Don’t let sun damage ketchup

| 2 June 2008
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Tomatoes can help prevent sunburn, aging and maybe even cancer, new research suggests. Researchers at the University of Manchester found that volunteers who ate tomato paste over 12-weeks were less likely to burn in the sun. Scientists think that the antioxidant lycopene may protect skin against the sun’s harmful rays.

Presentation: Lycopene protects against biomarkers of photodamage in human skin; Rizwan, M., Rodriguez-Blanco, I., Harbottle A.*, M. Birch-Machin, M.*, Watson R.E.B. and Rhodes, L.E.; Dermatological Sciences, University of Manchester and *Dermatological Sciences, Newcastle University. British Society for Investigative Dermatology Annual Meeting, Oxford, 8 April 2008.

About the author
Dr. Justine Butler
I joined Viva! as a health campaigner in 2005 after graduating from Bristol University with a PhD in molecular biology. My scientific training helped me research and write numerous reports, guides and fact sheets for Viva! including Meat the Truth, Fish-Free for Life, One in Nine (breast cancer and diet) and the substantial report on the detrimental health effects of consuming dairy; White Lies. This accompanied Viva!’s report The Dark Side of Dairy which spelt out the inherent cruelty of dairy farming. We were the first UK group to take on the dairy industry in this way, and many of our supporters go vegan after reading these reports.

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