Recently researchers have found that tomatoes harbor one of the world's most powerful antioxidants, a substance with the power to fight cancer and help ward off heart disease. It is called lycopene.
Since the discovery of lycopene, a group of scientists in Israel has used conventional cross-breeding methods to develop a strain of tomatoes very rich in lycopene, with up to four times the amount found in regular tomatoes. Even more amazing is that they have developed a way to extract the lycopene from these tomatoes and create an all natural supplement call Lyc-O-Mato. That's good news, if you aren't getting an adequate amount of lycopene from your regular diet.
Lycopene, a carotenoid in the same family as beta carotene, is what gives tomatoes, and several other fruits, their deep red color. But lycopene is not just a colorant. It is a powerful antioxidant that has shown remarkable fighting power against degenerative diseases.
Lycopene linked to reduced risk of cancers
Several recent studies have shown that a diet rich in tomatoes and tomato products is strongly linked to a reduced risk of certain cancers. In a six-year study of 48,000 male health professionals, Dr. Edward Giovannucci and colleagues at Harvard Medical School found that consuming tomatoes, tomato sauce or pizza more than twice a week, as opposed to never, was associated with a reduced risk of prostate cancer of 21 to 34 percent, depending on the food.
Another study published in the International Journal of Cancer said that lycopene appears to protect against cancer of the mouth, pharynx, esophagus, stomach, colon and rectum. Researchers at the University of Illinois report that women with the highest lycopene levels had a five-fold lower risk of developing precancerous signs of cervical cancer than women with lowest lycopene levels.
A potential cancer fighter
Even more exciting than its cancer-prevention potential is the evidence that shows lycopene may help fight existing cancer.
Omer Kucuk, M.D., professor of medicine and oncology, and colleagues at the Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit, Michigan, evaluated the effect encapsulated lycopene had on patients with existing prostate cancer. In this study, Dr. Kucuk and colleagues followed 30 men with localized prostate cancer who were scheduled to undergo surgical removal of the prostate. For three weeks prior to surgery, the study participants were randomly assigned to receive either 15 milligrams of lycopene (Lyc-O-Mato from LycoRed Natural Products, Beer-Sheva, Israel) as a pure tomato extract twice daily or no intervention. This extract is an ingredient found in lycopene supplements made by a number of leading health food manufacturers. Following removal of the prostates, the glands were analyzed to determine whether there were any differences between the two study groups.
The investigators found that the treated group had smaller tumors, which were more likely to be confined to the prostate. Levels of serum PSA (prostate specific antigen, a common marker used to detect prostate cancer) were found to decline in the patients who received Lyc-O-Mato lycopene tomato extract. In addition, the tumors in patients who consumed this natural lycopene showed signs of regression and decreased malignancy.
"To our knowledge, this is the first report from a randomized prospective clinical trial showing the efficacy of a lycopene supplement against prostate cancer," said Dr. Kucuk. "Previous reports were largely epidemiological studies showing an association between consumption of tomato products and decreased risk of prostate cancer. Furthermore, our findings suggest that lycopene as tomato extract may not only help prevent prostate cancer, but also may be useful in treating prostate cancer." Given the results of this preliminary study, Dr. Kucuk concluded that additional studies of tomato extracts effect on prostate cancer are warranted.
Defending against arteriosclerosis
Aside from cancer, lycopene also defends the body against other lethal diseases like arteriosclerosis. A leader in the study of lipid
metabolism, Dr. Michael Aviram of Rambam Medical (enter in Haifa, Israel, shared the importance of antioxidants, particularly Lycopene, in preventing the beginnings of arteriosclerosis. LDL cholesterol becomes harmful, sticking, to the walls of the arteries, when it is oxidized. In their laboratory, Dr. Aviram and his associates have demonstrated that Lyc-o-Mato, the-all natural tomato lycopene supplement, has been shown to prevent the formation of the arteriosclerotic plaque and stop the progression of the plaque buildup. In a significant percentage of the animals tested that had advanced arteriosclerosis, the Lyc-o-Mato was actually able to turn the process around, decreasing plaque buildup.
He discovered that LDL fortified with the Lyc-O-Mato was 90 percent more resistant to oxidation, while LDL fortified with pure lycopene was 22 percent more resistant to oxidation. Beta carotene had only a minimal effect on LDL, oxidation.
In a separate study Dr. Aviram and his colleagues administered 60mg of Lyc-O-Mato lycopene a day to six healthy males over a three-month period. "The subjects realized a significant 14 percent reduction in their plasma LDL cholesterol concentrations," said Dr. Aviram. "LDL cholesterol is cleared from the plasma environment at a greatly enhanced rate when a combination of lycopene and vitamin E is administered to humans."
