Broccoli is good for the intestines

For broccoli haters, the researchers have bad news: These vegetables may promote gut health.

In a study where mice were forced to consume broccoli with their regular meals, they were able to avoid digestive problems similar to leaky gut and colitis than mice that did not eat broccoli, according to Gary Purdue, Pennsylvania professor of agricultural sciences ... She added that her close relatives, such as Brussels sprouts and cauliflower, can also help improve bowel function.

“We have many reasons for studying the health of the digestive system, and one of them is leaky gut syndrome, which causes inflammation, which causes other diseases such as arthritis and heart problems,” said Purdue. ... "Keeping your gut healthy and making sure you have a strong immune system would be really great."

The intestine must serve as a barrier, that is, allow nutrients to pass into the body, but at the same time protect against toxins and harmful microorganisms.
According to Purdue, a key element responsible for this process is the aryl hydrocarbon receptor, or AHR. With its help, our body reacts negatively to certain substances that pollute the environment, and can also protect itself from toxic effects.

The researchers, who published their findings in the current Journal of Functional Foods, believe that cruciferous vegetables contain organic chemicals called indole glucosinolates, which break down into other compounds, including indolocarbazole (ICZ), in the stomach.

According to the researchers, ICZ binds to the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) and allows it to work in the intestines, it maintains a healthy balance in the digestive system and improves barrier function. It can help prevent diseases like various cancers and Crohn's disease caused by inflammation in the gut.

Overactive AHR can cause toxicity, but using broccoli to activate the receptor locally - in the gut - may help avoid some of these problems. “Dioxin, for example, activates this receptor, and if you activate it with dioxin, it will cause toxicity,” Purdue said. "We are interested in the following result: locally activating the receptor naturally at a level that would cause only moderate activation of AHR in the intestine, but would not cause systemic activation, which could lead to negative consequences."

The researchers ran an experiment with mice from two genetic lines to test how AHR works. One line had a bad connection between ICZ and AHR, and the other line did it well. They added 15% broccoli to the diet of both groups of mice. After adding a substance that is bad for the digestive tract, the researchers found that mice with good ICZ-AHR binding abilities did not respond to the chemical, and other mice suffered from toxic poisoning.

According to Purdue, the amount of broccoli in the experiment is equivalent for a person to 3.5 cups every day. “Now, three and a half cups is a lot, but it really isn't a lot,” Purdue said. “We used a variety that contains about half the amount of this chemical, and there are varieties with twice that amount. Besides, Brussels sprouts has three times as much of it, which means a cup of Brussels sprouts is on the same level as three cups of broccoli. "

People with certain digestive ailments such as colitis need to be careful to avoid too much harsh foods in their diets, future research may include identifying better ways to consume broccoli, or other vegetables with similar effects, to get the same benefits for health without causing any other digestive problems.

Kardopolova M. Yu.