Breast Health Tip #15: Cruciferous Vegetables

Inside every plant is a natural anti-cancer pharmacy. The natural “chemotherapy” found in plants is safe, side-effect free, and expresses an intelligence of such brilliance that pharmaceutical companies are now studying them in an effort to learn how to create effective, but far less toxic, chemotherapy.

One family of vegetables called “cruciferous” vegetables (ie: broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, bok choy, and kale) contains several substances that are especially potent against breast cancer. One of the remarkable plant chemicals is called “indole-3 carbinol.” Indole-3 carbinol lowers the risk of breast cancer in several ways: 1) it stops breast cancer cells from growing by shutting off a key enzyme; 2) it coerces estrogen to break down into a “good” (protective, non-cancer promoting) type instead of a “bad” (cancer-promoting) type; 3) it persuades a “tumor suppression” gene to “turn-on” which contains the commands for several crafty internal tactics to stop tumor growth; 4) it makes the estrogen receptor in breast cells less responsive to estrogen. In other words, when estrogen attaches to its receptor, breast cells won’t divide as rapidly. That’s important because the slower breast cells divide -- the lower your risk of breast cancer.

Here’s 2 more important points: 1) Eat only organically grown produce to avoid pesticides and other harmful chemicals; 2) Indole-3 carbinol is destroyed by over-cooking so lightly cook cruciferous vegetables or eat them raw.