According to a new study presented at the British Society for Investigative Dermatology in April, eating tomato paste could help protect against sunburn and sun-induced skin aging.
Researchers from the Universities of Newcastle and Manchester compared the skin of 20 people. Ten were given five tablespoons of standard tomato paste with 10 grams of olive oil every day, and 10 received only olive oil, over a period of 12 weeks. Their skin was exposed to ultraviolet light at the beginning and end of the trial. Compared to the control group, the group who had eaten the paste were found to have 33 percent more protection against sunburn (equivalent to a sunscreen with an SPF of 1.3), which can lead to skin cancer.
Meanwhile, collaborating researchers at Newcastle University found that the antioxidant lycopene found in the tomatoes had reduced damage to study participants’ mitochondrial DNA. Professor Mark Birch-Machin, dermatology scientist from Newcastle University, suggests that, along with hats and lotion, tomatoes may be a useful addition to sun protection.