Posted on 08/30/2009 9:14:07 PM PDT by Steelfish
The tomato pill: Daily dose is as good for the heart as Mediterranean food
By TAMARA COHEN 31st August 2009
British scientists have developed a groundbreaking pill which provides all the health benefits of a Mediterranean diet.
One capsule of Ateronon taken daily can break down fatty deposits in the arteries and help prevent heart disease and strokes, potentially saving millions of lives.
The supplement, which costs £35 for a month's supply, contains lycopene, a chemical found in the skin of ripe tomatoes.
Each pill provides the equivalent of eating three kilos of ripe tomatoes. Studies have shown eating an Italian-style diet rich in tomatoes, fish, vegetables, nuts and olive oil can significantly reduce cholesterol and help prevent cardiovascular diseases.
Heart disease is the UK's biggest killer, responsible for 120,000 deaths a year - one of the highest rates in the world - while 70,000 die of strokes.
Ateronon was developed by Cambridge Theranostics, a biotechnology company which employs scientists from Cambridge University. By combining lycopene with whey, from milk, they shrank the molecule enough for it to be easily absorbed by humans.
An initial trial in 150 heart disease patients found that taking the pill once a day could not only halt but even reverse the buildup of fatty deposits on artery walls in just two months, without side-effects.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Exciting news. I’d prefer to eat some tomatoes myself, but I could take that pill and skip sunscreen. Apparently, lycopene boost your natural spf.
35Pounds per month.
Generic simvastatin at Walmart is about $4 per month.
In the summer, when we have fresh tomatoes from the garden, I eat them for breakfast, lunch, dinner & sometimes snacks. We canned some too for when we run out of fresh. I knew they were good for you, but I didn’t know they were that good!
Time for a tomato sandwich.
How about daily consumption of a multi-vitamin, lo-sodium V-8, fish oil capsules, nuts, and olive oil, I wonder.
I love v-8. I tried the low sodium kind and it was horrible. I stick to regular V-8. Tomatoes, olives and garlic do wonders.
You had to say that didn’t you?
It’s the middle of the night and I’m out of tomatoes.
DARN YOU!
I really, really want one now. :(
Vitamin Shoppe sells two month’s worth for $20. The Brits are getting ripped off. And Ronald Reagan was right: ketchup IS a vegetable.
Can someone take this if they are allergic to tomatoes?
My husband argues that ketchup is an entire food group. Two of the 3 boys and several of the grandboys agree. I feel the same way about butter.
I would argue for mayonnaise. I make my own.
Probably not, as we are dealing only with the vital chemical compound found in the skin of the fruit.
Actually, processed tomatoes have much more lypocene than raw. The best sources are ketchup and tomato paste, followed by tomato sauce and juice.
I use a lot of garlic powder, and garlic...used to take the capsules. I’ve developed a taste for the low sodium V-8 now. I think they’ve improved it, or something. I usually get the canned ones and keep them in the fridge.
I get it in the large bottles. Its gone up in price too.
Why? Because it's more concentrated?
ping for later read
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