Tomatoes is somewhat a staple addition to most Indian dishes. Being an extremely versatile fruit, tomatoes can be used to make soups, salads and add that extra zing to curries.

A New Tool for Global Cancer Leaderses But did you know that tomatoes are actually great for your health? Especially a woman’s health? Well, the fruit, packed with a compound called lycopene has been found to prevent the onset of kidney cancer in women.

A study published in the Live Science report, found that lycopene women who consumed the highest amount of lycopene had a 45 percent lower risk of kidney cancer compared with those who ate the lowest amount since lycopene is an antioxidant that also gives tomato, watermelon, grapefruit and papaya its reddish colour. ‘The amount of lycopene in the diet of the women who consumed lycopene at the highest level in the study would be equal to eating four tomatoes daily,’ study researcher Won Jin Ho, a medical resident at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio, was quoted as saying in a Live Science report.

The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology in Chicago recently.

Here are some more health benefits of tomatoes:

1.    Reduces risk of heart disease

Cholesterol is one of the major culprits behind the rising incidences of heart disease among today’s population. Tomatoes contain many vitamins and antioxidants that prevent cholesterol build-up, but they especially contain lycopene which has been associated with improved heart health.

2.    Prevents cancer

Tomatoes have a lot of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory benefits that makes it great for preventing cancer. Free radicals, or oxygen containing molecules with one or more unpaired electrons often react with other molecules and lead to tumours. Therefore, it is important that you eat foods like tomatoes which are rich in antioxidants in order to prevent the damage.

3.    Good for weight loss

Tomatoes are extremely low in calories with a 100g serving containing just 18 calories. Also, it has fibre which helps you feel fuller thus ensuring that you do not overeat.

4.    Helps cure constipation

Constipation is caused due to food stuck in your colon and can be an extremely unpleasant condition to deal with. Tomatoes contain a lot of water and fibre that helps clear the food stuck in your colon thus curing constipation.  

5.    Keeps you looking younger

As we age, our skin undergoes free radical damage that can lead to the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines. Even though this process is inevitable, tomatoes contain antioxidants that delays it.

6.    Good for your vision

Even though tomatoes are not as rich a source of Vitamin A as carrots, they are still a good source of the nutrient. Vitamin A helps in preventing vision disorders like age-related macular degeneration which people suffer from in old age. 

 All of these reasons make tomato a great food that you should definitely stock up on the next time you go to a supermarket.

With inputs from:IANS and http://www.thehealthsite.com/