Tomatoes
Solanum lycopersicum
Vegetables. Modern nutrition.
Also called Love apple, Jitomate, Pomodoro
Pinyin: Fān Qié
Spanish: Tomate
A juicy fruit used as a vegetable, rich in lycopene, the red plant pigment.
Did you know? Tomatoes are botanically fruits, but in 1893 the US Supreme Court ruled they were vegetables for tariff purposes.
What it may help, and how strong the proof is
- Heart health. Lycopene-rich foods are linked to better heart health in large studies. Trials of tomato products on heart outcomes are mixed.Early proof
- Skin. Small trials of tomato paste show some protection from sunburn redness. It is not a sunscreen.Traditional proof
Parts of the body
Traditional use
Tomatoes came from the Americas and were slow to be accepted in Europe. Some early Europeans feared they were poisonous. The fruit is safe, but the leaves and stems contain a compound that can be toxic.
How it is classified
- Herbal actions
- Nutritive, Antioxidant. Energy: neutral.
How people take it
Eat raw or cooked. Cooked tomato products such as paste and sauce give more usable lycopene than raw tomato. Sunburn trials used tomato paste daily for weeks.
Food and juice.
Where to get it
Grown in warm places worldwide. Sold fresh, canned, as paste, sauce and dried. Lycopene pills are a separate product from eating tomatoes.
Be careful
Safe as food. Leaves and stems contain tomatine, which can be toxic in large amounts, so do not eat them. Tomatoes can trigger heartburn and reflux in some people.
Avoid if: acid reflux.
Mixing with other things
- Works well together
Tomato and avocado are a classic salad and guacamole pair.
- Works well together
Tomato and basil are a classic Mediterranean pair.
- Works well together
Fat from olive oil helps the body absorb lycopene from tomatoes.
- Works well together
Okra and tomato are a classic stew pairing in West African and Southern US cooking.
The honest take
Tomatoes are a healthy food. Their lycopene is linked to heart health in large studies, but trials are mixed. Lycopene pills are not proven to do what eating tomatoes may do.