Learn to love broccoli

If you're not a great fan of broccoli - a food some people love to hate - here's another reason to become a devotee: it may prevent heart disease.

Scientists have been extolling the health benefits of broccoli for years, saying it appears to provide some protection against certain cancers.

Vegetables like broccoli from the brassica family - which also includes cauliflower, cabbage and Brussels sprouts - are a rich source of antioxidants, vitamins and fibre that can help prevent the build-up of free radicals.

Now a study - published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry - reports that rats fed steamed broccoli extract for one month had improved heart function and less heart damage when deprived of oxygen, and higher levels of heart-healthy chemicals.

The researchers think that broccoli's positive effects are because of its high concentrations of certain substances that appear to boost levels of proteins such as thioredoxin that maintain the heart's ability to function healthily.

"We are increasingly finding that 'redox proteins', which counter the effects of oxidisation, have an important role in the body's defence against heart disease," says lead author Professor Dipak Das.

While eating steamed broccoli may reduce the risk of a heart attack, Prof Das warns, "If broccoli is over-cooked it loses a lot of its protective effect."