|
|
|
Cooked Tomatoes May Lower Prostate Cancer Risk A bowl of tomato soup a day may help keep prostate cancer at bay. Overall, the men who consumed the highest amount of tomato-based foods such as cooked tomatoes, tomato soup or puree, tomato juice, ketchup, and tomato-based pasta sauce had an 18% reduction in prostate cancer. In contrast, carrots and leafy green vegetables had no impact on prostate cancer in the study of 317 prostate cancer patients aged 40 to 80, who were compared with 480 cancer-free men. These results suggest that in contrast to the findings regarding many types of cancers, vegetables rich in beta-carotene are not protective against prostate cancer.. Beta-carotene is found in many fruits and vegetables, primarily yellow and orange vegetables. Lycopene, an antioxidant found in cooked tomato products such as tomato sauce or tomato paste, may be responsible for the lowered prostate cancer risk American Journal of Epidemiology January 15, 2000;151:119-123, 124-127. DR. MERCOLA’S COMMENT: The literature seems to be quite supportive now of the role of lycopene in preventing lowering the risk of prostate cancer. It is important to remember though that, like all nutrients, it is best obtained from whole foods, not from the health food store or drug store as a supplement. And obtaining it from ketchup is questionable as the main ingredients in it are water and sugar. |