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Proof broccoli helps prevent cancer
Diet & Fitness Date July 2, 2008 (0) Read later inShare submit to reddit Email article Print

Photo: Jennifer Soo
Eating broccoli once a week can reduce a man's chances of developing prostate cancer, and might even slow the tumour growth in sufferers, a new study suggests.

Australian cancer experts have welcomed findings from a British study which has confirmed the benefits of the vegetable on cancer in humans, not just lab rats.

But they warn it is still unclear how protective the broccoli is, or who will benefit most from adding it to their dinner plate.

Researchers from Institute of Food Research in Norwich, in eastern England, gave 22 men 400 grams of either broccoli or peas a week, equal to one or two portions, in addition to their normal diet, for a year.

Advertisement Tissue samples were taken from their prostate gland before and during the trial, and the results showed that broccoli changed how genes linked to prostate cancer act.

This suggests the broccoli-rich diet reduces the risk of developing prostate cancer, and also the chance of localised cancer becoming more aggressive.

Other studies have shown that cruciferous vegetables like broccoli may reduce the risk of prostate cancer and other chronic disease, but this is the first to explain why.

Lead researcher Professor Richard Mithen said the results, published in the journal PLoS ONE, were exciting because they indicate benefits from relatively small quantities.

"Other fruits and vegetables have been shown to also reduce the risk of prostate cancer and are likely to act through other mechanisms," Professor Mithen said.

"Once we understand these, we can provide much better dietary advice in which specific combinations of fruit and vegetable are likely to be particularly beneficial."

Cancer Council Australia chief executive Professor Ian Olver said the result was interesting but larger studies were needed to prove broccoli caused the reduced cancer risk.

Dr Michael Fenech, principal research scientist at CSIRO Human Nutrition, also warned that studies had yet to show broccoli consumption affected levels of PSA, the main biomarker of prostate cancer risk, or that it changed tumour cell growth.

"There is also little direct evidence to suggest that eating more broccoli protects you against prostate cancer if you are susceptible due to any genetic or environmental factor," Dr Fenech said.

AAP

http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/diet-and-fitness/proof-broccoli-helps-prevent-cancer-20090407-9xn1.html#ixzz386jr4kQj