Tips From the Professor: Vegetables From A Pill?
Dr. Stephen Chaney
You've seen the ads:
"This pill provides the nutrition of a bunch of different fruits & vegetables"
-or-
"This drink provides many servings of fresh fruits and vegetables"
(The wording of the ads has been changed slightly to protect the guilty)
Now, somewhere in fine print on their web site, bottle or can you will find a disclaimer saying that their product is not meant to replace fruits and vegetables in your diet.
But, that's not what the ads would have you believe.
Recently, a group of scientists decided to test the claims of one of these companies (Clarke et al, Pharmacological Research, 64: 456-463, 2011).
They compared the nutrients obtained from eating broccoli sprouts and a broccoli pill.
Yes, there are actually supplement manufacturers who market broccoli pills.
After all, everyone knows that broccoli is good for us, and many people don't like broccoli. We even had a recent president who told the nation that he never ate broccoli.
They divided their subjects into two groups. One group consumed 40 grams of fresh broccoli sprouts. Over the next 48 hours the scientist measure the levels of the isothiocyanates sulforaphane and erucin in the subject's blood and urine.
(Sorry for the big words, but these are the nutrients thought to be most responsible for the health benefits of broccoli).
After a one month washout period the same subjects took 6 broccoli pills (which the manufacturer claimed were an equivalent amount) and the scientists again measured
levels of the same beneficial nutrients in their blood and urine.
The control group followed the same general protocol, but in the first phase of the study they consumed alfalfa sprouts and in the second phase of the study they were given placebo pills.
The first group had 4.5 to 7.4 fold higher levels of the beneficial isothiocyanates in their bloodstream and urine following consumption of broccoli sprouts than they did after taking broccoli pills.
And as you might expect, the control group had very low levels of isothiocyanates in their system after consuming either the alfalfa sprouts or the placebo pills.
So what is the bottom line for you?
Don't be deceived by those ads claiming that a pill or drink can provide all the wonderful benefits of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables.
Supplements can do wonderful things, but they can't and shouldn't replace fruits and vegetables in our diets.
To Your Health!
Dr. Stephen G Chaney
Shaklee Master Coordinator
"This pill provides the nutrition of a bunch of different fruits & vegetables"
-or-
"This drink provides many servings of fresh fruits and vegetables"
(The wording of the ads has been changed slightly to protect the guilty)
Now, somewhere in fine print on their web site, bottle or can you will find a disclaimer saying that their product is not meant to replace fruits and vegetables in your diet.
But, that's not what the ads would have you believe.
Recently, a group of scientists decided to test the claims of one of these companies (Clarke et al, Pharmacological Research, 64: 456-463, 2011).
They compared the nutrients obtained from eating broccoli sprouts and a broccoli pill.
Yes, there are actually supplement manufacturers who market broccoli pills.
After all, everyone knows that broccoli is good for us, and many people don't like broccoli. We even had a recent president who told the nation that he never ate broccoli.
They divided their subjects into two groups. One group consumed 40 grams of fresh broccoli sprouts. Over the next 48 hours the scientist measure the levels of the isothiocyanates sulforaphane and erucin in the subject's blood and urine.
(Sorry for the big words, but these are the nutrients thought to be most responsible for the health benefits of broccoli).
After a one month washout period the same subjects took 6 broccoli pills (which the manufacturer claimed were an equivalent amount) and the scientists again measured
levels of the same beneficial nutrients in their blood and urine.
The control group followed the same general protocol, but in the first phase of the study they consumed alfalfa sprouts and in the second phase of the study they were given placebo pills.
The first group had 4.5 to 7.4 fold higher levels of the beneficial isothiocyanates in their bloodstream and urine following consumption of broccoli sprouts than they did after taking broccoli pills.
And as you might expect, the control group had very low levels of isothiocyanates in their system after consuming either the alfalfa sprouts or the placebo pills.
So what is the bottom line for you?
Don't be deceived by those ads claiming that a pill or drink can provide all the wonderful benefits of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables.
Supplements can do wonderful things, but they can't and shouldn't replace fruits and vegetables in our diets.
To Your Health!
Dr. Stephen G Chaney
Shaklee Master Coordinator
Dr. Chaney has a PhD in Biochemistry from UCLA.
He is a professor in the Dept of Biochemistry and Biophysics and the Department of Nutrition at UNC
Teaches first year medical students and runs an active cancer research program.
Has published 90 papers in peer-reviewed journals
Has published two chapters on nutrition for one of the leading biochemistry textbooks
Dr. Chaney’s wife, Suzanne, who has a MS in Biochemistry and ran the EPA Lab Agency for 10 years.
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