4 Reasons to "Eat Your Brussels Sprouts!"

Whether you love them or you turn your nose up at the site of them, Brussels sprouts should be a regular item on your dinner menu. Here’s why.

They may protect against colorectal cancer
Consuming brassica vegetables, such as broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and, the star of today’s post, Brussels sprouts, has been shown in recent research to reduce the risk of cancers within the proximal and distal colon.

They are crazy high in vitamin C
A single Brussels sprout contains a whopping 22 percent of our daily recommended intake of vitamin C. That’s right, you read that correctly—one Brussels sprout. Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that helps protect the body from free radical damage caused by pollution, chemical exposure, and UV light, among other things. In addition, vitamin C is vital for the production of collagen—you know, the stuff that gives your skin its elasticity.

They may improve breast cancer outcomes
In a recent breast cancer survival study of 4,886 breast cancer survivors, those who ate the most cruciferous vegetables, such as Brussels sprouts and cabbage, within the first 36 months of breast cancer diagnosis had a 62 percent lower risk of breast cancer mortality. Even more, these participants also had a 35 percent lower risk of breast cancer reoccurrence.

They have copious quantities of vitamin K
You may not have heard as much about vitamin K as those other, more popular vitamins (I’m talking to you, vitamin D!), but vitamin K is essential to proper maintenance of bone as well as blood clotting. If you’d like to get more vitamin K in your diet, eat more Brussels sprouts. A 1/2 cup (125 mL) serving of these holiday feast essentials provides the body with 137 percent of our daily recommended intake of this important vitamin.

Convinced? Here are some satisfying Brussels sprouts recipes to try.

• Caramelized Fennel and Onions with Brussels Sprouts and Toasted Walnuts
• Brussels Sprouts, Beans, and Red Peppers
• Broccoli and Brussels Sprout Slaw
• Mediterranean Sauté