We’ve got a while yet before we get to the eagerly awaited and short-lived British asparagus season. This year it falls after the equally eagerly awaited and short-lived, but far less healthy, Easter Egg season. You can expect British asparagus to be in season from the end of April through until June. I planted some wild asparagus from crowns three years ago, and cultivated asparagus plants two ago, and so this year I’m hoping we can harvest our first home-grown spears!
So am I perturbed at recent news headlines linking asparagus to cancer? No. Nope. Not even slightly.
You see, what cancer researchers have discovered is that asparagine seems to play a role in helping cancers to spread. It seems that some cancers need asparagine to metastasise, which is when they develop from being a localised tumour into something more widespread. The scientists are not saying asparagine causes cancer, or that removing asparagine from your diet will reduce your risk of cancer. (If you actually have cancer then I would recommend discussing any concerns with your oncologist.)
Now, I’m not a doctor or a nutritionist or even a medical scientist, but I was editing a piece for World Cancer Day last week that mentioned asparagine, and I did some research and it’s pretty interesting history for plant nerds.
Asparagine is an amino acid, and amino acids are frequently referred to as the ‘building blocks’ of proteins. In fact, asparagine was the first amino acid to be isolated, back in 1806, by two French chemists (Louis Nicolas Vauquelin and Pierre Jean Robiquet) and they found it in asparagus – hence the name. Since then it has been found in all kinds of foods, from potatoes, soybeans and whole grains to eggs, meat, seafood and dairy products.
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