Add Great Nutrition To Your Diet With Tomatoes

Tomatoes have a number of health benefits that have made them a popular addition of diets throughout the world. One of the most powerful antioxidants found in nature, Lycopene, is found in nature. As such, tomatoes are beneficial in preventing certain cancers from developing. Tomatoes are also thought to be beneficial for the heart and tomato extract is also used by alternative health aficionados for treating high blood pressure.

Unlike many fruits and vegetables, some of the health benefits of tomatoes seem to increase when they are cooked. This is particularly true when it comes to preventing prostate cancer.

Fortunately, tomatoes are rather easy to include in the diet and is also included without putting much thought into it. For example, tomatoes are used to make tomato paste, which is commonly used to make popular foods such as pizza sauce and spaghetti sauce. In fact, a number of Italian dishes incorporate the tomato in one way or another.

Tomatoes also make an excellent addition to a fresh tossed salad. Since tomatoes come in so many varieties, it is easy to find a variety to add to a salad that will require little preparation. Tomato cherries and grape cherries, for example, can be added whole into a salad after being rinsed free of pesticides.

Tomatoes can also be used to help bring out the flavor of a number of foods. It is not unusual, for example, to add a slice of tomato to a sandwich or to a hamburger. Chopped up tomatoes can even be added to a hot dog.

Since tomatoes make for a tasty treat, many people even enjoy eating them raw in the same way as they would eat an apple. Or, they may be sliced up and eaten raw with a little bit of salt and pepper added to help draw out the natural flavors.