Broccoli Sprouts Nutrition: 7 Proven Advantages

Broccoli Sprouts Nutrition has many health benefits. It can fight against cancer, depression, and fatty liver. Broccoli sprouts contain nutrients that have disease-resistant oxidants¹. It is gripping the food market, available in garden-fresh and packed powdered form.

Whether it is a salad, soup, or pasta sauce, broccoli has become an essential part of our plates. Cultivated in ancient Roman times, raw broccoli, or Brassica oleracea, became an essential food in the 18th century across Europe and America. Enriched with potassium, fibers, and vitamins, the health benefits of broccoli make it a medical research issue at present.

Broccoli belongs to the cruciferous family of vegetables including arugula, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and others. These vegetables are rich in minerals and vitamins. They contain some natural compounds that have tremendous health benefits.

Meanwhile, a rich broccoli diet stands ahead of other cruciferous vegetables² as it contains more vitamin C and K. Broccoli sprouts, the tiny form of broccoli, have even more vitamin content with the compound, sulforaphane.

1. Broccoli Sprouts—  The Baby Broccoli

Sprouts have been an essential part of our diet. They are known for their nutrient value and freshness. They are easily chewable and simple to prepare.

Broccoli sprouts gained popularity in the US in the 1990s. They are actually three to four days old broccoli plants that grow into full wads. Hence, they are known as Baby Broccoli.

Broccoli sprouts contain more nutrients than grown Broccoli.  We can get more vitamins and minerals with broccoli sprouts nutrition instantly. However, both have their own relevance.

Broccoli sprouts are easily available in health food stores and grocery stores in most of the developed countries. However, you can also buy broccoli seeds for sprouting at home. Interestingly broccoli sprouts are also available in powdered form.

2. Broccoli Sprouts Nutrition: A Nutrient Powerhouse

Broccoli sprouts taste like radishes. They contain vitamins, proteins, minerals, and other beneficial nutrients.

The Percent Daily Value (%DV) Broccoli Sprouts Nutrition are as follows:

• Fat — 1%
• Cholesterol — 0%
• Sodium — 1%
• Carbohydrates — 2%
• Fibre — 16%
• Vitamin A — 10%
• Vitamin C — 60%
• Iron — 4%
• Calcium — 6%

Broccoli Sprouts have a valuable amount of protein and fiber³. They are a good source of vitamins and minerals. Vitamin C, important for immunity and skin health, is found in broccoli sprouts’ nutrition. The presence of Vitamin K1 and Folate with Potassium and Manganese helps in blood clotting and tissue health.

They have no cholesterol. Their calorie content is also low. Studies show that they can detoxify pollutants.

You can eat them raw or mix them with anything. They are easily available and can be prepared at home. And they taste much better than the full-grown broccoli.

3. How to Prepare Broccoli Sprouts

Credits go to the Hippies for the introduction of sprouts in the 1970s. Being easy to prepare and full of nutrients, they became household stuff. The finding of sulforaphane and glucoraphanin in broccoli seeds⁴ improved its value across households.

You can buy broccoli sprouts from health food stores. However, you can easily prepare broccoli sprouts at home. It’s easy and saves money. All you need is a mason jar and a sprouting lid. You can follow these easy steps:

1. Take a wide-mouth mason jar, and put 2 tablespoons of broccoli seeds.
2. Cover the seeds with water, and place the sprouting lid over the jar.
3. Keep the jar in a dark and slightly warm place for 8 to 10 hours.
4. The next morning drain off the water and rinse the sprouts with water.
5. Keep the seeds back in the jar and ensure that the water is completely drained.
6. Rinse the seeds 3-4 times a day, and within 2-3 days, the seeds will break and sprout.
7. Now you can put the mason jar under mild sunlight.
8. Within a week the seeds would sprout properly, ready to eat.

Raw sprouts are the best nutrient choice. Meanwhile, to break the monotony, you can also use them in salads and sandwiches. You can also add alfalfa sprouts, very similar in appearance, with them to get a mixed taste with equal nutrient enrichment. Broccoli sprouts, kale cabbage, and bok choy salad can also be tried.

You can find some unique broccoli sprouts recipes here:  https://www.broccolisproutshop.com/broccoli-sprouts-recipes/.

4. How Broccoli Sprouts Nutrition Boosts Your Health?

Broccoli sprouts help in the prevention of various health issues. Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan found that they may reduce the risk of stroke, hypertension, and other cardiovascular diseases. These sprouts raise our cell’s anti-inflammatory capacity easily which improves our immunity. Some incredible benefits of these tiny sprouts’ nutrition are:

4.1. Useful in Cancer Prevention

Researchers at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have found out that broccoli sprouts contain a high amount of sulforaphane. It is a cancer-fighting compound that has antioxidant effects. It naturally supports the detoxification process.

Cruciferous vegetables like broccoli are known for their sulforaphane content, but the sprouts have 20 to 50 times more presence of it. Researchers have found that just 3 to 5 servings of broccoli sprouts can lower the risks of cancer by 40%.

