You’ve known lycopene all your life.  Even if you didn’t know it’s name, you saw it’s effects.  Lycopene gives red foods their color, which is a great way to tell which foods are rich in this nutrient. Tomatoes are one natural source of lycopene.  Watermelon is another.

Proposed benefits of lycopene include a possible reduction in prostate cancer as well as reducing your risk of developing blood clots.  It’s also thought that lycopene is a powerful cancer fighting antioxidant.  According to the Eat to Beat Prostate Cancer blog:

In addition to possibly reducing the risk of prostate cancer and slowing the growth of prostate cancer cells themselves, some researchers believe that lycopene may have the same effect on cancers of the lung, stomach, bladder, cervix, and skin, as well as lowering the risk of heart disease and macular degenerative disease, and lowering LDL or the bad cholesterol. In addition to the old proverb, “An apple a day . . . ,”  perhaps we might add the mantra, “A tomato a day keeps the oncologist away.”

Notice the use of the phrase "a tomato a day".  Seems lycopene as a supplement has produced some very disappointing study results.    Eating tomatoes, either raw or in sauce, appears to be the key to increased health benefits. Yes, the "magic" of lycopene, and other hyped nutrients, seems to be linked to healthy eating rather than just taking a supplement.