Tomatoes for Your Health
Benefits of the Love Apple
Once called the wolf peach and considered a dangerous food, this round red fruit is now renowned as one of the most potent cancer-fighting foods. Tomatoes are a member of the nightshade family of plants; their leaves are dangerously concentrated with toxic alkaloids, although the fruit is more likely to enhance your health than harm it. The French even believed tomatoes to be an aphrodisiac, thus the name, love apple.
Tomatoes, characteristically sweet, acidic, and bitter all at the same time, work well in almost any scenario. They are made into tomato pastes and sauces, fresh or sun-dried tomatoes are added to sandwiches and salads, tomato juice is a staple at breakfast.
Health Benefits of Tomatoes
One juicy red love apple provides a large amount of vitamins A, C, and K. Vitamin A is needed for healthy skin and eyes; vitamin C for cell regeneration and immune health; and, vitamin k encourages the production of osteocalcin, a protein which anchors calcium in bone. It is also a good source of potassium, manganese, magnesium, niacin, and iron, as well as several B-complex vitamins and vitamin E. Vitamin A, C, and E all act as powerful antioxidants, inhibiting the destruction of cells throughout the body by free radicals.
It is wise to eat tomatoes for your health; the nutritional value of tomatoes is also beneficial for the heart and cardiovascular system. Potassium helps to regulate blood pressure by balancing the body's sodium levels. Niacin is known to lower high cholesterol. Vitamin B6 combined with folate, both of which are present in tomatoes, are able to lower homocysteine levels. High amounts of homocysteine are linked with heart disease.
The antioxidants in tomatoes are also known to relieve inflammation and slow the aging process. The most remarkable attribute of the love apple is its high lycopene content, which is the most powerful antioxidant phytonutrient present in the tomato.
What is Lycopene?
Lycopene is a carotenoid found in red fruit. It is perhaps the most widely investigated antioxidant as there are countless studies attributing lycopene to reducing the chances of contracting several cancers as well as heart disease. Research has found that the benefits of lycopene include preventing prostate, colorectal, breast, lung, and pancreatic cancers.
How does lycopene work? As an antioxidant it combats free radical destruction, preventing cells from becoming cancerous, and even protecting DNA structures within white blood cells. The reason lycopene is so beneficial is that is also spurs the production of detoxification enzymes and other carotenoids.
Because carotenoids are fat-soluble, tomatoes should be consumed with a fat source, such as nuts, oils, or cheese, in order for the body to receive the benefits of lycopene. Also, this antioxidant is only productive when eaten as a whole food - lycopene cannot be isolated and taken in supplement form. Phytonutrients in general are much more potent when combined with the other compounds in the food that they have evolved with. It has been found as well that certain foods, namely broccoli and green tea, enhance the health benefits of tomatoes.
Other foods with lycopene include pink grapefruit, watermelon, guava, and apricots.
Enjoying the Love Apple
Tomatoes should be enjoyed all the time to ensure your body is getting enough lycopene. Fortunately, all forms of the love apple are beneficial, even ketchup. Always choose organic tomatoes or tomato products when possible. Whether you eat fresh tomatoes with avocado and olive oil, a sun-dried tomato and brie sandwich, or baked tomatoes topped with cheese, know that tomatoes and health go hand in hand.
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