Treating Endometriosis - A Different Approach

We're all familiar with the saying, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." Now, whether that's really true is questionable. However, recent research at Wayne State University in Michigan has substantiated that the antioxidant, lycopene, that is found in tomatoes may reduce the adhesion effects of endometriosis. So, it is entirely possible that a tomato a day could help fight this painful condition that affects one in ten women worldwide.

How Endometriosis is Characterized

Endometriosis is characterized by the growth of endometrial tissue (that which is found within the uterus) outside of the organ itself. The tissue begins to grow and adhere to other organs, like the ovaries, fallopian tubes, bladder, or other structures in the pelvic cavity. Even though the implants are not in the uterus, they continue to act as the endometrium normally acts during menses - they build up, break down and bleed on a monthly cycle. The monthly bleeding causes inflammation and ultimately adhesions within the pelvis, creating pelvic pain, severe premenstrual pain, pain during intercourse, and infertility.

A Tomato A Day...

Lycopene is found in high concentrations in tomato products and experiments by American researchers have shown that lycopene may cut the chemical action that leads to the buildup of adhesions by 90%. It doesn't take a tremendous amount of lycopene-rich foods to raise the level of this antioxidant in the blood. A tomato a day, 8 ounces of tomato juice, 150 grams of pasta sauce or one lycopene capsule a day is enough. Lycopene is the nutrient that gives the red color to tomatoes, and colors papayas, pink grapefruit, and carrots. Gac, a Chinese fruit known as the sweet gourd, contains the highest amount of lycopene - 70 times that found in tomatoes. Cooked tomatoes are better than raw because heating alters the structure of lycopene and it is then more easily transported through the blood.

A Researcher Explains How It Works

Dr. Tarek Dbouk, one of the researchers at Wayne State University, said the amount of lycopene used in the experiment was consistent with consumption of a lycopene-rich diet. He indicated that lycopene could be used as a treatment for endometriosis and other scars caused by surgery and fibroids.

"What we found in our laboratory study is that lycopene can help with the adhesions that these conditions cause," he said. Dr. Dbouk went on to explain that a major complication of endometriosis is inflammation which causes adhesions or scarring.

"What we did was to look at protein markers that could help us trace the activity of the abnormal cells that cause these adhesions. The lycopene worked to reduce the abnormal activity of these cells. This means that you would not get the adhesions which suggest that lycopene could work to mitigate the complications and ailments of endometriosis. So, hypothetically speaking, we might be able to reduce the adhesion effects of endometriosis."