Tomatoes are revered for their health - boosting properties , but if you slurp your pasta sauce down with a few meatballs , these nutritional benefits appear to undergo an unusual effect .
Many of the aim antioxidant benefit from tomatoes are said to halt from a reddish paint called lycopene . According to a new cogitation in the journalMolecular Nutrition & Food Research , the story of lycopene engage in a love apple - rich meal significantly dropped if it ’s accompanied with iron - rich foods , such as meat .
Scientists at Ohio State University tested the rip and digestive fluid of a very small group of participants ( just seven young male students ) after they drank a tomato extract excite . Half of the cohort were give a shake plait with an smoothing iron supplement , while the others pick up one without any Fe . Their final result show that the participants who had exhaust a tomato extract shake with iron had " significantly lower " degree of lycopene in their body compared to those who just drank the tomato waggle without the atomic number 26 postscript .
“ When people had iron with their meal , we image almost a twofold driblet in lycopene uptake over clip , ” lead generator Rachel Kopec , an assistant prof of human nutrition at Ohio State , said ina statement .
“ This could have potential logical implication every time a somebody is consuming something rich in lycopene and iron – say a Bolognese sauce , or an Fe - lace grain with a side of tomato succus . You ’re probably only getting one-half as much lycopene from this as you would without the atomic number 26 . ”
Lycopene is a carotenoid chemical compound responsible for for the red and orange color found in tomatoes , watermelon , red cabbage , and papaia . Some late discipline have hinted that this pigment check some antioxidants prop that could helpprotect peoplefrom CVA , heart trouble , and perhaps even genus Cancer . There has been considerable interest in its potential character inprotecting against prostate gland genus Cancer . However , many wellness authoritiesdoubt the extent of theseanti - malignant neoplastic disease properties .
It ’s unreadable on the nose why iron appear to reduce the ingestion of lycopene , as they did n’t look for the underlying chemical mechanism in the study , but the researchers have a few ideas about what ’s at gambling .
" It ’s also potential that iron interrupt the nice emulsified mixture of tomato and fats that is vital for cells to absorb the lycopene . It could plough it into a substance like separated salad dressing – oil on top and vinegar on the bottom – that wo n’t ever mix properly , ” said Kopec .
