(30-10-11) Broccoli sprouts - Up to fifty times more cancer fighting benefits than broccoli alone

by Paul Fassa


(NaturalNews) Most of us know something about the health and cancer fighting
benefits of broccoli. Sprouting increases the digestion and health benefits of
whatever is sprouted. Find out about the health benefits of sprouted broccoli
and how to avoid the expense and problems from controversial commercially grown
sprouts by spouting your own.

Sprout controversies
Let's address the controversy first. Since 1996, various outbreaks of
salmonella and E coli food poisoning were traced to a few lots of raw bean
sprouts. Naturally, the FDA now suggests thoroughly cooking all sprouts. But of
course, that kills most of the nutrients. Seems that the FDA wants us on dead
food so we can all be on pharmaceuticals.

Nevertheless, those incidents did happen, though some may question the food
poisoning outbreak sources. The World's Healthiest Foods (WHF) site does
acknowledge this along with raw sprouts' high nutritional values.

They explain that sprouts are most likely to be contaminated during the
seeding process, not the growing process, by runoff water from animal
production facilities, poorly balanced manure fertilizer, or unsanitary seed
harvesting.

Because of the bad press, commercial non-organic sprouts are rinsed with
chlorine to get rid of offensive bacteria, another reason for sprouting your
own. It's understood that sprouts expand nutrients beyond the normal seeds',
nuts', or vegetables' normal nutritional capacity. But the process of sprouting
can expand contaminated seed bacteria growth also.

The solution for allaying all concerns is simply ensuring seeds you purchase
for sprouting are ISGA approved (International Sprout Growers Association) or
better yet, USDA certified organic. Ask your health food store about this or
search the internet.

Besides assuring optimum quality, sprouting your own is cheaper than buying
whole sprouts. And storing sprouting seeds is one solution to potential food
shortages.

Health benefits
The argument that broccoli sprouts don't contain more nutrients than broccoli
doesn't consider the phytonutrients that fight cancer and other diseases while
promoting more antioxidant activity. From 1992 to 1997, a John Hopkins research
team searched for broccoli's cancer fighting compound. They isolated the cancer
fighting phytochemical sulforaphane.

By 1997, John Hopkins' research concluded that broccoli sprouts promoted much
more cancer protection and antioxidant activity via sulforaphane than broccoli
alone. They even formed a company and patented growing broccoli sprouts after
their discoveries!

Then they started suing existing sprout growers who refused to pay royalties.
Fortunately, the higher courts ruled in favor of the defendants, stating that
finding nutrients did not create the right to patent a food practice that had
already been in existence. Whew, one for the good guys, finally. So let's get
spouting.

Basic Sprouting directions
- Buy your organic sprouting seeds (organic).

- Find or purchase a large mouth one quart (approximately) glass container.

- Buy some cheesecloth and a few thick, strong rubber bands.

- Place around three tablespoons of sprouting seeds with at least three times
the amount of purified water into the jar.

- Gently shake the jar with lid until all the seeds are soaked.

- Take off the lid and place the cheesecloth over the mouth, securing with a
rubber band.

- Allow the seeds to soak for six to twelve hours, then drain them thoroughly
and rinse.

- Leave the jar on its side and away from direct sunlight. Repeat this process
three times or until the sprouts manifest fully. Refrigerate what isn't eaten.

You have begun your veggie "kitchen gardening." You can store seeds and find
ways to make more at a time after this trial run.

Sources for this article include

http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tnam...

http://www.sproutpeople.com/seed/br...

http://www.foodrevolution.org/askjo...

http://www.broccosprouts.com/sprout...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brocco...

http://www.newnatives.com/newslette...

News

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In evidenza

"L'informazione presente nel sito serve a migliorare, e non a sostituire, il rapporto medico-paziente."

Per coloro che hanno problemi di salute si consiglia di consultare sempre il proprio medico curante.