Some of the Superfoods I discussed in the earlier columns turned to be popular among readers; others were not quite so. It is a matter of taste, but remember each one of them has different nutritional value; each complements the other. So please, do not drop the whole category; you may want to substitute a superfood for one of its sidekicks. If you don’t enjoy the taste of broccoli, replace it with cabbage, cauliflower or any of the cruciferous family; they all offer amazing benefits that should not be omitted from a healthful nutrition.
Today’s superfood, tomato, is very popular in our cuisine as well as other cuisines. Tomatoes are ingredients used in most Middle Eastern and Mediterranean dishes: salads, sauce, dips, soups, gravies, stews, rice and even jams. In the West, they are made into paste for pizza toppings and stews, condiments (ketchup) and sauces (barbeque sauce). The Chinese as well as the Indians consider tomato an important component of their cooking.
Tomatoes and their sidekicks contain a host of essential phytonutrients. The most prominent nutrient in tomatoes is lycopene. It has come into focus nowadays due to its antioxidant potency, which seems to prevent certain cancers (prostate) and even counteract them. But, other phytochemicals equal lycopene in protection and prevention from disease. They range from vitamins and minerals to carotenoids and antioxidants. Apart from the powerful lycopene, tomatoes contain vitamins E and C, most B vitamins, carotenoids, lutein, zeaxanthin, biotin, potassium, chromium, magnesium, manganese, zinc and fiber.
The carotenoid lycopene makes the deep red color in tomatoes. Lycopene can be as effective as beta-carotene in fighting free radical damage by eliminating them along with possibility of cancer. Ten or more servings a week lower the risk of the cancer as well as reducing prostate tumors by half. Why does lycopene directly benefit the prostate? Maybe it is due to the great concentration of lycopene in the prostate gland, requiring a continuous supply of the carotenoid.
Cooking tomatoes increases lycopene’s bioavailability, thus becoming more readily absorbed by the body. Cooked and processed tomatoes offer higher amounts of the antioxidant than raw tomatoes, but lower levels of vitamin C. Not only prostate cancer risk is lowered with tomato consumption, but also breast, cervix, bladder, digestive tract, lung and stomach cancers. That is also due to the synergy of multiple nutrients in the plant. Phytuene, an antioxidant in tomatoes, has anti-cancer effects that counteract other disorders.
Vitamin C in tomatoes works as a co-factor to lycopene to inhibit cancer growths and proliferation of cancer cells. Lycopene does not offer benefits single-handedly, but multiple nutrients in the whole plant act synergistically to provide protection.
For cardiovascular health, too, we need the protection of the variety of nutrients in tomatoes. To stimulate antioxidant action of lycopene, vitamin C and beta-carotene are required. Together the three work to defuse free radicals, preventing them from destroying healthy cells and their membranes, a condition, which leads to inflammation and cholesterol accumulation in the arteries. The higher lycopene levels are, the healthier the heart is.
There is more in tomatoes for the heart. A combination of potassium, niacin, vitamin B6 and folate in tomatoes seems to contribute further to heart health. Optimal potassium intake leads to more controlled blood pressure. Niacin, vitamin B3, reduces cholesterol levels. Vitamin B6 and folate lower blood levels of homocysteine, which lead to heart disease. All these benefits are available in whole cooked and raw tomatoes.
Tomatoes have yet more advantages. They provide the skin protection from sunlight. Tomato consumption raises sun protection factor (SPF) lowering the risk of skin cancer. It also protects the eyes from degenerative blinding eye diseases. Tomato skins and peels and rinds of plants are generally the protective shields that safeguard the plant from ultraviolet light, contamination of insecticides and pesticides, and invader insects and germs as well as spoilage.
It is scientifically known that most of flavonoids and vitamin C lie in the skin of fruits and vegetables. Quercetin in apple is mostly concentrated in the peel so are bioactive polyphenols in the fine brown skins of nuts. The thick rinds of oranges and other citrus fruits protect the pulp from pollution and rotting, making them last a long time without refrigeration. The fact that the skins hold the greater part of antioxidants makes smaller fruits and vegetables more nutritious. The smaller the tomato (cherry tomato) is, the more phytonutrient-rich it becomes. For this reason, you should cook vegetables with their skins, eat fruit with peels and make juice with peels. Remember to buy organic produce for more nutrients and wash them very well before cooking and eating.
The bioavailability of lycopene and other carotenoids is increased by cooking tomatoes and other vegetables (carrots). Olive oil, cheese or any other fat seems to enhance lycopene in tomatoes. Add tomato paste generously on your pizza, pasta, rice, soup, sauce and stew to enrich your plasma level with lycopene, as it can get depleted fast if it is not included in food on a daily basis.
I would like to warn against cooking tomatoes or any acidic vegetable in aluminum utensils as particles of the metal can become absorbed in the food, affecting health and brain negatively. You can prepare your own tomato paste. Put chunks of small-sized red (more lycopene) tomatoes and crushed garlic in a pot with a spoon of virgin olive oil and simmer to make a thick paste. You can store the paste in a glass jar in the refrigerator. It can be used as a quick pizza topping, rice and pasta sauce, dip, sandwich spread, on chicken, meat and fish cutlets, or in soups and stews. You can add to it any spice, herb, or condiment to achieve the flavor you favor. Ready-made tomato paste is a good substitute for fresh tomatoes. Baked tomatoes make a nice side dish. I like halved tomatoes topped with a mixture of breadcrumbs, crushed garlic, parmesan cheese, chopped parsley and extra virgin olive oil, baked for 15 to 20 minutes.
Whatever way you like tomatoes, I encourage you to have them daily. Their sidekicks, watermelon, reddish papaya and pink grapefruit, also provide lycopene protection. The red pigment in these plants is their key nutrient; it also adds color to your dishes, making your table more appetizing and attractive.
(Mariam Alireza is a holistic science specialist. Send comments to [email protected]. Log on to arabnews.com for previous articles)