A tasty plant you can grow at home could help slash your risk of type 2 diabetes, according to a new study. The popular salad topper was shown to significantly improve blood sugar levels in people with prediabetes – a precursor to the health condition.
Researchers from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden discovered that broccoli sprouts could be used as a possible treatment for prediabetes. This is due to a chemical compound found in broccoli sprouts called sulforaphane.
Sulforaphane extracted from broccoli sprouts had previously been linked to improved blood sugar in type 2 diabetes patients, but this is the first time it had been shown to have an effect on those with prediabetes. Broccoli sprouts are three- to four-day-old broccoli plants.
They are popularly used in salads and said to have a radish-type flavour. They can be bought ready-to-eat or easily grown at home using a jar, or a specialised kit.
The study, which was published in Nature Microbiology journal, included 89 participants with elevated fasting blood sugar, an indicator of prediabetes. They were also classed as overweight or obese and aged 35 to 75 years old.
A total of 74 participants completed all stages of the study. They were given either broccoli sprout-derived sulforaphane or a placebo for 12 weeks.
Those taking the sulforaphane compound had a higher average reduction in fasting blood sugar than those taking the placebo. On top of this, the group with the greatest improvement after taking sulforaphane had early signs of mild age-related diabetes.
The third stage, involved the study of gut bacteria, with the discovery of a gut bacterium able to interact with sulforaphane that could be linked to further improved efficacy of the broccoli compound.
As reported by EurekaAlert, the differences in fasting blood sugar were 0.2 millimoles per litre between all participants taking sulforaphane compared to the placebo group.
This was followed by 0.4 in the clinical subgroup, and 0.7 in those who were both in the clinical subgroup and had the gut bacterium. Study author Anders Rosengren highlighted the importance of early and personalised interventions to prevent the disease.
“The treatment of prediabetes is currently lacking in many respects, but these new findings open the way for possible precision treatment using sulforaphane extracted from broccoli as a functional food,” he said. “However, lifestyle factors remain the foundation of any treatment for prediabetes, including exercise, healthy eating, and weight loss.
“The results of the study also offer a general model of how pathophysiology and gut flora interact with and influence treatment responses. A model that could have broader implications.”
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