More and more evidence is emerging for the health benefits of lycopene, a dietary carotenoid found in high concentrations in processed tomato products. Lycopene is a natural pigment which gives tomatoes their red color. Although present in fresh tomatoes, lycopene is much more efficiently absorbed in to the bloodstream when the tomatoes have been processed. Like its better known cousin beta-carotene, lycopene is an antioxidant. Antioxidants are compounds which fight cell-damaging free radicals in the bloodstream and are therefore associated with reduced disease risk. Already two major epidemiological studies suggest that a lycopene-rich diet delivers benefits in terms of heart disease and prostate cancer risk reduction.

A superb complement to I3C or DIM, this nutrients provides a kind of protective shield against prostate cell damage. Studies with men who consume diets rich in tomato extracts consistently have found that these men have a lower incidence of serious prostate challenges, according to Dr. Aaron E. Katz, a researcher at Columbia University. In a recent interview, Dr. Katz said, "I think these [nutrients] can be taken in low doses. They are nontoxic and inexpensive. Right now, rather than waiting around for 12 years, if you have one of these high-risk features [family history, high protein markers], why not take them?"

Data from the long-running Physicians' Health Study, which has been following healthy men since 1982, show that among the many carotene-type antioxidant nutrients evaluated, lycopene stood out in terms of supporting prostate health. The researchers noted that lycopene is highly concentrated in prostate tissue and that older men tend to have lower lycopene levels than younger men.

Processed Tomato Products Help Reduce Risk of Cancer and Heart Disease
November 17, 1998 www.lycopene.org

A six year study of 48,000 male health professionals conducted by Harvard Medical School found that consuming tomato products more than twice a week, as opposed to never, was associated with a reduced risk of prostate cancer of up to 34 per cent. Meanwhile, another study conducted by the University of North Carolina compared 1,379 American and European men who had suffered a heart attack with the same number of healthy men found that those with high levels of lycopene appeared to be protected against the disease with about half the risk. There is also a hypothesis that lycopene may halt the onset of macular degeneration disease which is the major cause of blindness in people over 65. All the evidence suggests that lycopene is a significantly more powerful antioxidant than beta-carotene. Research conducted into breast, lung and endometrial cancer, by Drs. Yaov Sharoni, Joseph Levy et al of the Ben Gurion University and Soroka Medical Center shows that lycopene is even more effective than alpha or beta-carotene in causing a delay in the cell cycle progression from one growth phase to the next. Lycopene is not produced by the body at all but its benefits can be obtained through the diet. Research conducted by Dr. A. Venket Rao of the University of Toronto, confirms that lycopene is much better absorbed into the bloodstream when the tomatoes have been processed into ketchup, soup, juice, sauces and other products. "Lycopene in tomatoes is converted by the temperature changes involved in processing," explains Dr. Rao. "The chemical conversion allows the body to absorb it more easily."

Dr. Rao's research is supported by a separate study conducted by Gartner et al, which shows that lycopene from tomato paste is 2.5 times more bio-available than lycopene from fresh tomatoes. Dr. Clare Hasler, Executive Director of the Functional Foods Program at the University of Illinois, says: "For years nutritionists have emphasized the benefits of fresh vegetables, but processed products represent an ideal way to meet our daily fruit and vegetable requirements and perhaps reduce our risk of several chronic diseases. This is particularly true of processed tomato products which offer much greater levels of bio-available lycopene."

In the American diet 85 per cent of lycopene is derived from tomato-based products. Other sources of lycopene include watermelon, guava and pink grapefruit. Heinz, the world's largest processor of tomatoes, has established The Lycopene Project, a global initiative designed to identify and fund further research into the effect of lycopene. The company has already sponsored a number of studies at the University of Toronto and a study at the American Health Foundation. These studies focused on lycopene's potential in the fight against cancers of the digestive tract, breast and prostate gland. The company has also organized two international symposia on lycopene. Future studies are planned to examine further the role of lycopene as an antioxidant.