By The powers of cruciferous vegetables never end
Many women have difficulty balancing hormones and keeping body weight in check during that time of the month.
We can manipulate specific foods throughout life to help iron those never-ending hormonal shifts out of our control.
These changes donât occur instantly; instead, they result from eating well as often as possible.
I want to discuss a particular type of broccoli that is somewhat of a hidden wonder, which most people donât realise exists.
For decades, these benefits were unknownâââwhich is a shame, as women would primarily benefit from it.
It was in 1997 that researchers finally uncovered the hidden benefits of broccoli sprouts. One reason could be that broccoli sprouts are not as readily available as broccoli, but you can find them if you hunt around.
Broccoli is still an excellent choice for balancing hormonesâââbut there is something special about broccoli sprouts.
Why should I pay attention to this type of broccoli?
Broccoli sprouts are very, very easy to grow yourself. When browsing plant stores, you would have dismissed the small plant since it looks like alfalfa sprouts.
Broccoli sprouts should be eaten raw, added to salads as a garnish, into smoothies or on pizza and pasta.
Most organic and healthy food stores sell them, and although they may be hidden from your traditional supermarketsâââthey are a trendy superfood!
Why women benefit from eating broccoli sprouts
Women can gain some genuinely tremendous health benefits by adding broccoli sprouts regularly.
As mentioned above, broccoli sproutsâ power over hormones is key.
Some women suffer from estrogen dominance when their bodies are overloaded with hormones.
Sometimes our bodies do not metabolise estrogen properly. Itâs not always an obvious symptom but can cause the following to take placeâââmiscarriages, breast cancer, PMS, cellulite, fibrocystic breasts and endometriosis.
Broccoliâs superpowers over estrogen dominance lie in a compound called sulforaphane.
Sulforaphane helps flush the over-accumulation of estrogen out of our bodies through detoxification through our liver.
It may affect improvements in the receptiveness of estrogen in your body.
One study showed just how potent sulforaphane is in reducing estrogen and, at the same time, regulating hormone levels.
In this study, 34 women were compiled into three groupsâââone stuck with their regular diet, the other group included two servings of broccoli sprouts per week, and the last group consumed two servings of broccoli sprouts per day for four weeks.
When this study ended, those women who ate two servings of broccoli sprouts a day significantly reduced their estrogen levels. At the same time, the group who ate sprouts twice weekly also showed improvement. That proves eating broccoli sprouts regularly makes a big difference.
Two: Broccoli helps you lose weight
For most women, itâs challenging to lose weight.
Sometimes, it can be as simple as unbalanced gut bacteria mixed in with estrogen imbalances, making it a never-ending battle with the bulge.
Sulforaphane can help with this challenge through the activation of Nff2, which promotes the release of a substance that improves how fat cells in our bodies use energy.
It can block the capacity for our bodies to store excess fat around the waistâââwhich is one challenge most women face in middle age.
Although studies were conducted in mice, researchers discovered that when adding sulforaphane to their diets and eating high-fat food, they showed a significant decline in fat accumulation on the waistline.
These mice also gained 15 per cent less weight than those in a group who ate the same high-fat diet without sulforaphane.
It will be no surprise that sulforaphane helps improve your gut bacteria while strengthening the intestinal lining.
That will significantly assist in reducing continual inflammation and further problems with digestion. Sulforaphane. also helps reduce the amount of H.Pylori bacteria lurking in your digestive tract.
Three: Broccoli change your DNA & Combat Disease
Although broccoli is a beautiful cruciferous vegetableâââbroccoli sprouts contain much more sulforaphane than your standard broccoli.
Sulforaphane can stimulate liver detoxification, which removes harmful compounds and excessive estrogen.
You must eat one or two servings of broccoli sprouts a week to help you get to this beneficial detoxifying level.
Broccoli sprouts boost your immune system and help support your cardiovascular, respiratory and skeletal systems.
Those benefits continue to fight infections and protect your brain. Sulforaphane benefits your health via epigenetics.
Although epigenetics are still relatively new, it shows that one can alter genetics through diet and lifestyle changes! Sulforaphane helps this process by directly influencing our DNA, enabling us to fight disease and cancer.
Four: Broccoli can help us fight off breast cancer
Broccoli sprouts have anti-cancer effects by producing pro-carcinogens and then flushing those carcinogens out of your body.
To highlight the effects, 54 women with abnormal mammogram results participated in a human study.
One group were given a placebo, and the other group were assigned high doses of sulforaphane. After the three-week trial, the sulforaphane group had more benign tissue than the placebo group.
Key take away
There are so many marvellous benefits from eating broccoli sprouts that I have only scratched the surface and no doubt researchers feel the same way.
More and more people should be aware of the benefits of sprouted broccoli to their health, hormones and, of course, the cancer-fighting benefits. Why not try it out and see what changes it can make to your health?
If you canât get hold of broccoli sprouts right now, this green powder or supplement form will suffice. Use your powder in your smoothies, or place it in water.
If you have a green thumb, why not make organic broccoli sprouts with this kit?
Do you already eat broccoli sprouts, and if so, what has that helped you?
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