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A clinical trial conducted in China demonstrates the ability of broccoli sprouts in helping the human body detoxify carcinogenic bioichemicals, therby possibly reducing the risk of developing liver cancer. 1
The randomized placebo-controlled trial was conducted in Jiangsu Province near Shanghai, a rural area where the incidence of liver cancer is extremely high due to consumption of foods tainted with aflatoxin, a powerful carcinogen produced by mold contaminating the grain that the local population grows and consumes. The toxin binds to DNA and becomes a chemical indicator, or biomarker, for an increased risk of developing liver cancer.
Three-day-old broccoli sprouts with known levels of sulforaphane glucosinolate (SGS™) were grown at the site in China and prepared as a liquid extract according to a prescribed method to ensure standard dosages. The trial was based on 200 men and women (25-65 years) in normal health but who tested positive for hepatitis B surface antigens. Those in the active group (n = 100) drank 5 ounces of the extract (equivalent to eating about 2 ounces of broccoli sprouts) each day for 2 weeks. A control group (n = 100) drank a broccoli extract that had been boiled 3 times (with second and third extracts being discarded) to remove active ingredients; thus it contained virtually no SGS. Both the active and placebo preparations were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to determine levels of glucosinolates.
Tests of subjects’ urine showed carcinogens were being detoxified and removed from the body in those who drank the SGS-containing extract. As the levels of sulforaphane derivatives in the urine increased, the amount of DNA damage decreased, which the researchers conclude may indicate a reduction in cancer risk.
“While this study did not directly look at liver cancer, it is clear that liver cancer has had devastating consequences in this region of China and in other parts of the world. This study is an initial step in evaluating dietary methods for preventing this disease, and it may be applicable to other types of cancers,” said participating epidemiologist Jian-Guo Chen, MD, of the Qidong Liver Cancer Institute.2
According to a press release from Brassica Protection Products (BPP) of Baltimore, MD, this is the first clinical study to provide direct evidence that broccoli sprouts can enhance the natural detoxifying system of the human body to help prevent certain types of cancer.2 Although previous laboratory studies indicated this mechanism exists, this trial is the first time that a direct observation of this effect in humans was possible.
According to BPP, the manufacturer of the special broccoli sprout extract, further studies are in the planning phases to examine dose levels and implications for other high-risk populations.2
In 1992, Paul Talalay, MD and fellow researchers at Johns Hopkins University first determined that broccoli contained high levels of the long-lasting antioxidant sulforaphane. In 1997, Dr. Talalay’s group discovered that three-day-old broccoli sprouts contained more than a 20 times higher concentration of SGS than mature broccoli. Since then more than 350 studies have appeared in peer-reviewed scientific publications pointing to sulforaphane and SGS from broccoli and broccoli sprouts as powerful health protectors. 2
The study was conducted by Dr. Talalay, Jed W. Fahey, MS, ScD and their team of rearchers from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Bloomberg School of Public Health, in collaboration with scientists at the Qidong Liver Cancer Institute, Jiao Tong University in Shanghai and the University of Minnesota Cancer Center and was published in the November issue of Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention. 1
Broccoli sprouts are available in the produce sections of most major supermarkets in the United States. One leading brand, sold under the name BroccoSprouts®, is grown naturally with technology licensed from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. BroccoSprouts contain measured and consistent levels of SGS, the natural detoxifying compound reported upon in this study. A portion of the gross sales of BroccoSprouts is donated to the Brassica Foundation to support further research on chemoprotection. Two of the principal investigators in this trial, Drs. Talalay and Fahey, are part owners of Broccoli Protection Products, LLC under terms established by Johns Hopkins University. For more information at www.broccosprouts.com.
--Mark Blumenthal
References
1. Kensler, TW, Chen J-G, Egner PA, Fahey JW, Jacobson LP, Stephenson KK, et al. Effects of glucosinolate-rich broccoli sprouts on urinary levels of aflatoxin-DNA adducts and phenanthrene tetraols in randomized clinical trial in He Zuo Township, Quidong, China." Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention Nov. 1, 2005;14(11):2605-2613.
2. Broccoli sprouts found to boost body’s ability to eliminate cancer-causing toxins in human study [press release]. Baltimore, MD: Brassica Protection Products LLC, Nov. 16, 2005.
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