Tomatoes – High in Vitamin C and a Powerful Antioxidant

I really love tomatoes. I like to eat raw tomatoes and dip in a salt. I want to have tomatoes in every meal. It is so nice to know that I got a lot of it that is very good for my health.

Until the 1800s, tomatoes were thought to be poisonous. Today they are known to contain more Vitamin C than oranges and to contain lycopene (the red pigment) which, some research suggests, may have twice the power of the well-known antioxidant beta carotene.

As a general rule, food is better eaten raw rather than cooked. But in the case of tomatoes, raw and cooked are both better! Want the vitamin C benefits? Then eat them raw. If you want the antioxidant benefits then you need your tomatoes cooked or at least heated. And yes, tomatoes are a rare case in which (for antioxidant reasons) saucing and canning also improves them.

One last thing – much of the good is in the red. So eat your tomatoes very ripe and very red.