We like broccoli. We know not everyone does, but maybe with a few tips we’ve shared in the past, you can add them to your plate. While everyone has an opinion on broccoli — positive or negative — what many don’t realize is that broccoli can aid blood sugar levels.

Sulforaphane, a compound within broccoli, plays a role in blood sugar control and potentially even has anti-cancer benefits. It’s no wonder that broccoli pills are on the shelves in stores. But, eating broccoli lets you absorb much more sulforaphane than a supplement.

Cooking broccoli can decrease the amount of sulforaphane in the vegetable. It’s best eaten raw or lightly cooked. Sulforaphane doesn’t develop until it’s being damaged — be it by chewing or cutting. While sulforaphane is found in all cruciferous vegetables, broccoli has a much higher amount in a serving than most.

Additionally, broccoli is dense with fiber, which can help regulate blood sugar as it slows the absorption of food and doesn’t breakdown into carbohydrates. Homemade green juice that uses whole vegetables can be a great way to get fiber and sulforaphane. Using broccoli, spinach and cucumber, the drink might be more to your liking if you aren’t a big fan of cooked vegetables.

In addition to aiding blood sugar and cancer-prevention, broccoli has other benefits for bone health, your skin, digestion, inflammation and more. With only 20 calories in a cup, it also contains 43 percent of your recommended daily amount of vitamin A and 110 percent of your Vitamin C. The serving has two grams of protein and well under four grams of carbs. It also has as much calcium as milk ounce for ounce.

Research is still being done on the benefits. Studies show that the vegetable may fight cataracts, may prevent strokes and more. No one food is a cure-all for what ails you. Superfoods are not panaceas; they are simply foods that have a lot packed into them. While broccoli has been shown to aid blood sugar, it cannot fix everything. But, many people believe in its benefits. It is quite trendy, outside of green juice, it has become popular enough to be stirred into coffee in Australia. While we support their choices, we don’t know if that has any benefit and aren’t ready to try it ourselves.

When picking your broccoli to buy, be sure to choose ones with green florets and firm stalks, the greener the better. Store in a dry bag in the fridge and don’t wash it until you are ready to eat or cook.

We hope you enjoy your meal!