Broccoli - Immune System Booster?
A compound found in broccoli and related vegetables may regulate your immune response, according to a new study led by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley.
Veggie fans can already point to some cancer-fighting properties of 3,3'-diindolylmethane (DIM), a chemical released when Brassica vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage and kale are chewed and digested. Animal studies have shown that DIM can actually stop the growth of certain cancer cells.
This new study in mice, published online in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, shows that DIM may help boost the immune system as well. The researchers found increased blood levels of cytokines, proteins that help regulate the cells of the immune system, in mice that had been fed solutions containing DIM. Specifically, DIM led to a jump in levels of four types of cytokines: interleukin 6, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, interleukin 12 and interferon-gamma.
In cell cultures, the researchers also found that DIM doubled the number of white blood cells, or lymphocytes, which help the body fight infections by killing or engulfing pathogens.
The effects of DIM were transient, with cytokine and lymphocyte levels going up and then down, which is what you'd expect with an immune response.
This summary was adapted from a press release issued by the University of California, Berkeley.
