Lycopene: benefits, in which foods, what is it?

You may have already heard that tomatoes are a real cure for youth thanks to their lycopene content. health benefits of lycopene are a certainty for scientists. Lycopene is the star of the wellness, cosmetics and food supplement markets.

THE lycopene is a red pigment of the family of carotenoids which is naturally found in certain fruits or vegetables such as tomatowatermelon or even grapefruit… It owes its Latin name to the tomato (Solanum lycopersium) which contains the highest natural concentration.

Lycopene is the most abundant carotenoid in the human body: this substance fat soluble is transported via blood lipids and accumulates mainly in organs that contain fat such as the liver and prostate.

Lycopene is known for its health benefits due to its antioxidant properties. Lycopene is one of the most powerful carotenoids for the intracellular elimination of free radicals. It would have benefits to protect against certain cancers as well as tissue aging.

This pigment is naturally found in some red fruits such as tomatoes. The fruits richest in lycopene are (in order):

Let us add that lycopene is found in small quantities in certain processed products since it is used as food coloring under the code E160d.

Note that the cooked tomato is probably the food richest in lycopene ahead of watermelon and raw tomatoes. In fact, in the case of tomatoes, Cooking increases the amount of bioavailable lycopene (heat releases this pigment into the cells).

Against all expectations, there is therefore more bioavailable lycopene in industrial tomato sauce or ketchup than in fresh tomatoes. However, this reaction does not work for other fruits for which cooking and oxidation cause lycopene levels to drop.

Let's add that fats help increase the assimilation of lycopene. The moral? Tomato mozzarella must be with olive oil!

We consider that we ingest on average between 5 and 25 mg per day depending on the country and the season in our diet. However, in the current state of knowledge no recommended daily dosage has been determined. However, it is advisable to eat lycopene every day.

In raw tomato for example, we find about 3 mg of lycopene compared to 13 mg in a slice of watermelon. A small 125 ml can of cooked tomatoes can give you up to 27 mg of lycopene.

Lycopene can be taken in the form of food supplements Has Daily dosages generally range from 5 to 100 mg. These products are said to have health benefits. However, there is little scientific evidence to support their effectiveness.

Since 2012, European health authorities (EFSA, European Food Safety Authority and the European Commission) have considered that these products can NOT claim to protect against free radicals, aging, the risk of prostate cancer and cardiovascular diseases. For its part, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) refused in 2005 to manufacturers of lycopene supplements the right to display anticancer claims, due to lack of sufficient evidence.

And he added: “If you want quality products, ask your pharmacist or naturopath for advice. But it's better to turn to natural sources of lycopene with a diet rich in tomatoes, for example.”

Lycopene is one of the most powerful carotenoids for the intracellular elimination of free radicals. It owes this effectiveness to its liposolubility : free radicals forming in the lipid part of cells (source 1). Thus, lycopene is known for its protective effects against skin aging, cardiovascular risks and also prostate cancer.

In a 2007 report, the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) concluded (reviewing nearly 500,000 studies) that foods rich in lycopene, such as tomatoes, may offer protection against prostate cancer.

In 2015, research showed that higher lycopene consumption/concentration was associated with a lower risk of prostate cancer (source 2). However, they noted that further studies are needed to determine the mechanism by which lycopene reduces prostate cancer risk and whether there are other factors in tomato products that could potentially reduce prostate cancer risk and progression.

Increased consumption of lycopene could notably reduce high blood pressure. Specifically, a 2009 study showed that tomato extract enhanced the treatment effects of some severely hypertensive patients (source 3).

Lycopene could also lower blood cholesterol levels according to some works (source 4).

Studies show that lycopene supplements may have a anti-aging effect on the skin (source 5). The same goes for the lycopene-based cosmetic creams. In this regard, a study shows that young subjects have an increased level of lycopene on the surface of the skin (compared to older subjects). It has even been shown that a lycopene deficiency could be responsible for premature aging of the body and an early onset of chronic diseases related to aging (source 6).

In 2023, studies showed that tomato sauce consumption was associated with a lower incidence of colorectal cancer. However, increased tomato sauce consumption is not associated with a decrease in mortality in patients with colorectal cancer. This work could suggest that lycopene has a protective effect against colorectal cancer. However, further studies are needed to confirm this point, especially since previous studies were contradictory (sources 7 and 8).

According to ANSES, a particularly increased consumption of foods rich in lycopene reportedly triggered a dark orange discoloration of the skin in some patients called lycopenodermia (source 9). This pathology is characterized by pigment deposits in the liver, a yellow-orange discoloration of the skin and abdominal pain.