High blood sugars are capable of inducing serious damage to the circulatory system and the kidneys. Heart and kidney disease often accompany diabetes. Researchers have shown that sulforaphane in cruciferous vegetables offers considerable protection against circulatory damage induced by high blood sugars.
Cruciferous vegetables protect us in a different manner than many other
antioxidants because they act indirectly and have a long half-life. One
researcher comments, "Indirect
antioxidants, such as sulforaphane and other Phase II enzyme inducers,
unlike direct antioxidants, are not consumed stoichiometrically while
performing their antioxidant functions. They have a longer duration of
action, and high cellular concentrations need not be maintained, since
the induced enzymes have half-lives measured in days. They support the
functions of naturally-occurring, direct-acting antioxidants such as
vitamin E and coenzyme Q10, they enhance the synthesis of glutathione,
one of the most abundant intracellular direct antioxidants, and they
elevate enzymes that deal with a wide variety of oxidants." In other
words, the protective compounds in cruciferous vegetables are not used
up as readily as other more direct acting antioxidants.
Cruciferous vegetables are gaining considerable attention as anti-cancer agents.
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