SmarterNaturally Soup For Cholesterol
It’s estimated that two-fifths of all adults in the UK have high cholesterol, putting them at a greater risk of heart disease and serious health complications (such as heart attacks or strokes).
Alongside it’s other beneficial health effects, published scientific research suggests that eating just one bowl of our soup a week could help to reduce cholesterol levels – a key step in improving and maintaining your heart’s health.
What Is Cholesterol?
Cholesterol is a form of fat found in your bloodstream. It’s important for our health, since it’s an essential part of all of our cells – but having too much cholesterol in your blood can greatly increase your risk of developing serious heart disease.
Cholesterol comes in two main forms: LDL (often called “bad cholesterol”) and HDL (or “good cholesterol”). High levels of LDL can lead to the build up of fatty deposits in your arteries, which restrict blood flow and can go on to cause heart attacks or strokes.
High cholesterol levels can be inherited, but are more commonly a result of unhealthy lifestyle choices (such as eating fatty foods, being overweight, not exercising enough, smoking or drinking too much alcohol).
Glucoraphanin & Cholesterol
One of the things that makes SmarterNaturally Soup special is its very high glucoraphanin content. While glucoraphanin is an active ingredient naturally present in broccoli in small amounts, SmarterNaturally Soup is made using a unique broccoli called GRextra that contains roughly 5x more glucoraphanin than a regular broccoli.
Glucoraphanin is a naturally-occurring compound found in cruciferous vegetables, like broccoli and cauliflower. Inside our bodies, glucoraphanin is converted by special enzymes into a more active form called sulforaphane.
Sulforaphane has a powerful protective effect on plant cells, helping them to survive. Research into the effects of glucoraphanin and sulforaphane suggest that they could have powerful protective effects for humans too – for example, helping to support healthy cells while acting as anti-cancer agents.
The best way to reduce high cholesterol levels is to adjust your diet and get more exercise. But there’s now a growing body of research indicating that eating more glucoraphanin in your diet may help reduce elevated cholesterol levels, making it easier to see a positive change in your health.
The Evidence Behind SmarterNaturally Soup
A range of research studies have shown that eating a diet rich in glucoraphanin may help reduce cholesterol levels, a key risk factor for developing serious heart disease. We’ve summarised some of the key research papers in this area below, along with links to the full-text published papers.
1. Regularly Eating Glucoraphanin-Rich Broccoli Soup May Help Reduce Cholesterol Levels
In a study of 130 people, researchers tested the effect of regularly eating a high-glucoraphanin variant of broccoli on blood cholesterol (LDL-C) levels, compared with eating a standard variant of broccoli.
They found that regularly eating a high-glucoraphanin variant of broccoli significantly reduced cholesterol levels, with the effect being around 2-3 times than in those eating a standard variant of broccoli.
This study tested the effects of both standard broccoli and a high-glucoraphanin variant of broccoli on plasma cholesterol (LDL-C) levels in 130 volunteers. Volunteers ate 400g of either standard broccoli or high-glucoraphanin broccoli a week for 12 weeks.
The study found that the groups eating high glucoraphanin broccoli showed a significant reduction in LDL-C of ~5-7% after 12 weeks, whereas those eating normal broccoli showed only a small, non-significant reduction in LDL-C levels (~1.8-2.5%, not reaching statistical significance). The researchers concluded that regularly eating a high-glucoraphanin variant of broccoli can significantly reduce the level of cholesterol (LDL-C) in your blood.
Good For More Than Just Cholesterol
Research indicates that not only could SmarterNaturally soup help lower high cholesterol levels, it may also have a range of other potential health benefits – thanks to the unique properties of our patented GRextra broccoli.
Less Heart Disease
Research points to eating high levels of glucoraphanin in your diet as one way of helping to reduce the risk of developing heart disease.
Lower Blood Sugar
Studies suggest GRextra broccoli and glucoraphanin may help reduce high blood sugar levels - a key biomarker for type 2 diabetes.
Anti-Cancer
Studies suggest GRextra broccoli and glucoraphanin may have a beneficial effect against various cancers, including breast & prostate cancer.
