According to a British study conducted on mice, eating broccoli could slow arthritis damage, or delay it. A study on humans should begin soon.
Does broccoli have hidden virtues? In any case, a British study claims that these vegetables could slow down arthritis lesions, or delay them. Results of the study published Thursday in the journal Arthritis & Rheumatism are of particular importance because osteoarthritis is one of the main causes of the loss of autonomy of the elderly.
Researchers at the University of East Anglia were indeed interested in osteoarthritis which is a degenerative disease that affects hands, feet, knees, spine and hips. Women are three times more affected than men. To successfully establish a link between osteoarthritis and consumption of this vegetable , scientists have isolated two groups of mice.
The first group received a diet rich in broccoli and the second group had a diet a normal diet without this vegetable. At the end of the study, the first group of mice suffered fewer problems with cartilage and osteoarthritis than those who did not consume broccoli.
But why? According to the British team, it is sulforaphane, a compound released into the body during the consumption of cruciferous vegetables (which also include Brussels sprouts, cabbage and cauliflower), which block enzymes leading to joint destruction, by stopping a key molecule that is the source of the inflammation. The anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties of sulforaphane were already known , but not on the joints.
These promising results provide new ideas to researchers. For Professor Ian Clark, lead author of the study, “The results from this study are very promising. We have shown this works in the three laboratory models we have tried, in human cartilage cells, cow tissue and mice. We now want to show this works in humans. It would be very powerful if we could.”
In 2011 there were more than 77,000 knee and 66,000 hip replacements in the UK, while the cost of treating arthritis is £5.2 billion a year.
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