The 5 Best Health Benefits of Tomato Juice

Though some find it tasty and appealing and some less so, tomato juice has nevertheless been a staple in many a household for generations. But what makes this less sweet, much richer fruit juice so appealing to so many? It largely comes down to the amazing things it can do for your overall physical and even mental health!

Read on to learn more about the health benefits of tomato juice, what makes this such a powerhouse of a drink, and why you’ll want to make room for it in your daily diet!

Health Benefits of Tomato Juice

There is so much to say about the health benefits of tomato juice, it would take many articles to cover it all! But we’ve narrowed it down to a few key factors that can really help inform you on why this is such a popular drink—and what it can help do for your body.

Nutritious Health Benefits

First and foremost, among the most evident health benefits of tomato juice is simply its nutritional value. Even with just one glance at a nutrition label, it is clear this is a dynamic fruit to drink!

A single cup of 100% tomato juice from a canned or bottled source contains as much as 74% of your daily intake value of Vitamin C, 22% of your recommended daily intake value of Vitamin A, and between 7 and 16% of the recommended daily intake value of vitamins such as K and several B vitamins, as well as minerals including copper, potassium, and much more.

Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Health Benefits

In recent years, it has become more and more widely known and addressed among doctors and other individuals who are keen on human health that there is a rise of inflammation in the general population worldwide. At the same time, there has been a downward trend in the consumption of bioavailable antioxidants—that is, antioxidants introduced in such a way that the body can actually absorb and make use of them.

This has led to a string of evident health issues, from skin conditions to autoimmune disease and even an uptick in mental health struggles. Many of these issues can trace their root cause to inflammation throughout the body—something that can be aided by the regular consumption of tomato juice!

Tomato juice has a high concentration of antioxidants such as lycopene, which is a carotenoid plant pigment…one that helps give tomatoes that trademark red shade. Lycopene, like many other antioxidants, helps combat the free radicals within the human body that cause inflammation. It has been estimated that most people ingest 80% of their lycopene intake from tomatoes and tomato-derived products such as tomato juice.

Studies have shown the tremendous impact that even drinking a mere 1 to 2 and a half cups of tomato juice a day can have on the human body. In addition to overall markers of free radicals in test subjects showing a notable decline when they regularly consumed tomato juice, many people have also found their cholesterol levels and retention of unwanted weight to have reduced significantly with consistent tomato juice consumption.

Combined with the presence of beta-carotene and Vitamin C, which are powerful antioxidants as well, it becomes clear that the health benefits of tomato juice as it pertains to reducing overall body inflammation is quite high!

Digestive Aid Benefits

Because of its wonderful antioxidant properties, another of the key health benefits of tomato juice is that it helps detoxify and flush out the liver, which is somewhat of a catch-all for toxins in the body. It isn’t often talked about that a “backed up” or “plugged” liver can have a direct impact on the speed and efficiency of one’s digestive system, but research has shown that when the liver struggles, so do the bowels.

Thankfully, a regular intake of tomato juice can aid in this area by keeping the liver supported, helping to flush out toxins and keep things moving along in the digestive system. This helps to prevent constipation and stimulates regular bowel movements, which helps cleanse the body overall.

Weight Loss Benefits

Though weight retention can be attributed to many factors, one of the reasons the body will often store excess or unwanted fat is, once again, chronic inflammation!

Many medical weight loss treatments focus specifically on reducing inflammation as a means of encouraging the body to shed unhealthy weight, and one of the health benefits of tomato juice is that it can encourage this process in a natural way that causes little additional stress to the body.

In certain studies, among women in particular, it was found that a steady intake of tomato juice correlated to a reduction in waist size, while many other folks have reported that a consistent intake of lycopene via tomato juice and other tomato-based products led to them experiencing an overall boost in energy, loss of excess weight, and a reduction in sensations of sluggishness in general. The health benefits of tomato juice can solve many problems like this!

Chronic Disease Risk Benefits

Studies of the health benefits of tomato juice have also shown that regular consumption can have an impact on prevention and improvement of certain chronic diseases.

Improvement of Heart Disease Risk

Test cases who were placed on a regular intake of tomato juice were shown to have a greater improvement in the reduction of their markers of “bad” cholesterol across the board. There was also a sizeable increase in blood flow noted among those who kept up a steady diet which included tomato juice and other tomato products.

A diet rich in tomatoes has also continuously proved to be beneficial to the heart in other ways, especially as it pertains to lycopene and antioxidants; these levels also play a part in heart health, as they can attribute to a healthy range of blood pressure and healthy cholesterol numbers, and can reduce the level of fat buildup in the arteries—too much of which is a key component to heart attacks.

Protection Against Certain Cancer Risks

Though more research is still needed in the field of cancer risks as it pertains to the health benefits of tomato juice and other tomato products, studies to date on the health benefits of tomato juice show great promise.

As the mutation of cancerous cells often takes place ad is fed overall by the conditions of an inflamed environment, the anti-inflammatory health benefits of tomato juice can once again play a key role here.

In addition, several studies have shown that a high intake of tomatoes in the diet can have a positive effect on certain types of cancers.

In human test cases as well as test tube studies, a high intake of tomato juice and other concentrated tomato products, as well as the application of lycopene extract directly to cancer cells, was shown to reduce the risk of prostate cancer. In the test tube studies, there was even evidence of cancer cell death when exposed to the lycopene extract! In animal studies, ingestion of tomato powder was also shown to reduce the risk of skin cancer.

While research remains to be expanded upon in these areas, there remains nevertheless a great deal of hope and positive outlook as it pertains to the health benefits of tomato juice where the risks of certain cancers are concerned.

Additional Benefits to Consider

In addition to these wonderful health benefits of tomato juice, there are a few other great applications of this wonderful drink to consider!

Great for Little Ones

When beginning to introduce solids to young children and even to toddlers, tomato juice can be a great supplement to solids and purees. As it is often combined with additional vegetables such as beets and carrots, tomato juice can be a fun and easy way to help little ones get their full serving of fruits and vegetables with little hassle.

It has the added benefit of helping expand and train young palates to appreciate a variety of flavors and textures, and can help with some issues that often plague younger children, such as a lack of vitamins and minerals, chronic constipation, and so on; it’s also a great way to hydrate kids without having to resort to sugary drinks, which can negatively impact small bodies in the long run.

An Energy Booster

Due to being a source of many vitamins and minerals that the body needs in order to thrive at optimal performance, tomato juice can serve as somewhat of a “natural energy drink”. Many folks who make tomato juice a regular part of their daily diet have reported feeling a nearly instantaneous boost in mood and energy levels after ingesting it, without the sort of crash or health concerns such as palpitations, jittery and anxious feelings, and other discomforts that can come with ingesting a commercialized energy drink.

Easily Incorporated

If the thought of drinking plain tomato juice is off-putting to you or your family, the good news is that there are lots of ways to fit this powerhouse drink and all the health benefits of tomato juice into your diet! Many tomato soups and similar recipes call for tomato juice as an ingredient already, or they can be tweaked to include it.

For kiddos or picky eaters who may turn up their noses at the notion of ingesting just straight tomato juice, there are a few brands out there that alleviate the assertive tomato flavor with some additional fruit juice as well. Just be careful to check your labels and ensure that the sugar and sodium levels are within a range that you are comfortable with!