Broccoli sprouts nutrition also decreases the risks of breast cancer, prostate, and urinary cancer. It also protects our skin from ultraviolet radiation.

4.2. Mental Health

Mental disorders are generally treated based on drugs that may have severe side effects. Medical experts always try to find out natural supplements to cure them. The abundant presence of sulforaphane in broccoli sprouts has brought a ray of hope for patients who have psychological disorders.

In a study conducted at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, researchers found that broccoli sprout extracts that contain sulforaphane, help in lowering the amount of glutamate (responsible for schizophrenia). A set of chemical imbalances in the brain causes schizophrenia. Hallucination, negative thinking, and disordered motor behavior are some of its symptoms.  It is developing as a serious psychological disorder among different age groups.

Now they are considering developing natural sprout chemicals to substitute artificial drugs.

Studies reveal that they also reduce the symptoms of autism. Sulforaphane, in them, creates a biological reaction and reduces stress. The inflammation caused by it in brain cells eases stress.

A healthy broccoli sprouts nutrition intake fights depression. The presence of spermidine, along with sulforaphane, helps in alleviating depression symptoms. Studies show that it improves our immunity to resist depression. How to Increase Serotonin Naturally in 3 Easy Steps?

4.3. Care for Heart

Broccoli sprouts nutrition prevents several heart diseases with its antioxidant properties.

Studies reveal that the compound glucoraphanin helps improve our heart health and fight against inflammation. It acts as an indirect antioxidant and improves the body’s antioxidant defense system. Glucoraphanin is found naturally in broccoli sprouts.

People who opt for broccoli sprouts nutrition have less calcium build-up in their blood vessels. Calcification in the aortas (the body’s largest blood vessel) increases the chances of heart attack or stroke. Regular intake of broccoli sprouts reduces the calcification of fatty deposits in the blood vessels.

4.4. It Keeps the Toxins Away!

Millions of people face health issues due to pollution across the world. Dirt, snoot, and smoke affect our lungs and the whole breathing system. Pollution is a universal phenomenon, and our exposure is fated.

Surprisingly, broccoli sprouts, the precursor to sulforaphane, sustain the activity of benzene— a lung irritant. Sulforaphane helps our cells to adapt and survive a broad range of environmental toxins.

4.5. Good for Digestion

3 to 4 servings of broccoli sprouts a week help our digestion. They elevate the protective enzymes in our body. These enzymes protect our body from inflammation and other harmful chemicals.

Cruciferous veggies and their sprouts are always good for the digestive system as they contain a good amount of fiber. fiber Raw sprouts improve our digestion.

4.6. Good for Your Eyes

Studies have proven that broccoli is very effective in the prevention of blindness. Broccoli and broccoli sprouts protect our eyes from harmful ultraviolet rays. The antioxidant sulforaphane⁵ reduces the oxidative stress of the retina.

Experts advise a high broccoli sprouts diet to prevent age-related eyesight issues and blindness. They also help prevent the shifting of chronic degenerative diseases of the eyes.

You can also follow the link to learn more about the benefits of broccoli and sprouts for the skin.

4.7. Healthy Liver

The liver is known as the detoxifier of the blood. A healthy liver helps to purify the toxins that enter our bodies through external sources.

Fatty liver is a common disease that is caused due to the building up of fatty acids around the liver. Loss of appetite, weakness, and fatigue are some of its symptoms.

Studies reveal that sulforaphane which is present in broccoli sprouts decreases the unnecessary amount of fat in the liver. It improves metabolism and keeps the liver healthy.

5. The End Note

These tiny sprouts have an incredible amount of natural components that are beneficial for our health. Sulforaphane-rich broccoli sprouts are now being used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. These days organic broccoli sprouts powder is also in trend. It has the same nutrient level and is quite popular among patients with autism.

Natural and safe, broccoli sprouts nutrition can take care of the whole body’s metabolism.

1. Nestle, Marion. “Broccoli sprouts in cancer prevention.” Nutrition reviews 56.4 (1998): 127-130. ↩︎
2. Murillo, Genoveva, and Rajendra G. Mehta. “Cruciferous vegetables and cancer prevention.” Nutrition and cancer 41.1-2 (2001): 17-28. ↩︎
3. López‐Cervantes, Jaime, et al. “Biochemical composition of broccoli seeds and sprouts at different stages of seedling development.” International journal of food science & technology 48.11 (2013): 2267-2275. ↩︎
4. Xu, Xinxing, et al. “Effect of glucoraphanin from broccoli seeds on lipid levels and gut microbiota in high-fat diet-fed mice.” Journal of functional foods 68 (2020): 103858. ↩︎
5. M de Figueiredo, Sonia, et al. “The antioxidant properties of organosulfur compounds (sulforaphane).” Recent Patents on Endocrine, Metabolic & Immune Drug Discovery 9.1 (2015): 24-39. ↩︎

Last Updated on July 22, 2024 by Sathi Chakraborty, MSc Biology