NO - Besoin d'assistance

Observational epidemiological surveys (WG 3) page 61
_________________________________________________________________________________________
2-4 CONCLUSION
Fruit and vegetables, including tomatoes, appear protective against CVD. Studies are
convincing. If we considered lycopene, studies are insufficient to conclude that lycopene is
protective. For the other antioxidants results are not consistent, and supplements in micro-
constituents at high dosage are certainly not recommended. In addition, other micro-
constituents, present in tomatoes, especially phenolic compounds and folic acid, could also
contribute to their protective effect against CVD.
The decrease of CVD risk is certainly due to a synergistic effect of the different micro-
constituents present in tomatoes, including lycopene. If lycopene is a necessary part of the
synergistic protective action together with the other nutrients of fruit and vegetables,
tomatoes, and essentially processed tomatoes, are the unique source of it. Further studies are
needed to demonstrate such a synergistic effect.
Part 3: Report on the relationship between tomatoes and their
constituents (carotenoids, vitamin C and vitamin E), and lung
function
There are no specific studies on tomatoes and lycopene. Therefore we report on antioxidants
present in tomatoes. Several experimental animal studies have shown that exposure of lungs
to oxidative stress could be positively influenced by antioxidants (Matsui et al., 1991; Chow
et al., 1984; Calabrese et al., 1985). This has also been shown in humans (Mohan et al., 1989;
Mudway, et al., 1996). Fresh fruit intake assessed in 2650 children by a food frequency
questionnaire has been positively associated with forced expiratory volume (Cook et al.,
1997). No specific micronutrient was found responsible for this effect. In a study conducted
in China (Hu et al., 1998) an increase in 100mg/day in vitamin C was significantly associated
with an increase of 21.6ml of forced expiratory volume.
The research group of Dr Mariette Gerber (Groupe d’Epidémiologie Métabolique, GEM)
reported several studies on the effect of photooxidants on plasma carotenoids, namely α and
β-carotene (Bernard et al., 1998; Saintot et al. 1999). In non-smokers, ozone exposure was a
significant determinant of blood α and β-carotene. The GEM participated also in an
intervention trial conducted in Mexico city showing that lung function of people exposed to
ozone was less damaged when they were supplemented by β-carotene, vitamin E (75mg) and