Here's a new reason to add tomato
juice to your grocery list -- especially if you or a
loved one is fighting type 2 diabetes. According to
researchers from the University of Newcastle in Australia,
tomato juice has a blood-thinning effect in people with
the disease. That means it reduces the tendency of blood
platelets to clump together and form clots that can lead
to strokes, heart attacks and life-threatening conditions
such as deep vein thrombosis (DVT) -- a common problem
for people with diabetes. DVT occurs when a blood clot
forms in a vein deep in the body, usually in a leg or
hip vein. A clot that breaks off and travels to your
lungs can cause death.
The researchers gave 250 milliliters
(about one cup) a day of tomato juice or a tomato-flavored
drink to 20 people with type 2 diabetes. Study participants
had no history of clotting problems and took no aspirin or
other medication that might affect clotting. Blood samples
collected at the beginning and at the end of the three-week
study showed that the juice drinkers had significantly less
platelet aggregation, which can result in clots that block
blood flow through vessels to the brain or heart.
I contacted study coauthor Manohar Garg,
PhD, associate professor of nutrition and dietetics, who
told me that it's not yet understood how tomato juice
reduces the ability of platelets to bind together. A
tomato component named P3, found in the yellow, jelly-
like fluid around the seeds, may be responsible. According
to Dr. Garg, this component appears both water-soluble and
heat stable, so if you're not fond of tomato juice, don't
worry, you're likely to get similar benefits from fresh
tomatoes and processed tomato products such as canned or
bottled tomato sauce.
Tomatoes for Health
These findings may be welcome news
to the rising number of Americans (about 17 million)
with type 2 diabetes, who have an increased risk for
cardiovascular problems from clotting. Smokers, long-
distance travelers at risk for deep vein thrombosis
and people genetically predisposed to forming blood
clots also may benefit from adding tomato products to
their diets. Plus, a nice tomato sauce is a lot tastier
than current clot-preventing drugs, such as aspirin
or blood-thinners.
About one cup of tomato juice per
day offers the anticlotting benefit, Dr. Garg said.
More studies are needed to confirm the benefit from
other tomato products and determine how much we need
to eat to get the same effect.
Sources...
Manohar Garg, PhD, associate professor,
nutrition and dietetics, University of Newcastle,
Australia.
