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Lycopene

Updated on 28th July 2009 by Dr Charles Tweed

Intro
Lycopene is a naturally occurring carotenoid found in a number of fruits and vegetables such as the tomato, watermelon, pink grapefruit, guava and rosehip. It has recently been in the news because of an association between it’s consumption and improved health outcomes and an increasing body of laboratory evidence of its ability to scavenge free radicals. Areas where Lycopene may be helpful include:

Cardiovascular disease. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8]
Diabetes. [9, 10, 11, 12, 13]
Cancer prevention, particularly prostate cancer. [14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24]
Enlarged prostate. [25]
Prevention of skin damage and skin cancer. [26, 27, 28]

Please see the Google Scholar links below for dynamic, constantly updating data of recent studies so that you can research Lycopene's benefits for yourself.

Cardiovascular disease.

Diabetes

Cancer prevention, particularly prostate cancer.

Enlarged prostate.

Prevention of skin damage and skin cancer.

The science
Lycopene has hit the headlines recently as a number of studies have been widely reported in the press. Primarily, this has been for heart disease and prostate cancer. Tomatoes are one of the major constituents of the Mediterranean diet and epidemiological studies have suggested that people who have a diet rich in tomatoes have a decreased risk of cardiovascular disease. A massive survey of Finnish men helped escalate the benefits of Lycopene into the public consciousness when it found a marked reduction in cardiovascular disease in the people who had the highest levels of Lycopene in their blood. [7] Since then, there has been a flurry of papers showing the following effects:

It reduces the oxidation of LDL (bad) cholesterol, a crucial step in the development of atherosclerosis which is the reason people get heart disease and strokes. [1, 2, 4, 5]
Numerous epidemiological studies show strong correlation between high dietary Lycopene intake, high tissue Lycopene levels and better cardiovascular outcomes such as:
- Reduced risk of sudden death. [8]
- Reduced risk of atherosclerosis. [5]
- Reduced risk of death from heart disease. [2]
- Reduced risk of stroke. [29]
- Increased flexibility and thickening of blood vessels. [1]
- Decreased levels of oxidised LDL.
- Reduced heart muscle damage in experimentally induced heart attacks in lab animals. [3]
As yet no intervention trials have been published (randomised prospective studies) but the circumstantial evidence is highly convincing.
Interestingly, it was the only carotenoid to show statistical significance between tissue levels and health outcomes.
Lycopene has been identified as one of the most potent scavengers of singlet species of oxygen free radicals - approximately 100 times more powerful than Vitamin E.
In diabetics, Lycopene has been shown to improve insulin sensitivity and reduce blood sugar levels [9, 10, 13] and also decrease the risks of developing cardiovascular disease - which is extremely common in diabetics [12, 14]. There is no good evidence to suggest it decreases the risks of developing diabetes, however. [11]
Regarding cancer, there is a wealth of data in its role in prostate cancer. The papers looking at breast cancer are looking increasingly robust as well.
- Epidemiological studies suggest a lower rate of cancers in people consuming a high number of tomatoes and tomato products. [15, 16, 18]
- The studies looking particularly at prostate cancer have been conflicting:
  - Multiple, sizeable studies seemed to prove that a diet high in Lycopene reduced the incidence of prostate cancer. [15, 19, 20, 21]
  - The largest looked at 137,000 men and found a 60% reduction in risk of prostate cancer in men with the highest Lycopene levels. [21]
  - There seemed to be a particular benefit in reducing the aggressive form of prostate cancer that commonly occurs in younger men and is usually fatal, as opposed to the more slow growing type that is present in most elderly men if you care to look hard enough, and rarely causes much trouble. Other studies have questioned this finding. Our opinion is that the case is still open, but Lycopene is almost certainly helpful in preventing the onset of aggressive cancers in younger men. It may also be useful in the treatment and prevention of other cancers too, particularly breast cancer. [23]
  - Lycopene seems to also decrease the enlargement of the prostate gland that often occurs with age. [25]
The red pigment absorbs blue light in a dose dependant manner. Studies looking at deliberately induced sunburn before and after supplementation with Lycopene show a significant reduction in skin damage when taking an increased intake of Lycopene. [28] There is also an association between high Lycopene levels and a decreased risk of non-melanoma skin cancer. [26, 27]

Safety
There appear to be no adverse effects from Lycopene ingestion, although massive ingestion will stain the skin reddy orange – so-called lycopenodermia.

aging-management.com Buyer's Guide and Recommendation
We suggest 10-20mg per day is appropriate for cardiovascular disease prevention and also probably for reducing the risk of aggressive prostate cancer. It is best consumed with food. Doses for other indications are unknown.

References:

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