Hello Moms,

We have decided to discuss one of the very commonly consumed fruit, you can call it vegetable. Tomato has a lot of benefits and we will look at some of them.

1. According to medicalnewstoday.com, ‘the synthesis of collagen, an essential component of the skin, hair, nails and connective tissue, is reliant on vitamin C. A deficiency of vitamin C leads to scurvy. As vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant, a low intake is associated with increased damage from sunlight, pollution and smoke, leading to wrinkles, sagging skin, blemishes and other adverse health effects’.

2. Important in pregnancy: to protect against neural tube defects in infants, folic acid is always recommended and tomato contains a number of it. according to Mark Houston, M.D., M.S., an associate clinical professor of medicine at Vanderbilt Medical School and director of the Hypertension Institute at St. Thomas Hospital in Tennessee.3 Tomatoes also contain folic acid, which helps to keep homocysteine level

3. It helps prevent prostate and colorectal cancer

4. Maintaining a low sodium intake helps to keep blood pressure healthy; however, increasing potassium intake may be just as important because of its vasodilation effects. According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, fewer than 2 percent of U.S. adults meet the daily 4700 mg recommendation. Also of note, a high potassium intake is associated with a 20 percent decreased risk of dying from all causes. (Medicalnewstoday.com) for more information.

5. According to whfoods.com ‘Intake of tomatoes has long been linked to heart health. Fresh tomatoes and tomato extracts have been shown to help lower total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides. In addition, tomato extracts have been shown to help prevent unwanted clumping together (aggregation) of platelet cells in the blood – a factor that is especially important in lowering risk of heart problems like atherosclerosis’

6.  Medicalnewstoday.com ‘The folic acid in tomatoes may help with depression by preventing an excess of homocysteine from forming in the body, which can prevent blood and other nutrients from reaching the brain. Excess homocysteine interferes with the production of the feel-good hormones serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine, which regulate mood, sleep and appetite’.

How to use them

they are various ways to incorporate tomato into our meals.

Information from medicalnewstoday.com—Dip grape or cherry tomatoes in hummus or plain yogurt dip and have as a side or a snack
Add sliced tomato to your sandwiches and wraps
Add diced canned tomatoes (low sodium) to homemade or jarred marinara sauces when making pasta
Used canned diced or stewed tomatoes in soups
Have a piece of toast with avocado and tomato slices
Make your own quick salsa with diced tomatoes, onion, jalapeno, cilantro and freshly squeezed lime
Dice fresh tomatoes and add them to rice and beans, quesadillas or tacos. Add them to your omelets or scrambles for breakfast
Drizzle freshly sliced tomatoes and sliced mozzarella with balsamic vinegar and top with chopped basil
Make a quick bruschetta for an appetizer.

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