Broccoli sprouts may suppress ulcer bug infection

MedWire News: Eating broccoli sprouts may help suppress infection with a stomach bug, called Helicobacter pylori, which causes ulcers, gastritis and stomach cancer, study results suggest.

Previous studies have shown that a chemical in broccoli, called sulforaphane, is a potent antibiotic against Helicobacter pylori, explain Akinori Yanaka, from Tokyo University of Science in Japan, and team.

Sulforaphane appears to trigger cells in the body, including those in the gastrointestinal tract, to produce enzymes that protect against DNA damage and inflammation caused by oxygen “radicals”.

But they add that "broccoli sprouts have a much higher concentration of sulforaphane than mature heads”, and may therefore have a more powerful action against Helicobacter pylori infection.

To investigate, the team studied mice infected with Helicobacter pylori that were given either broccoli sprout smoothies or plain water, in addition to their usual diets, for 8 weeks.

They found that mice given the broccoli sprout smoothies had up to a four-fold increase in the action of DNA-protective enzymes, and levels of Helicobacter pylori in their stomachs fell significantly. There was also a significant reduction in stomach inflammation among mice given the broccoli sprout smoothies. No such benefits were seen in mice given plain water.

The researchers then studied 50 people infected with Helicobacter pylori who were asked to eat 70 g of broccoli sprouts a day for 2 months or an equivalent amount of alfalfa sprouts, which do not contain sulforaphane.

They found that Helicobacter pylori levels had fallen significantly by week 4 and 8 in the patients assigned to eat broccoli sprouts, but remained unchanged in patients who had eaten alfalfa sprouts.

Dr Yanaka and team conclude: “Daily intake of sulforaphane-rich broccoli sprouts for 2 months reduces Helicobacter pylori colonization in mice and improves the sequelae of infection in infected mice and in humans.”

Co-researcher Dr Jed Fahey, from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, added: “The highlight of the study is that we identified a food that, if eaten regularly, might potentially have an effect on the cause of a lot of gastric problems and perhaps even ultimately help prevent stomach cancer."