We grow Microgreens because of their health benefits. The science is done but most people have no idea of how powerfully healing microgreens are. We delight in bringing you up to date science to help you have confidence your food is truly as powerful as we have found it to be. Many of our customers report amazing improvements in various aspects of health. We are thrilled that microgreens treat the whole body, whatever ails us. Its best power is prevention. Enjoy learning about sulforaphane. It does a body good!

Any discussion of the health benefits of microgreens needs to discuss sulforaphane. Sulforaphane is a compound that is in recent years gaining increasingly more attention from the medical community and from the health foods industry. That’s because this compound has been connected with such a wide variety of vitally important health benefits including cancer prevention, diabetes management, improved cardiovascular health, and prevention of neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s.  

Understanding how sulforaphane works

Sulforaphane is a plant compound that belongs in a group of phytochemicals known as isothiocyanates. A phytochemical is a type of plant-based compound that is biologically active. In plants, these compounds function to help the plant grow and to defend the plant against predators, disease, and other types of damage. Phytochemicals don’t just have beneficial effects in the plants that produce them, but also in the bodies of humans who eat these plants.

One thing to note about sulforaphane is that it is not initially present in the plant. Rather, the plant produces a phytochemical known as glucoraphanin.  Glucoraphanin is an inactive compound that is activated by the enzyme myrosinase as a defense response when the plant becomes damaged. When a human eats a plant containing glucoraphanin, the glucoraphanin is activated as the plant is damaged by being chewed and digested. These phytonutrients, glucoraphanin and myrosinase combine to form sulforaphane in the mouth making it immediately available to work wonders in us.

How sulforaphane benefits one’s health

Sulforaphane benefits the body in so many different ways that it’s hard to mention them all here. The following is a list of only a few of the most important health benefits that have been linked with sulforaphane: 

• Prevention of cancer cell growth- Sulforaphane works by switching on a large group of enzymes in the body that promote cell health. This is especially good for preventing harmful cancer cells from growing and reproducing.
• Anti-inflammatory effects- Inflammation is a response in the body that’s the root cause of many different health issues. Chronic inflammation is connected with arthritis, asthma, sinusitis, and ulcerative colitis. Sulforaphane helps block the inflammatory response and therefore can help reduce occurrence of these conditions and more. 
• Regulation of blood sugar- Diabetes is unfortunately an all too common problem around the world that can have fatal consequences. Consumption of sulforaphane has been linked to lower blood sugar levels and greater insulin sensitivity. 
• Support of neurological health- Sulforaphane can have healing effects on the brain. It has been linked with improvements in functioning for those suffering from conditions like Alzheimer’s and autism. It also can help recovery and minimize resulting brain damage after a trauma injury. 
• Regulation of blood pressure- The cardiovascular benefits of sulforaphane stem from the fact that the substance helps regulate blood sugar.  

Microgreens containing sulforaphane

Microgreens are by far the best source of sulforaphane production in the body.  The following are some of the Microgreen crops that are the best sources of sulforaphane:

Broccoli

Cauliflower

Cabbage

Kale

Mustard Greens

Arugula

Kohlrabi

Micro VS. Mature

Microgreens are a powerful sulforaphane source

You can enjoy some health benefits of sulforaphane by eating mature vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower crowns, salads with kale, arugula, and mustard greens, or raw cabbage. However, the glucoraphanin content of mature vegetables doesn’t compare with what microgreens have to offer and if you cook the vegetable, the potential of sulforaphane is almost zero. The nutrients that combine in the still living plant as you crush it in your mouth to form sulforaphane do not combine in the pot. The potential is lost. but if you chew the broccoli floret or kale leaf, etc, those chemicals do combine an do produce sulphoraphane.

Take broccoli for example. If you eat broccoli microgreens, you’ll get as much as 100 times the glucoraphanin you would get from eating broccoli crowns. One ounce of broccoli microgreens is equal to 100 ounces of broccoli florets, or 6.25 pounds. The same kinds of ratios exist for our Cabbage Red Acre, Spicy Rainbow Mix, Sweet Rainbow Mix, Spicy Brassica, Red Russian Kale, Spicy Mustard, and Arugula Microgreens. These are in the brassica family. They give us sulforaphane, and do so powerfully. All we can learn about the benefits of microgreens, it is almost impossible to “overdose” on microgreens.

Our customers testify to the power of our MightyGreens.

At Bring Forth Urban Farm, we are very conscious of the power and significance of microgreens. One of our main roles is to educate our customers. We realize and enjoy the power of sulforaphane in several of our products.

Our customers confirm that they feel better on a diet rich in microgreens, especially those that produce sulforaphane. One lady uses three containers of the Spicy Brassica Mix and uses them in roll-ups for lunches. She reports that they make her feel wonderful. Another gives a cup of broccoli microgreens to each member of her family every day. She reports her daughter’s acne went away, her hyper-active son quieted down, and her own female issues were better. This was so significant to them that we helped them grow their own broccoli microgreens. They even take them on vacation!

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