Cruciferous vegetables are

vegetable Vegetables are edible parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. This original meaning is still commonly used, and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including edible flower, flo ...

s of the family

Brassicaceae Brassicaceae () or (the older but equally valid) Cruciferae () is a medium-sized and economically important Family (biology), family of flowering plants commonly known as the mustards, the crucifers, or the cabbage family. Most are herbaceous pla ...

(also called Cruciferae) with many genera, species, and cultivars being raised for food production such as cauliflower, cabbage, kale, garden cress, bok choy,

broccoli Broccoli (''Brassica oleracea'' var. ''italica'') is an edible green plant in the Brassicaceae, cabbage family (family Brassicaceae, genus ''Brassica'') whose large Pseudanthium, flowering head, plant stem, stalk and small associated leafy gre ...

, Brussels sprouts, mustard plant and similar green leaf vegetables. The family takes its alternative name (Cruciferae,

Neo-Latin Neo-LatinSidwell, Keith ''Classical Latin-Medieval Latin-Neo Latin'' in ; others, throughout. (also known as New Latin and Modern Latin) is the style of written Latin used in original literary, scholarly, and scientific works, first in Italy d ...

for "cross-bearing") from the shape of their flowers, whose four petals resemble a cross. Ten of the most common cruciferous vegetables eaten by people, known colloquially in North America as cole crops and in the UK, Ireland and Australia as brassicas, are in a single

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

('' Brassica oleracea''); they are not distinguished from one another taxonomically, only by horticultural category of cultivar groups. Numerous other

genera Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...

, and species in the family are also edible. Cruciferous vegetables are one of the dominant food crops worldwide. They are best grown in temperatures between 15 to 21° C (59 to 70° F. They are high in vitamin C and soluble fiber and contain multiple

nutrient A nutrient is a substance used by an organism to survive, grow and reproduce. The requirement for dietary nutrient intake applies to animals, plants, fungi and protists. Nutrients can be incorporated into cells for metabolic purposes or excret ...

s and phytochemicals.

List of cruciferous vegetables

Extensive selective breeding has produced a large variety of cultivars, especially within the genus '' Brassica''. One description of genetic factors involved in the breeding of ''Brassica'' species is the Triangle of U. Further relationships inside the family Brassicaceae can be described by

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide use of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. The definition is contested, in part due to conflict ...

s, a grouping of genera (see ). ''Armoracia'', ''Barbarea'', and ''Nasturtium'' belong to the tribe Cardamineae; ''Brassica'', ''Sinapis'', ''Diplotaxis'', ''Eruca'', and ''Raphanus'' belong to Brassiceae; ''Lepidium'' belongs in Lepidieae; and finally ''Wasabia'' ('' Eutrema'') belongs in Eutremeae.

Research

According to an umbrella review of 41 systematic reviews and meta-analyses of 303 observational studies, there is suggestive evidence for beneficial associations in gastric cancer, lung cancer, endometrial cancer, and all-cause mortality.

Cancer

Cruciferous vegetables contain glucosinolates, which are under research for their potential to affect

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

. Glucosinolates are hydrolyzed to isothiocyanates (ITCs) by myrosinase. ITCs are being investigated for their chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic effects.

Drug and toxin metabolism

Chemicals contained in cruciferous vegetables induce the expression of the liver enzyme CYP1A2. Alliaceous and cruciferous vegetable consumption may induce glutathione S-transferases, uridine diphosphate-glucuronosyl transferases, and quinone reductases all of which are potentially involved in

detoxification Detoxification or detoxication (detox for short) is the physiological or medicinal removal of toxic substances from a living organism, including the human body, which is mainly carried out by the liver. Additionally, it can refer to the period o ...

of carcinogens such as aflatoxin. High consumption of cruciferous vegetables has potential risk from

allergies Allergies, also known as allergic diseases, are various conditions caused by hypersensitivity of the immune system to typically harmless substances in the environment. These diseases include Allergic rhinitis, hay fever, Food allergy, food al ...

, interference with drugs such as warfarin, and genotoxicity.

Taste

People who can taste phenylthiocarbamide (PTC), which is either bitter or tasteless, are less likely to find cruciferous vegetables palatable due to the resemblance between isothiocyanates and PTC.

Contraindications

Although cruciferous vegetables are generally safe for human consumption, individuals with known

or hypersensitivities to a certain ''Brassica'' vegetable, or those taking anticoagulant therapy, should be cautious.

References

{{Authority control Vegetables Brassicaceae