• 'Ugly' tomato always tastes better

It is estimated that, in developed countries, 16.7% of heterosexual couples cannot have children and, in about 50% of cases, conception is not achieved due to poor sperm quality .

Few, slow, small ... There are several factors that determine the power of sperm but, so far, there is no therapy that has managed to 'revitalize' them, beyond such general recommendations as leading healthy living habits, not smoking, maintaining an adequate body mass index or even not wearing underwear that is too tight (urban legends such as not immersing yourself in too cold water would deserve another issue).

Well, according to an investigation carried out by scientists from the University of Sheffield (United Kingdom), which was published earlier this month in the European Journal of Nutrition, the quality of semen could be improved thanks to the beneficial action of a Food that is almost always in our fridge.

What is that 'magic' ingredient? Tomato! Of course, it is not enough to take one, from time to time, in the salad, but it must be cooked and, for it to work its miracle, it must be ingested in exaggerated (and indigestible) amounts of pellets: about two kilos a day .

ANTIOXIDANT PROPERTIES

According to this study, led by Allan Pacey, professor of Andrological Reproduction and head of the Department of Oncology and Metabolism, and Liz Williams, leading specialist in Human Nutrition, tomato, as well as other red fruits or vegetables (such as red carrots , red pepper, watermelon and papayas), owes its 'super powers' to lycopene. "It has been shown that this carotene, due to its extraordinary antioxidant properties , improves sperm quality," explains María Amaro, a nutrition expert at Feel Good Clinic.

How did they reach such a conclusion? Amaro explains it to us. "In the study, which lasted for three months , the 60 participants were divided into two groups (healthy individuals between 18 and 30 years old).

Half of them were given a tablet with 14 milligrams of lycopene daily and the other, only a placebo. "After measuring the quality of their sperm before, during and after the experiment, the research authors observed that the sperm cells of the subjects who had consumed the supplement had undergone notable changes (for the better) in their “fitness status.” Moreover, they had managed to produce 40% more than those known as 'fast swimming' sperm .

Based on these encouraging results, Pacey and his team have pointed out that the next step should be to carry out new research that focuses on the study of males of couples with conception problems to determine not only the dose but the optimal time at which Lycopene must be supplied to achieve, in addition to improving sperm quality, that conception is favored, thus avoiding more invasive fertility treatments. Hopefully there is luck ...

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