Eat broccoli

[Ford Fairlane]

and keep doctors away from your date.

Broccoli helps prevent prostate cancer
TAMARA McLEAN
July 02, 2008 02:20pm

EATING broccoli once a week can reduce a man's chances of developing prostate cancer, and might even slow the tumour growth in sufferers, a new study suggests.

Australian cancer experts have welcomed findings from a British study which has confirmed the benefits of the vegetable on cancer in humans, not just lab rats.

But they warn it is still unclear how protective the broccoli is, or who will benefit most from adding it to their dinner plate.

Researchers from Institute of Food Research in Norwich, in eastern England, gave 22 men 400 grams of either broccoli or peas a week, equal to one or two portions, in addition to their normal diet, for a year.

Tissue samples were taken from their prostate gland before and during the trial, and the results showed that broccoli changed how genes linked to prostate cancer act.

This suggests the broccoli-rich diet reduces the risk of developing prostate cancer, and also the chance of localised cancer becoming more aggressive.

Other studies have shown that cruciferous vegetables like broccoli may reduce the risk of prostate cancer and other chronic disease, but this is the first to explain why.

Lead researcher Professor Richard Mithen said the results, published in the journal PLoS ONE, were exciting because they indicate benefits from relatively small quantities.

"Other fruits and vegetables have been shown to also reduce the risk of prostate cancer and are likely to act through other mechanisms," Prof Mithen said.

"Once we understand these, we can provide much better dietary advice in which specific combinations of fruit and vegetable are likely to be particularly beneficial."

Cancer Council Australia chief executive Professor Ian Olver said the result was interesting but larger studies were needed to prove broccoli caused the reduced cancer risk.

Dr Michael Fenech, principal research scientist at CSIRO Human Nutrition, also warned that studies had yet to show broccoli consumption affected levels of PSA, the main biomarker of prostate cancer risk, or that it changed tumour cell growth.

"There is also little direct evidence to suggest that eating more broccoli protects you against prostate cancer if you are susceptible due to any genetic or environmental factor," Dr Fenech said.

 

[Toots Hibbert]

I'll sleep easier this week knowing that I made a large pot of cream of broccoli and potato soup last weekend and ate most of it over a period of two days.

Here's the recipe

Cream of Broccoli and Potato Soup a la Toots

One large onion
5 sticks of celery
Kilo of potatoes
Kilo of broccoli
750 ml of vegetable stock
750 gm of good quality thin beef sausages
250 mls of virgin olive oil
600 mls of thickened cream
1/4 of teaspoon of chilli powder
1 teaspoon of ginger powder
Salt
Pepper

• In a large saucepan add the olive oil and put on high heat
• Add the chilli and ginger powder and heat well (the chilli is there to add a bit of zing without being too intrusive)
• Turn down the heat and add the onion and celery which has been roughly chopped up
• Saute the onion and celery
• Peel and cut the potatoes and put them in a microwave for 3 or four minutes
• Cut up the broccoli and put that through the microwave also. Use most of the stems just cut of the end bits.
• When the onion has turned golden brown add the potato, broccoli and vegetable stock
• Simmer until the potato and broccoli are tender (the purpose of using the microwave first is to reduce cooking time and retain vitamins)
• Once tender put this lot through a blender (try not to overdo this so there is still a bit of texture ie you should be able to see some of the tiny little broccoli flowers when you are done)
• Once back in a saucepan add the cream and stir in well
• Add salt and pepper to taste
• Cut the sausages into short sections and fry (hint:- if they're partially frozen its much easier to cut them into small lengths. Using good quality sausages is a cheats way of avoiding the labour of making meatballs)
• Add them to the soup and stir in
• Eat

 

[portentous]

A good point given Alan Jones' press conference today.

 

[Macca19]

Tomatoes are good for preventing PC as well

 

[Steve Dore]

and keep doctors away from your date.

Spice and Ice in St. Vincent Street at the Port do a nice Tandoori Broccoli. But if you really want to keep the doctor away from your date I would recommend the Vindaloo

 

[i_love_the_hoff]

My Nonno ate broccoli at least 5 times a week, because he grew it in his garden, and he still developed the cancer.