Broccoli Sprouts Decrease Harmful Bacteria

Sulforaphanes Promote Antioxidants to Fight Helicobacter pylori

Apr 20, 2009

Studies show that broccoli sprouts decrease infection with a bacteria called Helicobacter pylori. H.pylori is linked to peptic ulcers, stomach cancers, gastric lymphoma.

In the medical journal Cancer Prevention Research, Jed Fahey, a nutritional biochemist at the Lewis B. and Dorothy Cullman Cancer Chemoprotection Center at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, described the benefits of baby broccoli sprouts to the stomach. Fahey and colleagues showed that in 25 Japanese patients infected with the bacteria Helicobacteria pylori, eating two and a half ounces of broccoli sprouts a day for two months helped reduce, but not eradicate, the H. pylori infection. H. pylori is classified as a carcinogen (substance that causes cancer). This bacteria is a known culprit in stomach ulcers (peptic ulcer disease), stomach cancer and lymphoma of the stomach. There is a particularly high infection rate of H. pylori infection in Japan. Interestingly, eating alfalfa sprouts did not show the same benefit.

Sulforaphanes in Broccoli Sprouts Promote Formation of Antioxidants

Fahey theorizes that the ingredient sulforaphane found in baby broccoli sprouts encourages the formation of natural antioxidants in the stomach which fight H. pylori. The risk of stomach ulcers and possibly stomach cancer is reduced when H. pylori is eradicated from the stomach. Fahey cautions that his study does not show direct evidence that broccoli sprouts eliminated H. pylori infection or prevented stomach cancers. The levels of H. pylori in the stomach returned to pre-treatment levels when the test patients stopped eating broccoli sprouts.

Alfalfa Sprouts and Adult Broccoli are Less Effective Than Broccoli Sprouts

Alfalfa sprouts do not contain sulforaphane. Adult broccoli has much less sulforaphane than broccoli sprouts. So there is a tantalizing possibility that future studies may indeed show positive effects of broccoli sprouts on preventing ulcers and stomach cancer. Another reason to consider adding broccoli sprouts to your diet: other studies have shown that these sprouts contain isothyiocyanates, which have cancer fighting action on bladder cancer.

Helicobacter pylori can also be eradicated by taking triple antibiotic therapy and other medicines. Typically, the bacteria is detected by obtaining a sample (biopsy) of the stomach. The biopsy is obtained after the stomach is visualized by an endoscope, a flexible tube with a magifying device inserted in the swallowing tube (esophagus) and stomach.

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This article is for informational purposes only and should not substitute for medical advice from your healthcare provider. The author is not providing personal medical opinion, diagnosis or course of treatment. Do not delay or substitute this information for medical treatment.

The copyright of the article Broccoli Sprouts Decrease Harmful Bacteria in Nutrition is owned by Dr. Vandana Bhide. Permission to republish Broccoli Sprouts Decrease Harmful Bacteria in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.