Lycopene is a carotenoid, like beta-carotene, but your body doesn't use it to make vitamin A. It is an antioxidant that gives color to certain fruits and vegetables, including tomatoes. Lycopene may also have a number of health benefits. However, researchers need to further study lycopene to determine what doses may be safe and effective for treating these conditions.
Possible Health Benefits
Consuming lycopene-rich foods may decrease your risk for certain types of cancer, including breast, lung, ovarian, stomach and prostate cancer. It may also lower your risk for heart disease, exercise induced asthma, cataracts and human papilloma disease, or HPV. Researchers think the antioxidant effect of lycopene is at least partly responsible for these effects.
Sources
Most of the lycopene in the American diet comes from tomatoes and tomato products. However, pink grapefruit, watermelon, guava, papaya and apricots also contain lycopene. Although you can take lycopene supplements, these do not always contain the amount of lycopene listed on the label. It is also possible to get too much lycopene through supplements, which results in an orange tint to the skin.
Effectiveness
Study results are conflicting on the effectiveness of lycopene for treating or preventing illnesses. Although some studies show beneficial effects, others show no effect. Many of the studies have used tomato consumption rather than lycopene supplement consumption, so the results may be due to some other beneficial compound found in tomatoes, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Considerations
You can increase the absorption of lycopene by using tomato products that have been cooked during processing, since heat converts the lycopene into a more easily absorbed form. Consuming lycopene-rich foods along with those containing beta-carotene and fat can also increase absorption. Although the benefit of consuming lycopene is still under investigation, there are no known side effects. Consuming lycopene-rich foods as part of your five fruit and vegetable servings a day may be beneficial.
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