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Get To Know Lycopene: The Little Known Anti-Oxidant
“Carotenoids”
is the term which describes the large range of more than 600 pigments which give
many plants their characteristic red, orange or yellow colouring. Amongst those most commonly found in
modern Western diets are alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, lutein, zeaxanthin, and
lycopene.
Most
attention has been paid to alpha-carotene and beta-carotene as these can be
synthesised by the body to form vitamin A, which is one of the body’s most
powerful antioxidants, immune system boosters and infection fighters. Neither lutein, zeaxanthin nor lycopene
are “pro-vitamin A” active substances in this sense, but this should not be
taken as detracting from their nutritional value in any
way.
Indeed,
the evidence now indicates that these lesser known carotenoids also function as
valuable fat-soluble anti-oxidants within the body. Lycopene, in particular, is now even
thought to be responsible for many of the anti-oxidant functions previously
credited to beta-carotene. Research
suggests that as a highly fat-soluble anti-oxidant, lycopene is
particularly important in preventing free radical damage to the delicate but
vital fatty structures of the body’s cells, such as the membranes.
It
also seems possible that lycopene may be at least as important as beta-carotene
in protecting against the oxidation of Low Density Lipids (LDLs), the so-called
“bad cholesterol”, which is now widely held to be a principal cause of
atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries - the precursor of serious
cardio-vascular diseases such as heart attack and stroke.
Like
beta-carotene, lycopene has also generated much excitement as a potential weapon
against cancer, probably because of its general anti-oxidant function, but also
because of its proven role in keeping open the pathways between cells which are
vital to allow the immune system to kill off cancer cells in the early stages of
the disease.
In
1995 the Journal of the National Cancer Institute reported research suggesting a
45% reduction in rates of prostate cancer for men consuming a lycopene rich diet
– ie one containing considerable quantities of processed tomatoes. Other studies have since indicated a
role for lycopene in combatting lung, stomach, colon and breast cancer; in
protecting against cardiovascular disease, and as an immune system
booster.
Unfortunately
the consumption of a diet rich in lycopene presents practical problems which do
not arise with the better known carotenoids, alpha and beta-carotene, because it
is not nearly so widely available in common foodstuffs. It is lycopene which gives tomatoes
their characteristic vivid red colour, and it is this fruit which is
by
far
the richest source. But it is the
processing and/or cooking of tomatoes which makes available far more lycopene
than would be provided by the raw fruit.
So
a cup of regular tomato paste may contain more than 75,000
mcg
of lycopene, tomato puree more than 50,000, a regular can
of
tomato soup more
than
25,000
and canned tomato juice perhaps 20,000.
A serving of raw tomatoes, by contrast, will provide a mere 5,000. So rather than rely on raw tomatoes,
unless you can consume truly heroic quantities, you’d do better to try a cup of
canned mixed vegetable juice at around 23,000 mcg or even a slice of watermelon
which may yield up to 13,000 mcg.
The
above figures make it clear that processed tomatoes are the best source of
significant dietary lycopene, but the problem with this from the point of view
of the health purist is that the processing of tomatoes into soup, paste or
puree commonly involves the addition of considerable amounts of salt and sugar –
just what your body doesn’t need if you’re seeking extra protection for your
heart and circulatory system.
It
also needs to be remembered when planning a lycopene rich diet that, as with
other carotenes, the optimum absorption requires the presence of dietary
fat. This is not so easy to achieve
with tomatoes unless you’re thinking about the rich kind of meat and tomato
sauce commonly eaten with pasta, or smothering a fatty meal with ketchup. Nothing wrong with either option in
moderation of course, but they’re hardly healthy ways to get the lycopene you
need every day.
So
tomato juice in the purest form
possible is probably the best means of obtaining significant dietary
lycopene. That Bloody Mary with
accompanying potato chips may be doing you some good after all!
Supplements
containing lycopene are also readily available as an alternative, but opinions are divided as to their
effectiveness. Conventional medicine tends to accept the value of a diet rich in
carotenoids, but argues that the positive effects may be due to factors
associated with such diets other than the carotenoids themselves. Alternative practitioners, of course,
admit to no such doubts and are therefore convinced of the benefits of specific
carotenoid supplementation.
So
as ever, the commonsense advice for maximum benefit appears to be to combine
supplementation with a normal daily diet already well supplied with lycopene
rich foods.
Steve
Smith
August
2007
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