The modern medical science has justified the ancestral use of tomatoes in their daily diet in a big way as it contains many nutrients like calcium and Sulfur.
Tomato is powerful folk medicine and article of diet, almost all the world over. Indian people use this vegetable routinely in their kitchens and they eat tomatoes as salads with the food. It is almost added to every cooked food. It has not only medicinal value but it is full of micro nutrients and minerals that are essential for maintenance of body and its growth. One medium sized red tomato contains about
35 calories of energy. 0.5 grams of fat, 5 mg of sodium, 7 grams of carbohydrate, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 6 grams of sugar, 1 gram of protein, 20% vitamin A, 40% vitamin C, 2% Calcium, 2% Iron. Now people have started realizing its real food and nutritional value. Modern medical research has established that it has got great cancer fitting properties. It is really great domestic remedy or vegetable for the prevention of cancer. In a way it is great booster of our immune system. It increases the disease fighting capacity of the lymphocytes to fight against viruses and bacteria. Our ancestors must be knowing the medicinal values of tomatoes, that is why they were using it in plenty in their daily diets routinely.Lycopene and bioflavonoid
The modern medical science has found two cancer fighting agents namely lycopene and bioflavonoid in the chemical structure of tomatoes. Tomatoes especially red tomatoes contain both of these substances in plenty. Lycopene and bioflavonoid both anti cancer agents, impart immunity to human body against all types of infections. It is such a medicine of great value that I was wonder struck when I found its mention as a medicine in William Boericke world famous book “material medica” on medicinal plants and vegetables. He mentions many uses of this vegetable including toning up of the muscles of our body. He makes special mention of deltoid and pectoralis muscles as its favorable sites for action.Dr Boericke is considered an authority on medicinal plants in medical circles. Those people who are in the habit of eating tomatoes regularly have a reduced risk of contracting cancerous diseases such as esophageal, pancreatic, stomach, lung, prostate, , cervical, breast, oral, colorectal etc.
Detoxification
Liver performs the functions of detoxification for human body. Whatever toxin we take in the form of medicines, alcohol or any other agent, it is detoxified by our liver .Tomatoes are wonderful articles of diet for liver health also. Perhaps many people do not know that tomatoes add detoxifying properties to liver. The chemical composition of tomatoes is wonderful treasure house for humans to locate and find. Very surprising, the tomatoes contain chlorine and Sulphur also. These two chemical agents have wonderful germicidal and detoxifying properties. So tomatoes impart detoxifying power to our liver.
Blood vascular system
Apart from liver and stomach the tomatoes affect the blood and its composition wonderfully. Their effect on the coats of arteries is not less astonishing. The people who take plenty of animal fats in the form of meat milk, butter and eggs should add tomatoes to their diets in plenty as tomatoes prevent the hardening of arteries. Its fat dissolving properties can not be ruled out. Tomatoes play very sound role in lowering the blood pressure by prevention of thickening of arteries
.
Anti oxidant properties
Fully red ripened tomatoes have anti oxidant properties also. The existence of vitamin E and lycopene in tomatoes is said to be preventing LDL oxidation
Vitamin c
Like lemon tomatoes are rich source of vitamin c. So these are very helpful for the health of gums and teeth.
Read more: http://healthmad.com/nutrition/medicinalnutritional-properties-of-tomatoes/#ixzz1Us2sfQ2z