Is Eating Raw Tomatoes Good For You
The tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is a fruit from the nightshade family native to South America.Tomatoes are the major dietary source of the antioxidant lycopene, which has been linked to many health benefits, including reduced risk of heart disease and cancer.An essential mineral, potassium is beneficial for blood pressure control and heart disease prevention ( 3 ).An essential mineral, potassium is beneficial for blood pressure control and heart disease prevention ( ).An antioxidant that often gives foods a yellow or orange hue, beta carotene is converted into vitamin A in your body.An antioxidant that often gives foods a yellow or orange hue, beta carotene is converted into vitamin A in your body.Found in tomato skin, this flavonoid has been shown to decrease inflammation and protect against various diseases in mice ( 12 ).Found in tomato skin, this flavonoid has been shown to decrease inflammation and protect against various diseases in mice ( ).A powerful antioxidant compound, chlorogenic acid may lower blood pressure in people with elevated levels ( 13 , 14 ).Thus, it may be easier to bump up your lycopene intake by eating unprocessed tomatoes — which also have far less sugar than ketchup.It’s found in the highest concentrations in tomato products, such as ketchup, juice, paste, and sauce.A study in middle-aged men linked low blood levels of lycopene and beta-carotene to increased risk of heart attacks and strokes ( 27 , 28 ).Increasing evidence from clinical trials suggests that supplementing with lycopene may help lower LDL (bad) cholesterol ( 29 ).While the high lycopene content is believed responsible, high-quality human research needed to confirm the cause of these benefits ( 36 , 37 , 38 ).According to one study, people who ingested 1.3 ounces (40 grams) of tomato paste — providing 16 mg of lycopene — with olive oil every day for 10 weeks experienced 40% fewer sunburns ( 43 ).To make them red before selling, food companies spray them with artificial ethylene gas.If you buy unripened tomatoes, you can speed up the ripening process by wrapping them in a sheet of newspaper and keeping them on the kitchen counter for a few days.SUMMARY Tomatoes are often harvested while still green and immature, then ripened artificially with ethylene gas