5/14/2012 –

Tomato juice can be a tremendous source of vitamins and minerals including Vitamin A and C. Just one cup of tomato juice can provide women with 74 percent of their daily recommended Vitamin C intake and 2 percent of their Vitamin A, says Livestrong.com.

Tomatoes are full of an organic compound called Lycopene. Lycopene has been found to have cancer fighting properties. Livestrong.com says, Lycopene has been found to be preventative towards several types of cancer including colorectal, prostate, lung, pancreas and breast cancer. It acts like an antioxidant by protecting cells and organs from oxygen damage, and can help protect DNA in white blood cells. Lycopene can also be found in other produce such as watermelon, papaya, guava, pink grapefruit and rosehips, but in smaller amounts than found in tomatoes.

Tomatoes also have been proven very effective at halting heart disease. Studies concluded by a Dr. Teruo Kawada, suggested that tomato based foods, such as tomato juices, can enhance fatty acid oxidation while regulating the release of metabolized fats from the liver. In short that means that tomatoes have a compound that can influence the amount of blood lipids in circulation which can prevent heart disease and even lower cholesterol.

Tomatoes when juiced are typically very sweet. They are great to combine with carrots and apples for a sweeter tasting juice and more commonly paired up with celery. When buying tomatoes to juice, vine tomatoes are best. Hothouse tomatoes are typically picked when they are green and not ripened fully, then gassed to turn them red. The end result is that they are much more bitter than that of vine tomatoes.
There is various combinations and juice recipes that you can incorporate tomatoes into. Just simply throwing a few into your weekly juicing menu can provide women with immense health benefits.