Los Angeles, CA (February 28, 2011) Eating more tomatoes and tomato products can make people healthier and decrease the risk of conditions such as cancer, osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease, according to a review article the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, (published by SAGE).
Of all the non-starchy vegetables, Americans eat more tomatoes and tomato products than any others. Researchers Britt Burton-Freeman, PhD, MS, and Kristin Reimers, PhD, RD of the National Center for Food Safety & Technology, Illinois Institute of Technology and ConAgra Foods, Inc., looked at the current research to discover the role tomato products play in health and disease risk reduction.
The researchers found that tomatoes are the biggest source of dietary lycopene; a powerful antioxidant that, unlike nutrients in most fresh fruits and vegetables, has even greater bioavailability after cooking and processing. Tomatoes also contain other protective mechanisms, such as antithrombotic and anti-inflammatory functions. Research has additionally found a relationship between eating tomatoes and a lower risk of certain cancers as well as other conditions, including cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, ultraviolet light–induced skin damage, and cognitive dysfunction.
Tomatoes are widely available, people of all ages and cultures like them, they are cost-effective, and are available in many forms.
“Leveraging emerging science about tomatoes and tomato products may be one simple and effective strategy to help individuals increase vegetable intake, leading to improved overall eating patterns, and ultimately, better health.” write the authors.
“Tomatoes are the most important non-starchy vegetable in the American diet. Research underscores the relationship between consuming tomatoes and reduced risk of cancer, heart disease, and other conditions,” the authors conclude. “The evidence also suggests that consumption of tomatoes should be recommended because of the nutritional benefits and because it may be a simple and effective strategy for increasing overall vegetable intake.”
Cancer
The majority of research conducted in the area of tomato and lycopene intake and cancer risk has been observational. The difficulty posed in studying the effect of an intervention to reduce risk of cancer is that acceptable and validated study endpoints include incidence of the cancer itself; or in the case of colon cancer, recurrent colon or rectal polyps in otherwise healthy people.68
Because cancer often takes decades to present, conducting randomized, controlled clinical trials with these endpoints is generally not feasible. Instead, observational studies of populations showing associations but not cause and effect have been the primary source of knowledge on tomatoes/tomato products and cancer.
In a recent review of the literature, 178 original research articles were compiled reporting findings in humans on the relationship between lycopene, tomatoes and tomato-based products, and cancer risk.69 Among these publications, nearly 90% were observational, highlighting the paucity of cause and effect investigations in this area.
Reports on 13 cancer types were identified, of which breast, colorectal, gastric/ upper gastrointestinal, and prostate cancers have the most original research published in humans, ranging from 17 to 60 publications. For breast, colorectal, and gastric cancers, the data support a neutral, although potentially protective, relationship between tomato/lycopene intake and cancer risk. Although the data are limited for gastric and lung cancers; the protective association is strongest with tomato intake verses dietary lycopene intake.
Among the cancers investigated relative to lycopene and tomato intake, prostate cancer is the most widely researched. Although randomized controlled trial data are less available than observation data, a small number of dietary intervention trials using processed tomato products have been conducted. The results have been relatively successful as measured by improvements in prostate-specific antigen concentrations26,29,59,70 or increased apoptotic cell death in carcinomas.30
Of note, these trials vary in quality, have small sample sizes, use biomarkers instead of cancer as the outcome, and use people already presenting with disease. Validated cancer markers and larger clinical trials in at risk populations are warranted to better understand the cause and effect relationship between lycopene, tomatoes and tomato products, and cancer.
Health benefits of eating tomatoes emerge download full pdf for references
You may like
****
Cancer information facts and figures
Tomato Consumption, Health and Cancer: Emerging Benefits
Eco news / Environmental Health News
WORLDWIDE
ECO DESIGN
The site does not provide medical or legal advice. This website is for information purposes only. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of something you have read on this Web site. If you need legal advice for your specific problem, you should consult a licensed attorney in your area. Arch1design is not responsible for the content of external internet sites which link to this site or which are linked from it.
****
![bookmark](http://arch1design.com/blog/wp-content/plugins/share-and-follow/images/blank.gif" height=){kind=small}
[...] Tomato Consumption, Health and Cancer: Emerging Benefits [...]