October 17, 2003 – Taking lycopene supplements does not reduce the risk of developing prostate cancer as much as eating whole tomatoes, according to the results of a new study in rats .
The anticancer effect of lycopene, the substance that gives tomatoes its red color, was first highlighted in 1995 by researchers at Harvard University.1, leading to the marketing of supplements. However, researchers at Ohio State University have just discovered that lycopene alone does not protect against cancer as effectively as the whole tomato, whether consumed in the form of fresh fruit, juice, or even pizza sauce! (On this subject, see the article in PasseportSanté.net dated July 22, 2003).
The researchers divided 194 male mice with prostate cancer into three groups. They added tomato powder to the diet of the first group, lycopene to the diet of the second and nothing at all to that of the third. After four weeks, mice given tomato powder had a 26% greater chance of surviving prostate cancer than those in the control group. Lycopene, on the other hand, only resulted in a very modest protective effect.
The study, the results of which are published in the current edition of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, also found that mice that consumed the fewest calories each day were also the least likely to die of cancer. .
Researchers point out that the tomato contains dozens of active ingredients and that these are likely to be more effective all together than taken individually.
In contrast, in India, a clinical study involving 54 men with prostate cancer found that those who take lycopene supplements seem to respond better to their treatment and have less difficulty urinating. Researchers also report fewer deaths in the supplement group than in the control group.
Jean-Benoit Legault – PasseportSanté.net
From eurekalert.org; November 4, 2003.
1. Giovannucci E, Ascherio A, Rimm EB, Stampfer MJ, Colditz GA, Willett WC. Intake of carotenoids and retinol in relation to risk of prostate cancer.J Natl Cancer Inst 1995 Dec 6; 87 (23): 1767-76.