Based on these findings I believe that blood antioxidant levels should be tested just like cholesterol levels so people can supplement their deficiencies. More of these antioxidant blood tests are becoming available. They're not easy to find, but physicians are beginning to use them as a testing point to determine the overall oxidative stress in the body.
Protection from the sun
There is growing evidence that carotenoids (like beta carotene and natural tomato lycopene) taken internally can help reduce damaging effects of the sun. A 1995 German study states:
"Mixed carotenoid supplements (50 mg/day) protect the skin against the harmful effects of UV radiation in a human study, erythema (skin reddening) was reduced on exposure to UV radiation after ingestion of natural mixed carotenoids." (H, Tronnier Oral presentation, "Current Aspects of Light protection and Skin Physiology." University of Wittcn/Herdecke, German v, March 1995.)
Many European researchers believe that natural mixed carotenoids arc nature's sun protecting agents and that they can work for humans as well as plants. Carotenoids are antioxidants that are known to reduce free radical activity that may cause premature aging of cells. A German Study states that carotenoids protect against sun damage in the following way: "The UV protection effect of carotenoids is mainly a physical one and due to the light scattering by the carotenoids present in the skin." (Eleinrich, et al. University of Exp. Dermatology, University Witten-Hendecke Germany 1996.)
A special tomato patch
I was privileged to learn first hand of the work being done to produce all natural lycopene supplements. A company called LycoRed has done extensive work in Israel to create a pure lycopene extract (Lyc-O-Mato) that allows scientists to research lycopene extensively through the use of lycopene supplements. It was a breakthrough in the scientific investigation of lycopene. Until this point synthetic supplements did not fit the requirements needed in experimental models in the laboratory. Dr. Lohar Nir is the visionary who saw the great potential of creating an all-natural tomato lycopene supplement.
I traveled to Israel arid was escorted through LycoRed's special tomato patch. There I saw a remarkable difference between the super, lycopene-rich tomatoes they grow there and regular tomatoes you buy in U.S. Supermarkets. These are not genetically engineered fruits, they are normal, hybridized tomatoes. It's quite apparent when you observe them that these tomatoes are different. They are a much deeper red than the average tomato and are much fuller when cut open. I also saw how lycopene is extracted from these super tomatoes without chemicals to create all-natural tomato lycopene supplements.
Doctors recommend that adults consume at least five servings of lycopene per day for maximum benefit. Foods rich in lycopene include tomato sauce, catsup and tomato juice, among others. The human body does not produce lycopene on its own, so it is vital that people, especially smokers, drinkers and others in cancer-risk groups, be conscious of eating a lycopene-rich diet.
Doctors and scientists say that oils help facilitate the body's absorption of lycopene. It is important that people look not just at the lycopene content of their foods but at what kind of food it is. Processed tomato products, and those containing oil, are better than raw tomato products or fruits.
I also recommend that smokers, drinkers, those exposed to radiation and those at risk for prostate cancer take more lycopene than the average recommended amount. It is important for people in risk groups, and those who don't get enough dietary lycopene, to take an all-natural tomato lycopene supplement, such as Lyc-O-Mato. It is vital that people choose an all-natural supplement because it is much more readily absorbed by the body than synthetic versions.
We are entering a new era in health care, a real health revolution where patients take an active role in managing their health. In my opinion, doctors will have to change their old ideas about health care, incorporating an integrated, complimentary approach in managing the diseases of the next millennium. I firmly believe this change will push natural substances to the forefront of health care and Lycopene is one of these important natural products.
- Omer Kucuk, M.D. - Dr. Omer Kucuk is a graduate of Hacettepe University Medical School in Ankara, Turkey. Currently he is a professor in the Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology at Wayne State University in Detroit where he is also a member of the graduate faculty in the Cancer Biology program. As a leading investigator of cancer-preventatives, Dr. Kucuk has received grant support from agencies including NIH, NCI, and the Department of Defense to study the effects nutritive agents such as zinc, soy isotlavones and tomato Ivcopene have on human carcinogenesis. He has served as an investigator in long running studies of dietary intervention's effect on lung, head and neck and breast cancers.
- James E. Balch, M.D. - Dr. James Balch is a retired urologist and well-known writer. An early proponent of nutritional approaches to disease prevention, Dr. Balch has immersed himself in the study of tomato Lycopene, the powerful antioxidant that has been the subject of intense anti-cancer research studies. In addition to the growing buzz about tomatoes, Balch is an authority on most nutrients and painstakingly describes their effects and interactions with other medications in his best-selling book Prescription for Nutritional Healing. Most recently he has written The Super Antioxidants, 10 Natural Remedies That Can Save Your Life, and the preface to the new book Tomato Power a complete guide to how the popular backyard garden crop helps humans retain their health.
