How tomatoes banish the blues

EATING tomatoes just a few times a week could halve your chances of suffering depression, a study claims.

Tomatoes

EATING tomatoes just a few times a week could halve your chances of suffering depression, a study claims.

Researchers analysed the mental health records and diet habits of just under 1,000 men and women aged 70 or over.

The results found those who had eaten tomatoes two to six times a week were 46 per cent less likely to suffer the blues than those who ate them less than once a week.

Tomatoes are a good source of lycopene, an antioxidant that gives them their deep red colour and has been linked with reducing the risk of prostate cancer and heart attacks.

The researchers, from China's Tianjin Medical University, said they could not be sure if lycopene directly affected the mind, or whether it simply protected against the depression caused when people develop potentially fatal diseases like cancer.