Table of contents:
- What nutrients are contained in broccoli?
- The benefits of broccoli for the health of the human body
- 1. Anti-cancer food sources
- 2. Detoxify the body
- 3. Improve skin health
- 4. Maintain digestive health
- 5. Maintain eye health
- 6. Strengthens endurance
- 7. Maintain healthy bones
- The content of calcium and minerals in broccoli is more easily absorbed by the body and is very beneficial for the growth of bones of children and individuals who are prone to osteoporosis.
- 8. Maintain a healthy womb
- Broccoli contains various nutrients needed to meet the nutritional needs of pregnant women, especially folic acid, which prevents birth defects.
- 9. Maintain healthy blood vessels
- The mineral content of broccoli helps improve blood flow so that it can prevent high blood pressure, besides the various nutritional content in broccoli also helps insulin work to balance blood sugar levels.
- The various content of B vitamins also helps reduce the risk of atherosclerosis by preventing the production of excess homocysteine in the blood vessels.
- 10. Prevent anemia
- But, be careful of broccoli side effects
- How to maintain the nutritional content of broccoli
Broccoli is a green vegetable from the cabbage plant family. Broccoli originates from Italy and has been known since the sixth century. Until now, broccoli is known as the healthiest food source because it contains a variety of nutrients including sources that can only be obtained from plants, namely phytonutrients which have many health benefits for the body.
What nutrients are contained in broccoli?
Broccoli is rich in various nutrients, especially vitamins and minerals. Every 156 grams of broccoli or every one cup of broccoli can meet various types of nutritional needs, including:
- Vitamin - Meet the adequacy of vitamins C and K as a whole (100%), folate needs around 42%, vitamins B5, A, B2, B6, E and choline are around 13-19%, and vitamins B1 and B3 are around 5-8% of the need daily.
- Mineral - Chromium needs around 53%, phosphorus and manganese about 15%, potassium and copper about 11-13%, and magnesium, zinc, iron, calcium and selenium about 5-8% of daily needs.
- Macro-nutrients - meet the fiber needs of about 21%, protein as much as 7% and omega-3 as much as 8% of the daily requirement.
Broccoli also contains other nutrients in varying amounts and needs such as sulfur, beta-carotene, anti-oxidants, and various phyto-nutrients.
The benefits of broccoli for the health of the human body
1. Anti-cancer food sources
Consumption of 1-2 glasses of broccoli per day can repair various damage to the body caused by cancer.
Various contents of broccoli that can act as anti-cancer substances are various phyto-nutrients, vitamins C, A, and E as well as minerals such as potassium and selenium.
These nutrients can act as antioxidants and help metabolize oxygen and prevent inflammation at the cellular level, which is the initial phase of cancer development.
2. Detoxify the body
The high content of vitamin C and sulfur in broccoli helps reduce toxins in the blood that cause itching, rashes, gout, arthritis and rheumatism.
3. Improve skin health
The content of vitamin C, vitamin B complex and vitamin E helps in replacing damaged skin tissue, while vitamins A and K and folate function as skin lightening. Broccoli also has various phyto-nutrients that prevent skin damage from sun exposure.
4. Maintain digestive health
The fiber content in broccoli helps prevent and treat constipation, besides magnesium and various vitamins in broccoli reduce stomach acidity so that it can improve the function of nutrient absorption and prevent inflammation in the digestive tract.
5. Maintain eye health
The content of beta-carotene, vitamins A, B, C and E and phosphorus prevents damage to eye cells and cataracts and helps repair radiation-induced eye damage.
6. Strengthens endurance
The content of vitamin C and various minerals and phyto-nutrients from broccoli help build immunity and prevent various infections.
7. Maintain healthy bones
The content of calcium and minerals in broccoli is more easily absorbed by the body and is very beneficial for the growth of bones of children and individuals who are prone to osteoporosis.
8. Maintain a healthy womb
Broccoli contains various nutrients needed to meet the nutritional needs of pregnant women, especially folic acid, which prevents birth defects.
9. Maintain healthy blood vessels
The mineral content of broccoli helps improve blood flow so that it can prevent high blood pressure, besides the various nutritional content in broccoli also helps insulin work to balance blood sugar levels.
The various content of B vitamins also helps reduce the risk of atherosclerosis by preventing the production of excess homocysteine in the blood vessels.
10. Prevent anemia
Regular consumption of broccoli helps meet iron and omega-3 adequacy in preventing anemia.
In addition, the content of copper (copper) helps iron function in producing red blood cells.
But, be careful of broccoli side effects
In general, broccoli has ingredients that are safe for consumption for most but can cause disturbances in certain conditions.
Excess consumption of broccoli can cause several side effects such as allergies that occur in individuals with sensitive thyroid glands.
Some medications to thin blood in stroke sufferers can also react with consumption of broccoli so that the treatment can be less effective.
How to maintain the nutritional content of broccoli
The way it is served will affect the nutritional intake of broccoli, especially if someone wants to have the effect of treating cancer, the content of broccoli must be maintained as well as possible.
Here are some things that must be considered to maintain the nutritional content of broccoli:
- Clean and dip the top of the broccoli in salt water for 30 minutes and wash again using cold water to make sure the broccoli is free of pesticides.
- Eating nutritious broccoli is best served raw or served in the form of a salad.
- Avoid cooking broccoli for too long. The time limit for boiling it takes is about 20 minutes, using a microwave oven is about 3 minutes, while cooking broccoli by sauteing is about 5 minutes for the longest.
- Cooking broccoli by boiling and using the oven at high temperature will damage the nutritional content of broccoli.
- Eat broccoli while fresh, storage in the refrigerator will keep broccoli fresh.
