Why tomatoes are harmful and beneficial for humans

It is common knowledge that vegetables, fruits and berries are good for health. This also applies to tomatoes. But what exactly are the harms and benefits of tomatoes for the body? Are they so useful, and are there any contraindications for use? tomatoes? In this article you will find out the answers to these and many other questions.

Chemical composition and calorie content of tomatoes

The exact chemical composition of an individual vegetable depends on the variety, ripeness and conditions growing. Despite the fact that tomatoes are one of the juiciest vegetables and consist of more than 93% water, the amount of useful microelements and nutrients they contain is colossal.

The calorie content of 100 g of tomatoes varies between 18 and 24 Kcal depending on the variety. The average amount of proteins, fats and carbohydrates is 0.6, 0.2 and 4.2 g, respectively.

Tomatoes have their characteristic sweet taste due to their sugar content. There are about 3 g of sugar per 100 g of product (the value varies depending on the variety). But the acids in the composition are responsible for the sour taste: ascorbic, folic, malic, citric.

Despite the relatively low content of proteins, fats and carbohydrates, tomatoes are still rich in vitamins, micro- and macroelements.

These vegetables contain vitamins:

• A (strengthens blood vessels, improves vision, accelerates skin regeneration);
• C (fights infections and inflammation);
• E (fights skin diseases, improves immunity, prevents premature aging);
• P (responsible for the normal functioning of the hormonal system);
• K, as well as B vitamins.

Tomatoes contain almost as much vitamin C as citrus fruits. And vitamin K is extremely rare in other products, although it is very important for metabolism, as well as vascular health.

Tomatoes are also rich in macroelements, they contain: potassium, chlorine, sodium, phosphorus, magnesium, sulfur, etc. The composition of microelements is also striking in its breadth: iron, zinc, rubidium, boron, copper, fluorine, etc.

Separately, it is worth noting lycopene and quercetin, substances that are extremely important for human health and are found in large quantities in tomatoes.

The benefits and harms of tomatoes

Tomatoes are indispensable for vitamin deficiency, improve skin condition, and help prevent cancer.

Quercetin, contained in tomatoes, slows down aging, regulates redox processes in the body, and fights inflammation.

Lycopene, in turn, participates in the formation of vitamin A, neutralizes the effects of free radicals harmful to the body, and prevents damage to the DNA structure. Lycopene is also a powerful antioxidant that destroys cancer cells in their bud.

Benefits for women

The main benefit of eating tomatoes for the female body is the prevention of osteoporosis (a skeletal disease with decreased bone density). The risk of this disease increases during menopause.

Also, thanks to lycopene, tomatoes reduce the risk of breast cancer. And vitamin E helps prevent cervical diseases.

There is a positive effect of tomatoes on the condition of the skin. The components in the chemical composition of these vegetables have a tonic effect on the skin.This applies not only to eating tomatoes as food, but also to using them as components for face and body masks. Such masks protect the skin from the negative effects of sunlight, fill it with moisture and smooth out wrinkles.

Of course, it is worth noting that tomato is an excellent product for weight loss. If you are watching your weight, then including tomatoes in your diet will help significantly reduce your calorie intake and activate your metabolic process. This also applies to processed tomato products, such as juice.

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Benefits for men

Tomatoes are also beneficial for the male body. The inclusion of tomatoes in a man's diet allows him to resist age-related changes in the prostate, reduces the risk of developing prostate cancer, prostate adenoma and prostatitis.

Vitamins A and E normalize the reproductive process, zinc and selenium improve potency and help prolong erection.

This vegetable is also useful for sports diets: tomato juice promotes protein synthesis in the body, which makes training more effective.

In addition, men are exposed to toxic substances in industrial production. Here tomatoes also play an important role: they help remove harmful substances from the body.

Tomatoes during pregnancy

During pregnancy, the female body loses many useful substances and requires their replenishment. In this case, tomatoes are ideal, the composition of which is rich in vitamins and micro- and macroelements.

It should be noted that during pregnancy, the benefit for the female body and the child’s body can only come from fresh tomatoes.Salted and pickled vegetables, as well as tomato juices, pastes and ketchups should be excluded from the diet. It is optimal to eat salads with tomatoes during their seasonal ripening.

Tomatoes should be consumed in small quantities during pregnancy because they can cause allergies.

Benefits for various diseases

The beneficial properties of tomatoes are undeniable in order to prevent many diseases, namely:

• improve heart function due to the optimal content of magnesium, sodium, iron and potassium;
• contribute to the improvement of blood vessels, as they thin the blood, preventing the formation of blood clots, and also cleanse it of cholesterol and increase hemoglobin (which makes them useful for people with anemia);
• indicated for people who often suffer from colds, since vitamin C in the composition improves immunity;
• help people with certain kidney diseases, as they remove salt from them;
• tomatoes increase the flow of bile;
• relieve swelling due to its diuretic effect;
• normalize a person’s mental state: B vitamins suppress anxiety, eliminate apathy, fatigue and insomnia;
• indispensable for vitamin deficiency.

Separately, it is worth mentioning the rules for eating tomatoes for diabetics. For type 1 diabetes, tomatoes and tomato juice are useful, but the daily intake of tomatoes should not exceed 300 g. And for type 2 diabetes, processed (salted, pickled) vegetables should not be consumed.

Contraindications

Tomatoes have a negative effect on some diseases.

The consumption of tomatoes should be strictly limited or completely excluded from the diet for the following diseases:

1. Gout and other joint diseases.Oxalic acid contained in tomatoes promotes the accumulation of salt in tissues.
2. Chronic kidney diseases. Since tomatoes can provoke the movement of stones.
3. Diseases of the cardiovascular system (the norm is no more than 1-2 pieces per day).

There are especially many restrictions on the consumption of salted vegetables. Such tomatoes should not be consumed by people with gastrointestinal disorders, as well as diseases of the pancreas and liver.

In addition to the above contraindications, tomatoes should not be consumed if they cause an allergic reaction.

In addition, salted and pickled tomatoes can cause kidney stones.

Conclusion

In this article, we looked at the health benefits and harms of fresh tomatoes, as well as various processed products. Tomatoes are rich in nutrients. Their chemical composition amazes with the variety of micro- and macroelements and vitamins.

These vegetables are indispensable in the prevention of many common diseases. Their use benefits both men and women (even during pregnancy). But we must not forget that everything needs moderation, and tomato is not a panacea, so you need to approach its use wisely in order to preserve and improve your health.