Boiling broccoli saps its power to fight cancer

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Scientists says the British habit of boiling vegetables to a mush destroys their cancer-fighting properties.

Broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts and other members of the brassica family of leafy green vegetables respond particularly badly to boiling.

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Brassica vegetables such as broccoli and Brussels sprouts help prevent cancer because they contain plant compounds called glucosinolates

Up to 80 per cent of their cancer-busting compounds leech out into the water - and the health benefits are lost.

Professor Paul Thornalley said: "If you want to get the maximum benefit from your five-a-day vegetable consumption, boiling is out.

"You need to consider stir-frying, steaming, or microwaving."

The Warwick University researcher studied how cooking methods affected levels of glucosinolates in broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and sprouts.

These compounds, which have a bitter taste, are found in high quantities in these vegetables. They help ward off heart disease and cancers of the breast, lung and colon.

The researchers found broccoli loses 77 per cent of its glucosinolates when boiled for 30 minutes and half when boiled for ten. Cauliflower loses 75 per cent of the compounds when boiled for 30 minutes, cabbage loses 65 per cent, and sprouts 58 per cent.

Steaming, microwaving and stirfrying have little effect on the glucosinolate content. Freezing and defrosting also reduce levels, but refrigeration has little effect.