Tomatoes are packed with vitamins

by Forrest M. Mims III

Imagine pizza and spaghetti without tomato sauce. These and some other favorite Italian foods didn’t arrive in their present form until the tomato arrived in Europe.

The tomato is one of those special plants that has spread far beyond it’s home in the Western Hemisphere. According to writer Carey Draeger and others, the earliest known mention of the tomato in Europe was by the Italian herbalist Pierandrea Matthiolus (or Mattioli). In 1544 he wrote that tomatoes were "eaten in Italy with oil, salt and pepper."

Those tomatoes were yellow in color. Later red tomatoes were introduced.

These and other tomato varieties probably originated in South America, possibly in what is now Peru. They eventually reached Central America. It is difficult to find original source information about the origin of the tomato, but many online articles relate these facts. See, for example, this dissertation.

When Cortez conquered Tenochtitlan (now Mexico City) in 1521, the Aztec diet included a concoction composed of chili peppers, salt and tomatoes. Sounds pretty much like salsa to me.

The Aztec name for the tomato is xitomatl. Other tribes in Central America referred to it as the tomati.

An ironic fact of history is that cultivated varieties of the tomato apparently arrived in the American colonies from Europe and not Central America.

Wherever it went, the tomato became a popular food. Most folks seem to like their hamburger with a tomato slice. Many add a dollop of tomato catsup.

Then there are tomato juice, tomato soup, canned tomatoes, dried tomatoes, tomato paste, salads with sliced tomatoes and many other foods blended, concocted and even loaded with tomatoes. Foods made with tomatoes are so popular that Americans spend several billions of dollars a year on buying tomatoes.

Tomatoes are an excellent source of vitamin C. They also contain vitamins A and B and various minerals, including iron, magnesium, potassium and phosphorus. Tomatoes are also a good source of dietary fiber.

The red color of tomatoes is caused by the pigment lycopene. Recently there has been publicity about the fact lycopene is a potent anti-oxidant with cancer fighting potential.

You can learn more about the health benefits of tomatoes at the Food and Drug Administration web site. Just enter “lycopene” in the search window.

Meanwhile, it’s summer in the Northern Hemisphere and delicious garden grown tomatoes are available. So enjoy a tomato. They taste great and they’re good for you.

Forrest M. Mims III and his science are featured online at www.forrestmims.org and www.sunandsky.org/.