The main nutrient in tomatoes is vitamins. Among them, the most important and most abundant one is carotenoid, lycopene. In recent years, scientists have made many new breakthroughs in the study of the health effects of lycopene, which have been proved to include: a unique anti-oxidant ability that can eliminate free radicals that cause aging and diseases in the human body; and prevent the occurrence of cardiovascular diseases. Prevent the prostate cancer progression and effectively reduce the risk of pancreatic cancer, rectal cancer, laryngeal cancer, oral cancer, and breast cancer.
Tomato varieties, color, maturity, sweetness, and even the season of production are all important reasons for determining the content of lycopene. Yellow varieties of tomato lycopene content is very small, only 0.3 mg per 100 grams; red varieties of tomatoes are higher, generally containing 2-3 mg per 100 grams, the highest can reach 20 mg. In general, the redder the tomatoes, the higher the lycopene content and the lower lycopene content of immature and semi-mature blue tomatoes. There is also a pink tomato on the market, the content of lycopene is not as high as red.
The content of lycopene is inversely related to the soluble sugar content in tomatoes, that is, the more unsweetened tomatoes, the higher the lycopene content. In addition, the lycopene content of tomatoes produced in summer is relatively high, which is mainly due to the summer sunshine and long duration of light.
Let the content of lycopene greatly increase; and tomatoes grown in greenhouses in winter, the content of lycopene is relatively low.
An adult eats 100-200 grams of tomatoes a day and can meet the body's need for lycopene. But many people like to eat raw tomatoes, which is not conducive to the absorption of lycopene, because it is a fat-soluble vitamin, after heating and cooking oil, it is more conducive to its health. Since lycopene is easily decomposed by light, heat, and oxygen, long-time high-temperature heating should be avoided during cooking to preserve more nutrients. Cover with a lid when cooking and add some vinegar to protect it from oxygen damage.