Researchers from the University of East Anglia (UEA) in the U.K. have found that a compound found in broccoli may help prevent or slow the progress of osteoarthritis.

The study - funded by Arthritis Research UK, the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and the Dunhill Medical Trust - found the compound sulforaphane slowed the destruction of cartilage in joints associated with arthritis.

Mice fed a sulforaphane-rich diet showed significantly less damage than the control group, while a UEA release said the study also examined human cartilage cells and cow cartilage tissue.

The scientists found that the compound, which is also found to a lesser degree in cruciferous vegetables such as Brussels sprouts and cabbage, blocks  enzymes that cause joint destruction by stopping a key molecule known to cause inflammation.

The release said this is the first study of the compounds effects on joint health; its anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties have been researched in other studies.

The results were published in the journal Arthritis and Rheumatism.

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