Do Tomatoes Prevent Strokes?

The University of Pennsylvania Department Of Medicine online magazine Medpage Today published a synopsis of an article that appeared in the October 9^th issue of the Journal of Neurology. Written by Jouni Karppi, PhD, of the University of Eastern Finland, and colleagues, it discusses how tomatoes and tomato based products may lower the risk of strokes in men. The key ingredient seems to be lycopene. Lycopene is a carotenoid that acts as an antioxidant.

The study looked at 1,031 Finnish men between the ages of 42 and 61 who were followed for 12 plus years. The researchers used statistical techniques to eliminate the influence of variables such as hypertension, tobacco usage, lipid levels and other risk factors of strokes. The research showed that the individuals with the highest levels of lycopene in their serum had the lowest risk of stroke compared to individuals with lower levels. Tomatoes do contain several types of carotenoids such as alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, alpha–tocopherol and retinol, but it is the lycopene that is the difference maker.

Nancy Copperman, MS, RD from the North Shore- Long Island Jewish Health System was quoted as saying, “This study supports the recommendation of eating more servings of fruit and vegetables a day. Foods such as tomatoes, guava, watermelon and grapefruit are good sources of lycopene. When a tomato is cooked, the heat processing actually increases the levels of cis-lycopene – which is easily absorbed by the body.”

This explains why tomato sauce is felt to be such an excellent source of anti-oxidants. Lycopene is believed to have numerous additional health benefits including “reducing inflammation, blocking cholesterol synthesis, boosting immune function, and inhibiting platelet aggregation and thrombosis.”