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Lycopene for Cancer Prevention
By admin | November 8, 2007
If you’ve ever watched TV commercials for tomato-based products such as ketchup or tomato sauce, then you most probably have heard about “lycopene” and its ability to help prevent cancer. I think it’s smart of companies to cash in on the science behind lycopene, however only few truly understand how lycopene could help prevent cancer. Lycopene is actually what makes tomatoes red. Yep, believe it or not. Without lycopene, tomatoes would be pale fruits — yes tomatoes are fruits! Lycopene is a natural coloring called carotenoid. It is a phytochemical compound found in several plants. And most of all, it is an antioxidant which, according to earlier studies, could help prevent cancer.
Now, how could lycopene help prevent cancer exactly? The secret lies in its being an anti-oxidant. You see, the cells in your body are not static. Cells undergo numerous and various cellular reactions because we are living beings and hence, old cells die and new cells are formed. When cells undergo reactions, they release by-products. Think of it as a natural process in life. When you breathe in oxygen, you release carbon dioxide — put this in perspective. The cellular by-products which might induce cancer are called “free radicals.”
Free radicals are chemically active positively-charged molecules. The reason for this is that their electron shells are incomplete. In effect, they attract nearby molecules to complete or fill-up their electron shells. When this happens, the other molecules from which the free radical gets its electrons would be disrupted. This event, when magnified, could cause cancer. Lycopene, as an anti-radical, could wipe away or neutralize the charges of a free radical. This means lycopene might lower a person’s potential to have cancer. In more recent years, however, there have been studies which showed that this might not be necessarily true. However, true or not, there’s no harm in tomato-based product consumption and there’s always the possibility that it saves you from having cancer.
Topics: Prevention |
November 11th, 2007 at 6:45 pm
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