Posted on 04/29/2008 1:04:35 PM PDT by blam
Watering Tomato Plants With Diluted Seawater Boosts Levels Of Antioxidants
Watering tomato plants with diluted seawater boosts levels of antioxidants, scientists report. (Credit: Courtesy of public-domain-photos.com)
ScienceDaily (Apr. 29, 2008) — Watering tomatoes with diluted seawater can boost their content of disease-fighting antioxidants and may lead to healthier salads, appetizers, and other tomato-based foods, scientists in Italy report.
Besides their use in a variety of ethnic food dishes, tomatoes are one of the most commonly grown home garden vegetables, particularly cherry tomatoes. Scientists have linked tomatoes to several health benefits, including protection against prostate cancer and heart disease. Researchers have known for years that seawater does not stimulate the growth of tomatoes, but scientists know little about its effects on the nutritional content of the vegetables.
In the new study, Riccardo Izzo and colleagues grew cherry tomatoes in both freshwater and in a dilute solution of 12 percent seawater. They found that ripe tomatoes grown in the salty water showed higher levels of vitamin C, vitamin E, dihydrolipoic acid, and chlorogenic acid. All of these substances are antioxidants that appear to fight heart disease, cancer, aging, and other conditions. Using saltwater to irrigate tomato crops also appears to be a promising alternative to freshwater irrigation, especially in the wake of water shortages in some parts of the world, the researchers note.
The article "Irrigation with Diluted Seawater Improves the Nutritional Value of Cherry Tomatoes" is scheduled for the May 14 issue of ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry
Adapted from materials provided by American Chemical Society, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.
I fertilize my vegetables with Fish Emulsion. I wonder if the results are the same.
By Tom Peterkin
The Telegraph (UK)
Last Updated: 7:42AM BST 29/04/2008
Eating five tomatoes a day could help protect against sunburn and premature ageing, new research has revealed. Experts at Manchester and Newcastle Universities found the fruit improved the skin's ability to protect itself against ultra-violet light.
The researchers calculated that the protection offered by eating tomatoes was comparable to applying factor 1.3 sunscreen.
The team is now hoping to carry out more research to find out if eating tomatoes can protect against more severe forms of sun-damage such as skin cancer.
"You don't have to eat an excessive amount of tomatoes to experience the effect, if you are already eating a tomato-based diet with plenty of things like spaghetti and pizza toppings," said Professor Mark Birch-Machin, a dermatology scientist at Newcastle University.
"Eating tomatoes is going to have this benefit in the sun, but it is still important to use conventional methods of protecting yourself against the sun such as sunscreens, shade and clothing."
Researchers studied the skin of 20 people, half of whom were given five tablespoons (55g) of standard tomato paste, the equivalent of five or six cooked tomatoes, with 10g of olive oil. The other half of the sample received just olive oil.
The experiment was carried out over 12 weeks and the group was exposed to ultra-violet light at the beginning and the end of the trial.
The results, presented to the British Society for Investigative Dermatology in Oxford, found that those who had eaten the paste had 33 per cent more protection against sunburn, which can lead to skin cancer.
Ultra-violet light leads to excess production of harmful molecules called 'reactive oxygen species', which can damage skin structures eventually causing wrinkles and skin cancer.
But tomatoes contain a powerful antioxidant called lycopene, which can neutralise these harmful molecules. Lycopene is the bright red pigment found in a number of fruit and vegetables, but is at its most concentrated in tomatoes.
The tomatoes were cooked and made into a paste, because the heating process frees up lycopene.
Analysis of skin samples from both groups also showed that the tomato diet had boosted the skin's procollagen levels, a molecule which gives the skin its structure. Losing procollagen leads to the skin ageing and losing its elasticity.
It was also found that the increased levels of lycopene reduced damage to mitochondrial DNA in the skin. Damage to that particular genetic material is also linked to ageing skin.
This is actually good news. Especially for farmers in places where the supply of freshwater is limited and can be supplemented with seawater.
Heh. Good one.
Beachwood 4-5789 has a special place in my heart. One night we were perfoming at the enlisted men’s club at Fort Ord, for a bunch of young, very drunk draftees. They told us if a fight broke out, whatever we did, do not stop playing. Well, the fight finally broke out while we were doing Beachwood, and we played it over and over for at least twenty minutes.
Never sang it again after that! Thanks for reminding me.
I live 10 minutes from the ocean.
SEAWATER!!! GET YOUR SEAWATER HERE WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!
;)
Nothing beats home-grown tomatoes. Nothing.
My grandfather put a Smelt under each plant. We had so many tomatoes when I was a kid I thought we were rich. Boy was I wrong.
I think s/w fish drink the stuff soooo
This idea is demented. If you do this several years in a row, your soil will eventually not grow anything and the water table will become polluted with one of the most expensive contaminants - - salt.
Something similar happens when you irrigate year after year with hard water. The minerals accumulate in the soil eventually poisoning it.
Organic pollution eventually breaks down over time. Salt will never be anything but salt.
This idea is demented. If you do this several years in a row, your soil will eventually not grow anything and the water table will become polluted with one of the most expensive contaminants - - salt.
Something similar happens when you irrigate year after year with hard water. The minerals accumulate in the soil eventually poisoning it.
Organic pollution eventually breaks down over time. Salt will never be anything but salt.
Plant you tomatoes in high salanity soil to begin with and then water with normal water, huh?
Exactly what I was thinking. I fertilize with a good high quality, low nitrogen, fertilizer which contains all the trace elements necessary for a healthy plant. I also use prodigious amounts of bone meal.
Fish emulsion is not a balanced fertilizer and has too much nitrogen for tomatoes.
Possibly. I imagine the boost they are talking about comes from the trace minerals, and I think fish would have alot of those. Probably better to do it with something off the shelf like fish emulsion than with seawater.
I am willing to give the smelt under the tomato plant a try but would a sardine work? Hard to find smelt right now.
The oil might act as a preservative.
What happens to tomato plants watered with water that goes through a water softener first?
Will beat your price for diluted seawater by 50%. Call Jenny at 867-5309...
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