Cooked tomatoes are the key to cure wrinkles
Apr 29 2008 by Jule Wilson, The Journal
EATING pizza topped with tomato paste can help prevent sunburn and premature wrinkles, new research suggests. A study by researchers at Newcastle and Manchester universities found that volunteers who ate helpings of ordinary tomato paste over a 12-week period developed skin that was 33% more protected against sunlight than another group who were not given tomato paste.
The effect of eating tomatoes was equivalent to slapping on a factor 1.3 sunscreen, while changes were also seen within the skin of the volunteers that counteract the appearance of ageing. Scientists think a powerful antioxidant in tomatoes called lycopene, which has the ability to neutralise harmful molecules produced in skin exposed to the sun’s ultra violet (UV) rays, is responsible.
Professor Mark Birch-Machin, who led the Newcastle half of the team, said: “We compared the skin of 20 people over 12 weeks. Half of them were given five tablespoons, which is 55 grammes of standard tomato paste, mixed with 10 grammes of olive oil every day, with the other half receiving just olive oil. The skin was exposed to ultraviolet (UV) light, which is found naturally in sunlight, at both the beginning and at the end of the trial.”
Sun damage from UV exposure includes premature wrinkles and skin cancer, but Prof Birch-Machin found the tomato contains a powerful antioxidant called lycopene, more of which is absorbed by the body when the fruit is processed or cooked into a paste or a substance such as ketchup. He went on: “Cooking the tomato makes lycopene more what we call bioavailable, which makes it more effective than eating raw tomatoes.”
Lycopene is the bright red pigment found in a number of red fruit and vegetables, but is it at its highest levels in cooked tomatoes, meaning tomato paste is an ideal source.
Professor Birch-Machin said: “We also found that the lycopene had reduced damage to mitochondrial DNA, which in simple terms is like the batteries of the cells in the skin, which has also been linked to skin ageing.”
The research was presented at the British Society for Investigative Dermatology this month.
Nina Goad of the British Association of Dermatologists said: “While the protection offered by lycopene is low, this research suggests that a diet containing high levels of antioxidant rich tomatoes could provide an extra tool in sun protection.”
Professor Birch-Machin added: “Eating tomatoes will not make you invincible to the effects of the sun, but it may be a useful addition to sun protection.”
