Members of the cabbage family of vegetables may have great cancer-fighting potential.

Our nutritional focus on The Juice Glass for the week of March 23, 2001 is a group of potential cancer-fighters known as the cruciferous vegetables. The cruciferous vegetables are simply the members of the cabbage family which derive their name from their four-petaled flowers, which look like a crucifix, or cross.

These members of the cabbage family of vegetables.

Please note that cancer prevention and treatment is related to many factors, of which diet is just one part. But medical research indicates that diets rich in the cabbage family vegetables can boost the body’s resistance to several diseases, including cancer. Studies have shown that consumption of these vegetables can protect the body against colon and rectal cancer. Research has also indicated that a compound in bok choy called brassinin may help prevent breast tumors. Cabbage contains a compound known as I3C, which acts as an anti-estrogen, meaning that it attacks harmful estrogens that have been linked to breast cancer. Another common compound in the cabbage family vegetables is sulforaphane, which has been shown to enhance the body’s production of tumor-preventing enzymes.

The cabbage family vegetables also contain good amounts of antioxidants like Vitamin A and C.