Health Benefits of Tomatoes

                                                                      Health Benefits of Tomatoes

Tomatoes a red or yellowish fruit with a juicy pulp, used as a vegetable: botanically it is a berry  they are  usually large, rounded, edible, pulpy berry of an herb (genus Solanum) of the nightshade family native to South America that is typically red but may be yellow, orange, green, or purplish in color and is eaten raw or cooked as a vegetable. Tomatoes are loaded with a substance called lycopene. It gives them their bright red color and helps protect them from the ultraviolet rays of the sun. In much the same way, it can help protect your cells from damage. Tomatoes also have potassium, vitamins B and E, and other nutrients.

The Health Benefits are listed below:

Immune System

Lycopene is an antioxidant -- it fights molecules called free radicals that can damage your cells and affect your immune system. Because of that, foods high in lycopene, like tomatoes, may make you less likely to have lung, stomach, or prostate cancer. Some research shows they might help prevent the disease in the pancreas, colon, throat, mouth, breast, and cervix as well.

Heart

Lycopene also may help lower your levels of LDL, or “bad” cholesterol, as well as your blood pressure. And that may lower your chances of heart disease. Other nutrients in tomatoes, like vitamins B and E and antioxidants called flavonoids, may boost your heart health, too.

Eye

Tomatoes have substances called lutein and zeaxanthin that may help protect your eyes from the blue light made by digital devices like smartphones and computers. They also may help keep your eyes from feeling tired and ease headaches from eye strain. And some research shows they may even make you less likely to have a more serious form of the leading cause of blindness in the U.S.: age-related macular degeneration.

Lungs

Some studies show that tomatoes may be helpful for people who have asthma and may help prevent emphysema, a condition that slowly damages the air sacs in your lungs. That may be because lycopene, lutein, and zeaxanthin, among other antioxidants, fight the harmful substances in tobacco smoke, which is the leading cause of emphysema. Scientists are trying to learn more about those effects.

Blood Vessels

Getting more tomatoes into your diet may make you less likely to have a stroke, which is when blood flow gets cut off to a part of your brain.  Studies suggest that they may ease inflammation, boost your immune system, lower your cholesterol levels, and keep your blood from clotting. All those things may help prevent strokes.

Source: merriam-webster.com, webmd.com and collinsdictionary