We eat many kinds of vegetables every day to keep the body strong from within, but many people do not realise that broccoli holds a special place among them. Looking like a green cauliflower, it is a complete nutritional package of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.

• Eating broccoli regularly boosts immunity and keeps digestion healthy, with positive effects on almost every organ of the body, from the heart to the skin.
• Broccoli contains plenty of vitamin C and vitamin K. Vitamin C strengthens the body's defences, helps fight infection and plays a role in making collagen in the skin. Vitamin K helps keep bones strong and helps prevent bone loss with age.
• Broccoli is also rich in folate, potassium, manganese and fibre, which play an important part in filling everyday nutritional gaps.
• Its most talked-about component is sulforaphane, an antioxidant compound. Research has found that sulforaphane helps reduce free radicals that build up in the body and protects cells from damage. For this reason broccoli is seen as a potential cancer-preventing food; its antioxidants may help reduce the risk of some cancers of the colon, prostate, breast and stomach.
• It is also very good for digestion. Its high dietary fibre helps keep the gut clean, eases constipation and encourages the growth of good gut bacteria. Broccoli also helps control blood sugar, because fibre is digested slowly and helps keep blood glucose stable.
• Broccoli is an excellent choice for the heart. Fibre, potassium and antioxidants together help control blood pressure, lower cholesterol and may reduce calcium build-up in the arteries, lowering the risk of heart attack or stroke.

Broccoli is very versatile in the kitchen. It suits all kinds of recipes: raw in salads, steamed, in soups, pasta or noodles. Its nutrients are best preserved, however, when it is cooked for a very short time, such as by light steaming or stir-frying.

The information is drawn from Harvard Health Publishing, Cleveland Clinic and Medical News Today.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.