Lycopene

Lycopene is a natural pigment molecule that can be found in plants. It is classified as a carotenoid and it gives plants a bright red color. More specifically, it is classified as a nonprovitamin A carotenoid, meaning it doesn’t act like vitamin A in the body (as opposed to other carotenoids, like beta-carotene, which are converted to retinol). In addition to giving plants their color, lycopene acts as an antioxidant and protects cells against damage. It is suspected that lycopene might also influence the immune system and prevent the mutation of cells, a process that can lead to cancer (2).

Lycopene is most frequently consumed in food. It can be found naturally in tomatoes, watermelon, grapefruit, guava, goji berries, and other red fruits. It is also found in tomato products, such as tomato sauce. Tomatoes and tomato products account for the majority of lycopene in the average diet.

Lycopene has antioxidant activity in the body and is involved in several chemical reactions on a cellular level. Because of this, researchers suspect that lycopene may be helpful in a number of health conditions, including treating asthma, preventing and treating cancer, decreasing heart disease, and improving macular degeneration.

• Asthma: In one small study, participants who had received 30 mg per day of lycopene for one week had improved exercise-induced asthma (4).

• Cancer: Various studies have found an association between lycopene consumption and a reduced risk of lung, gastric, and breast cancers (2).

• Cardiovascular disease: One review of studies found that higher lycopene consumption was associated with a decreased risk of coronary heart disease and stroke (6).

• Macular degeneration: Macular degeneration is a type of central vision loss that can occur as someone ages. In a limited population, levels of carotenoids in the body have been found to have an inverse relationship with the likelihood of developing age-related macular degeneration (7).

Lycopene also has the following health benefits, which is why it was chosen to be an ingredient in the Ro's Prostate Health supplement:

Prostate Health

Studies have looked into the effects of lycopene on urinary function. In one study, patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) were given 15 mg per day of lycopene for six months. The study found that urinary function improved more in the study group than in the control group (5).

Nutritional supplements, like lycopene, are not reviewed by the FDA for safety and effectiveness. The effective daily dose can therefore only be estimated based on what has been tested in studies. One of the meta-analyses that looked at the connection between lycopene and prostate cancer included studies that had doses ranging from 3–21 mg per day (1).

Lycopene is available as a supplement. However, it is more commonly consumed in foods, particularly in tomatoes or tomato products.

Ro obtains lycopene from a non-GMO source in India that makes it synthetically. It is Kosher.

Ro offers lycopene in the following supplements:

Prostate Health

Lycopene is one of four main ingredients in Ro’s Prostate Health supplement. The supplement consists of one tablet that should be taken with water. The tablet contains 20 mg of lycopene.

Other ingredients in the tablet include beta-sitosterol, Pygeum africanum bark extract, L-selenomethionine, dicalcium phosphate, microcrystalline cellulose, stearic acid, croscarmellose sodium, magnesium stearate, silicon dioxide, and pharmaceutical glaze (shellac, povidone). The Prostate Health supplement contains soy and should not be consumed by anyone with a soy allergy.