To get the full potency of broccoli's anti-cancer effects, be sure not to overcook it, and eat it with broccoli sprouts.

That's the finding of a University of Illinois study published in the January issue of the journal Nutrition and Cancer.

"Broccoli, prepared correctly, is an extremely potent cancer-fighting agent — three to five servings a week are enough to have an effect," said study researcher Elizabeth Jeffery.

But overcooking broccoli destroys the enzyme myrosinase, needed for the formation of sulforaphane, a broccoli component that fights cancer and inflammation, she said. Eating broccoli with broccoli sprouts — three- to four-day-old broccoli plants that resemble alfalfa sprouts — boosts those benefits.

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