Broccoli & H - Herpes Message Board

justnotfair · 11-22-2003, 10:24 PM

Anyone read the netscape article on broccoli and herpes? Basically something within the broccoli helps defeat the virus from spreading when introduced. Doctors put this chemical into rats and then introduced them to hsv 1 and 2 and 99% of the time the virus was killed and ceased further spreading. The affects on humans is ?likely? to be similar. What it means to us already infected, was not specified.

Thought I'd share if no one read the article. I cannot seem to find it on netscape either.

Bite my tongue I found some studies through google

Quote:

A compound found in broccoli, cabbage, and brussels sprouts may hold the key to thwarting the herpes virus, according to preliminary research presented Sunday at the 43rd annual Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICACC) in Chicago. The new findings may be one more reason to make broccoli one of your five to nine servings of fruit and vegetables each day.

Preliminary lab studies of monkey and human cells found that d-indole-methanol (DIM), a compound found naturally in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage and brussels spouts, may interfere with factors that stimulate cells to reproduce. The researchers found that DIM can inhibit herpes simplex virus, which also requires these factors to reproduce.

In their study, the researchers first treated human and monkey cells with DIM. They then infected the cells with one of two strains of the herpes virus, either HSV-1, which can cause either oral or genital herpes, or HSV-2, which causes genital herpes. The researchers also infected the cells with a herpes virus strain known to be resistant to the current available drug therapy, Zovirax.

I3C blocked the virus from reproducing by at least 99.9%, according to lead researcher Terri Stoner, a graduate student at Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine in Rootstown, Ohio. "DIM appeared to inhibit various types of the herpes virus," Stoner tells said. "And because it is found naturally in foods, the compound appears to be safe."

According to the American Social Health Association, about 50% to 80% of adults in the U.S. have oral herpes and about one in five has genital herpes, but as many as 90% are unaware that they have the virus. As with all viruses, there is no cure. Herpes is different from other common viral infections because once it is introduced, it lives in the body for a lifetime, often without symptoms,or with periodic symptoms.
Should we eat more broccoli if we have herpes?

The researchers note that there are already many good reasons to eat more broccoli, and while herpes treatment may one day prove to be another good reason, it is way to early to say. In fact, boiled broccoli has more vitamin C than an orange and as much calcium as a glass of milk, according to the USDA's nutrient database. One medium spear has three times more fiber than a slice of wheat bran bread.

Broccoli is also one of the richest sources of vitamin A that is found in the produce section. Broccoli has also been shown to protect against cancer. Researchers at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore have discovered that broccoli is rich in substances called isothiocyanates -- chemicals shown to stimulate the body's production of its own cancer-fighting substances.

Scientists at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston have reported that broccoli, along with spinach, helped to minimize risk for cataracts and prevent stroke.