Lycopene is a one of the most powerful natural antioxidants with many health benefits due to its capacity to fight free radicals that help reduce the risk of developing a wide variety of (chronic) diseases, such as brain aging issues, heart illnesses and even certain types of cancer. Another advantage of this natural antioxidant is that it remains effective even when heated, what makes lypocene unique compared to other natural antioxidants.

So, what are the best sources of lypocene? We know that tomatoes are the richest food sources of this antioxidant. But did you know that jute leaves have a double amount of lypocene in their leaves, if prepared correctly?

A recent study investigated the content of lycopene in fresh, processed and preserved jute leaves of 2 jute varieties, namely dark jute (C. olitorius L.) and white jute (C. capsularis L.).

The study found that the highest lycopene content was in 45-day-old fresh leaves, which gradually decreased with increasing plant age.

Among processing methods, leaves soaked in vinegar had the highest lycopene for dark jute. On the other hand, the highest lycopene in white jute leaves was when boiled with water and salt for 15 min. All the processing methods led to increased availability of lycopene compared to fresh leaves.

Preserved jute leaves were able to maintain lycopene following drying and preservation at −20°C. The highest lycopene was from cold dried preserved leaves at 4°C and then air dried leaves at 33–35°C. The lowest lycopene content was from leaves dried in an oven at 100°C.

In their further investigation, the researchers want to test whether the the available lycopene content in jute leaves changes after digestion.

Curious? HERE is the source