10 Myths About Broccoli Finally Debunked

Most kids aren’t too fond of broccoli. I was nothing like those kids. I couldn’t get enough of these tiny trees. For as long as I can remember, my mom would give me a side of broccoli with every meal. Whenever I would express my love for broccoli at my school. I’d often be the subject of ridicule with all my classmates.

That said, I haven’t gotten the flu in three years so I have the last laugh. Still, the world is full of those who hate broccoli — for reasons unknown to me. These people who see these tiny trees as a vegetative menace tend to spread myths that discourage others from both eating them and feeding them to their children. After doing my due research, I’ve written this article to debunk eight such myths so that more people can enjoy both the neutral taste and extensive health benefits that broccoli has to offer.

1. Broccoli was invented by Nazis

Let’s start by getting this one out of the way. This story was always amusing to me, and growing up in Boston, it was a common schoolyard tale. The story goes that in the last few months prior to Hitler’s suicide, he began to grow insane due to the war and the fact that he was losing. Thus, in his — even more — insane state, he instructed his scientists to invent a shrink ray.

One they had, he used it to shrink trees and voila broccoli is born. There are many things wrong with this story. For one, if they were literal shrunken trees they’d have pieces of wood attached to them. Secondly, if the Nazis had a shrink ray they wouldn’t have lost the war. Broccoli existed thousands of years prior to the birth of Hitler — circa 6th century BC, in fact. It originated in Italy — ironic how those in Boston wouldn’t know this — and was eaten since the age of Ancient Rome.