I had some fond memories this morning that I want to share with you. They say a lot about the importance of discovery… and what I have chosen to focus on in my life.
I have written to you about how important it is to experience laughter, gratitude, awe, love, and other positive states on a regular basis, but have never included discovery in any of my writings until now.
I am curious to know what do you enjoy discovering? I imagine many things… it is a basic human need that has shaped each individual since our earliest ancestors.
Curiosity is the fuel for discovery. It drives us to answer questions like how, what, why, and for how long?
Discovery refers to seeing or experiencing something new for the first time. The result is a profound set of stimuli and activation of key areas of the brain. We tend to remember these moments and….
It turns out our brain is wired to experience discovery. It explains a lot about each of us and, again, the importance of discovery (and learning).
As I was thinking about what I wanted to share with you, I asked the question “What can I share with my followers that is interesting about a simple food that exerts powerful health benefits?”
Believe me, that led to a flood of many different ideas because I have spent my life discovering how food and its components work to promote health within us.
There are so many foods and nutritional compounds to choose from, but what stood out to me this morning was….
Mustard.
Yes, I am talking about the condiment made from mustard seeds. And it is a true superfood.
But something happened to my train of thought when I started to think about mustard. It led immediately to a fond memory, which I will share later.
But first, let me tell you about mustard….
Do you know that mustard is a member of the same family as broccoli, kale, cabbage, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts?
And that mustard as a condiment is significantly more concentrated in the active compounds in these foods that are responsible for so many different and amazing health benefits?
Seeds are like that, they concentrate nutrition. And the mustard seed, although very small is packed with super nutrition. One of its interesting components is an enzyme known as myrosinase.
This enzyme is responsible for converting the beneficial compounds in cabbage-family vegetables known as glucosinolates into more powerful compounds known as isothiocyanates.
These compounds in mustard and other cruciferous vegetables are amazing in their ability to fight cancer and promote detoxification. There have been over 5,000 studies or publications on the anticancer activities of isothiocyanates in medical literature. They are the responsible factors for why even the American Cancer Society promotes the regular consumption of cabbage family foods.
While kale became a phenomenon, mustard is a better source of active isothiocyanates and more worthy.
To make mustard, the condiment, the seeds are ground into a powder, or in other forms of mustard it is simply cracked or left whole, and then mixed with a liquid like vinegar, lemon juice or water along with spices.
Mustard is not heated, it is a raw, natural superfood rich in health benefits.
O.K., let me get back to my fond memories. I can honestly remember when I had the epiphany that mustard might be the easiest way for most people, especially children, to get cancer-fighting isothiocyanates into their diet.
In the 1990s, I appeared several times on an hour-long Sunday evening TV show in Seattle called Town Meeting where I would be led by an interviewer, Ken Schram, to discuss a topic of interest as well as field questions from a live audience.
I think of this show fondly because it was a tremendous platform and a lot of fun for me to share. As it relates to the topic of today, mustard. Thinking of mustard triggered a memory from particular Town Meeting on cancer and nutrition.
On the show, I touched on the importance of food in fighting the major cancers in children, leukemia and brain cancer, when a woman from the audience asked a question…
“I know how important these foods like broccoli are to the health of my children, but how can I get my kids to eat more of these vegetables?”
Well, I offered some suggestions regarding how to mask their taste in fresh juices, but she told me she had tried those approaches to no avail.
I then asked her if her children liked mustard. She told me they LOVE mustard and would eat it with a spoon if they could. The audience laughed and then I told her that mustard was a concentrated source of the compounds found in cabbage family vegetables and they were likely getting more than enough of these compounds if they used mustard on at least an every other day basis.
It was the look on her face that made the memory fond for me….
And encouraged me to discover more to share.
Have fun discovering…
Be well,
