What is the source of the lycopene in our body?
The human organism does not know how to produce lycopene and therefore needs to obtain it from the food we eat. The major source of this valuable carotenoid in the diet is the tomato and tomato-based products like tomato paste and tomato sauce. It is found in far less quantities in grapefruit, watermelon and guava. Other fruits and vegetables contribute only a small portion of the lycopene we need. Therefore, the amount of lycopene we receive depends directly on the presence of tomatoes and tomato products in our diet. Moreover, bright red, ripe tomatoes have more lycopene than green or yellow, unripe ones. It is important to know that fresh tomatoes are loaded with lycopene, but cooking tomatoes makes lycopene easier for your body to use. For instance, there’s five times more available lycopene in tomato sauce than in an equivalent amount of fresh tomatoes. Apparently, heat involved in the processing makes the lycopene more easily available for absorption. This is good news, as many o
