Scientists Had People Eat Tomato Paste For 3 Months. Their Brain Scans Looked Different.
It contains a powerful antioxidant.
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Researchers in Spain have discovered that consuming tomato paste daily may produce measurable changes in brain function and structure. In a clinical trial involving 42 middle-aged adults, participants who ate 35 grams of tomato paste each day for three months demonstrated improvements in selective attention and associative memory compared to those on a low-lycopene diet. The findings represent the first direct examination linking the antioxidant lycopene—a compound abundant in red tomatoes—to alterations in brain connectivity patterns.
Brain imaging data from a smaller subset of 14 participants revealed notable shifts in how large-scale neural networks communicate with one another. When participants consumed the tomato-rich diet, scientists observed reduced activity in the frontoparietal and auditory networks. Conversely, during low-lycopene periods, connectivity in dorsal attention networks decreased. Researchers suggest these changes may indicate improved neural efficiency, similar to adaptations seen following cognitive training exercises. Blood tests also showed elevated levels of lycopene and a borderline increase in BDNF, a protein associated with brain growth.
While the results are promising, scientists emphasize that the evidence remains preliminary and caution against drawing firm conclusions. The imaging analysis involved a small sample size and used statistical thresholds below the study’s original specifications. Additionally, because participants and researchers knew who was consuming tomato paste, psychological factors may have influenced cognitive test performance. Despite these limitations, the findings align with previous research suggesting that tomato-derived compounds support cognitive health, warranting larger and longer-term investigations to confirm whether such benefits persist over extended periods.
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Originally reported by Sciencealert →
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