Reheated tomato sauce aids cancer
Updated on 20 August 2008
A recipe for super-healthy tomato toppings that fight cancer has been cooked up by scientists.
Processing tomatoes into purees or sauces was already known to enhance their anti-cancer properties.
Now researchers have discovered that a combination of intense heat and fat can increase it even more.
Their findings also suggest that left-over spaghetti bolognese can be given a healthy boost by reheating.
The processing technique alters the structure of the tomato molecule lycopene so that it is more easily transported into the bloodstream and body tissues.
Previous research has shown that lycopene, a powerful antioxidant which gives tomatoes their red colour, can help prevent cancers and may also combat heart disease and diabetes. It has an especially potent effect on prostate cancer.
In the average tomato, lycopene generally has a straight or "linear" shape that hinders its ability to pass through intestinal walls into the blood.
However most of the lycopene found circulating in the bloodstream has a "bent" molecular form. Scientists believe lycopene with this kind of structure is more likely to pass into the blood and be carried around the body, where it can exert its health-giving effects.
Scientists in the US have now found a way to maximise the number of bent lycopene molecules in tomato sauce.
A trial showed that people had more lycopene in their blood after eating the specially processed sauce than they did after consuming ordinary tomato sauce.
These news feeds are provided by an independent third party and Channel 4 is not responsible or liable to you for the same.
