiting Phase 1 enzyme activity.
Confusing, I know. It’s like trying to understand the difference between “good” cholesterol and “bad” cholesterol—and who has time to learn the intricacies of such microscopic biochemical ballets when there are deadlines at work, your oil burner needs cleaning and the kids need to go to the dentist? Hopefully, if you’ve had the time to read this article, it’s educated you enough to know where to look for further information if you’re interested in learning more, or if you’ve been unfortunate enough to suffer from any of the health issues addressed on these pages. For further information on sulforaphane and the history of discoveries and science surrounding it, visit www.brassica.com/sci/sci.htm.?
