Can tomato paste benefit the prostate?

Tag : Tomato Paste

"Processing of many edible plants through heating, grinding, mixingor drying dramatically increases their nutritional value andcancer-fighting potential."
Ouch. This seems counter-intuitive to many of us raised on theevils of saccharin (now redeemed) and the general dietary rule thateating something in its original state is superior to a processedfood.
The UMissouri study found that it isn't just the lycopene intomatoes that protects against cancer. When linked with a compoundcalled FruHis -- an organic carbohydrate present in dehydratedtomato products -- it exerts a stronger protective effect againstprostate cancer.
Rats injected with prostate cancer-causing chemicals and fed a dietof tomato paste plus additional FruHis, demonstrated the longestsurvival rate in the UMissouri study. Only 10 percent in that groupdeveloped prostate tumors.
Sixty percent in the control group had tumors; 30 percent of thegroup fed tomato powder had tumors; and 25 percent of the group fedtomato paste alone had prostate tumors.
"Before this study, researchers attributed the protective effect oftomatoes to ascorbic acid, carotenoids or phenolic compounds,"Mossine said. "FruHis may represent a novel type of potentialdietary antioxidant. Our ongoing research now focuses on unravelingthe mechanisms behind why this has a beneficial effect."
The study, published in the June issue of Cancer Research, ajournal of the American Association for Cancer Research, wasfinanced by the Prostate Cancer Foundation and the MU AgricultureExperiment Station Chemistry Lab, we are told - and not by any foodindustry group that would benefit from these findings. A copy ofthe study states that "no potential conflicts of interest weredisclosed."
The Prostate Cancer Foundation is a nonprofit group that says onits home page that it links with corporations and businesses thatwill work toward its goal of conquering this disease.
Supporters range from fashion designers Giorgio Armani and HugoBoss to the Republic of Tea and Major League Baseball.
The study does underscore that its findings might be a bitcontroversial since "it suggests the presence of a potentialchemo-preventive agent in tomato products prepared by rehyrdrationof tomato powder."
The researchers suggest moving from rats to human clinical trials.Maybe the food industry would jump in here.