Brussels sprouts look like miniature cabbages and this doesn’t really comes as a surprise — they belong to the cruciferous gang of vegetables together with the likes of collard greens, kale, cauliflower, mustard greens, bok choi, radish and broccoli. Perhaps you have heard time and again that sulfur compounds in them that help in detoxifying your body as well as preventing the growth of cancer cells.
Many hate Brussels sprouts for their characteristic taste (which, by the way, can be kept to a minimum by having them oven-roasted) but you will surely love them after knowing the numerous health benefits they bring. The following are some of the reasons why you should serve more Brussels sprouts on the table:
They Help Strengthen the Bone
Brussels sprouts contain a couple of nutrients necessary for stronger and healthier bones. First, there’s calcium which is a mineral that everyone knows as very important for strengthening the bones. Second, there’s vitamin K which promotes better calcium absorption and minimizes the loss of the said mineral through the urine. Consume Brussels sprouts regularly to ward off fractures and osteoporosis, a condition wherein the bones become soft and brittle.
Brussels Sprouts Help Keep Your Eyes Healthy
Everyone knows that vitamin A is important for the eyes. However, there’s another nutrient that is very good at keeping your peepers healthy: vitamin C. This powerful antioxidant helps keep the eyes from being damaged by the sun’s UV radiation. Then there are also zeaxanthins in Brussels sprouts — super potent antioxidants that are said to help ward off the ill effects of macular degeneration, which is known as the leading cause of loss of vision among the elderly.
Eating Them Helps Prevent Inflammation
Inflammation is actually a good thing because it’s a sign that your body is actively defending you against invading microbes. However, it’s a different thing if it occurs for no reason. Inflammation is linked by the experts to a host of health nightmares such as diabetes, arthritis, obesity, heart disease and cancer. There are 3 things in Brussels sprouts that make these little round vegetables anti-inflammatory: glucosinolates (sulfur compounds), vitamin K and omega-3 fatty acids.
Regular Consumption Promotes a Healthy Digestive Tract
Every cup of Brussels sprouts pack about 4 grams of fiber, an indigestible type of carbohydrates that helps promote a healthy gut in more ways than one. Fiber helps in the regular sweeping out of waste products and prevents constipation. Experts say that fiber also promotes the growth of healthy bacteria in the intestinal tract. Eating fiber-rich Brussels sprouts contribute to the reduction of bad cholesterol levels in your blood too.
Brussels Sprouts Make You Look Younger
Vitamin C is an antioxidant that helps protect the skin cells from being damaged. It’s also necessary for the production of collagen, a structural type of protein that keeps fine lines and wrinkles from surfacing. You may think that the best sources of age-defying vitamin C are citrus fruits only. Did you know that a cup of Brussels sprouts contain as much as 75 milligrams of vitamin C? If you want to look younger sans undergoing the knife, include Brussels sprouts in your diet.
They Help Maintain a Healthy Cardiovascular System
Eating Brussels sprouts regularly is good for the heart. As mentioned earlier, these cruciferous vegetables help ward off inflammation which is linked to heart disease. Brussels sprouts are also packed with fiber that flushes out fat molecules before they get oxidized and end up as cholesterol deposited in the arterial walls.
Consuming Them Helps Detoxify Your Body
Headaches, fatigue, inability to focus, joint pains, bloating — all of these things and more could be signs that you got plenty of toxins within you. Including Brussels sprouts in your daily diet can help in neutralizing those impurities. These vegetables pack sulfur compounds that assist the body in getting rid of those accumulated toxins.
Brussels Sprouts May Considerably Lower Your Risk of Cancer
Everyone knows that cancer is a deadly disease. If hearing about it gives you cold sweats, make sure you eat sufficient amounts of Brussels sprouts to significantly reduce your risk of getting it. Glucosinolates these vegetables have plenty of is used by the body to produce isothiocyanates, compounds that activate body enzymes that fight off cancer cells.
