Medicine / Lycopene, One Of The Most Potent Carotenoid Antioxidants Lycopene is a bright red carotenoid pigment, a phytochemical found in tomatoes and other red fruits. Lycopene is the most common carotenoid in the human body and is one of the most potent carotenoid antioxidants. Its name is derived from the tomato's species classification, Solanum lycopersicum.
Fruits and vegetables that are high in lycopene include not only tomatoes, but watermelon, pink grapefruit, papaya, and rosehip. Almost all lycopene in the American diet comes from tomato-containing foods.
Unlike other fruits and vegetables, where nutritional content such as vitamin C is diminished upon cooking, processing of tomatoes increases the concentration of bioavailable lycopene. Lycopene in tomato paste is four times more bioavailable than in fresh tomatoes. Thus processed tomato products such as tomato juice, soup, sauce, and ketchup contain the highest concentrations of bioavailable lycopene.
Because lycopene is so insoluble in water and is so tightly bound to vegetable fiber, the bioavailablity of lycopene is increased by food processing. For example cooking and crushing tomatoes (as in the canning process) and serving in oil-rich dishes (such as spaghetti sauce or pizza) greatly increases assimilation from the digestive tract into the bloodstream.
Lycopene is the most powerful carotenoid quencher of singlet oxygen. Singlet oxygen from ultraviolet light is a primary cause of skin aging.
There is evidence that frequent intake of such products is associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer (especially prostate cancer), diabetes, osteoporosis, and even male infertility. Lycopene may also be related to a reduced risk of oesophageal, colon, and mouth cancer.
Due to its ubiquity, lycopene has been licensed for use as a food coloring.
Lycopene is not water-soluble and instantly stains any sufficiently porous material, including most plastics. While a tomato stain can be fairly easily removed from fabric provided the stain is fresh, discolored plastic defies all efforts to drive out the lycopene with hot water, soap, or detergent. Bleach will destroy lycopene, however.
Plastics are especially susceptible to staining if heated, scratched, oiled, or pitted by acids such as those found in tomatoes. |
• Find Medicine Related Articles
• Medical Articles
• Health & Medical Articles
powered by SMF 2.0 preteen super models | powered by SMF 2.0 double travel system | powered by phpBB medicine cabinets | powered by vBulletin diet meal plan | powered by phpBB infant medical conditions | powered by SMF 2.0 structural steel | powered by phpBB weight loss site | powered by SMF san francisco park recreation pool | powered by vBulletin high protein dry cat food | powered by vBulletin beauty shop | powered by phpBB state fair | chickenpox leave scars | powered by SMF sex in cars | powered by SMF lower arm pain | powered by SMF 2.0 business open house ideas | powered by SMF 2.0 quick change | powered by SMF ivy animal health | powered by SMF 2.0 best travel store | powered by myBB yoga teacher training | powered by SMF 2.0 dominican | powered by myBB free christian clip art | powered by vBulletin greenhouse effect | powered by phpBB low back injuries | powered by SMF 2.0 all bikes | powered by SMF 2.0 bicycles specialized | powered by SMF 2.0 nights journey of dreams | powered by SMF what does mother nature look like | powered by SMF 2.0 sun bikes | Powered by Article Dashboard gothic art | powered by SMF 2.0 terrorist attack Best Pharmacy
• Free Health Articles
|