Food Value
Tomato is considered to have unsurpassable nutritional and health-giving qualities.
Tomato is rich in calcium, phosphorus, vitamin C and carbohydrate.
The carbohydrate in tomate is chiefly in the form of invert sugar which is the
predigested form. It contains very small quantity of starch which is converted into
sugar, chiefly dextrose during the process of ripening.
Natural Benefits and Curative Properties
The tomato is one of the most powerful deobstruents of the 'Materia Medica'. It removes
disease particles and opens natural channels of the body. It is gentle natural
stimulant for didneys and helps to wash away the toxins which cause diseases and contaminate our system.
They are at their best when they are fully ripe. Their vitamin C content increase as they ripen.
Tomato juice is probably one of the most widely used juices. Fresh, raw tomato juice is most beneficial and has an
alkaline reaction, when digested, in concentrated form. Tomato as an external application
can be used as a cosmetic. Its pulp should be applied liberally on the face and left there for an hour and
then washed with warm water. Repeated daily, it will give good complexion and remove ugly-looking pimples
in a short time.
Acidosis
The tomato is essentially an alkaline vegetable. Its acid taste is due to malic acid which is about 0.5%. It
also contains 0.52 to 1.81% citric acid and only a trace of oxalic acid. These acids in tomatoes, in combination with
sodium and potassium either form sodium or pottasium acid malate, citrate or oxalate. Their end products, when oxidised in the
body, are carbon dioxide, water and the carbonates of potassium and sodium.
The latter has alkaline reaction. Tomatoes, thus, leave an alkaline ash in the process of being oxidised by the body.
This increases the alkalinity of the blood and decreases the urine and neutralises the acid compounds of the body such as phosphates urea and ammonia. It is,
therefore, highly beneficial in the treatment of acidosis and other disease associated with too much
acid in the system.
Diabetes
Because of its low carbohydrate contents, it is very good food for diabetic patients and for those who want to
reduce their body weight. It is said to be very effective in controlling the percentage of sugar in the urine of diabetic patients.
Eye Disorders
Being a rich source of vitamin A, tomatoes are a dependable preventive against night blindness short sightedness and other
diseases of the eye caused by the deficiency of the vitamins. Tomato leaves are useful in optic nerve and eye weakness. A
small handful of the freshly plucked leaves should be covered with hot water for 15 minutes. The water should then
strained. It forms a good tonic for the eyes and optic nerve when a teaspoonful of this water is taken before meals three times daily.
Obesity
Tomatoes are highly beneficial in the treatment of obesity. One or two ripe tomatoes taken early morning, without breakfast, for a
couple of months is considered a safe method of reduction in weight and at the same time, it also supplies the essential food elements to preserve the health.
Intestinal and Liber Disorders
A glassful of fresh tomato juice, mixed with a pinch of salt and pepper, taken early in the morning is considered an
effective remedy for morning sickness, billiousness, sluggishness and diminished responsiveness of the liver, jaundice, indigestion,
excessive formation of gas in the intestines, constipation, diarrhoea due to indigestion burning in the gastro-intestinal tract and constant burning
sensation in the chest due to hiatus hernia, a condition in which stomach passes partly or completely into chest.
Respiratory Disorders
A glassful of fresh tomato juice mixed with honey, a pinch of powdered cardamom seeds, taken after swallowing three peeled cloves of
garlic every night before going to bed, is considered highly beneficial in the treatment of tuberculosis and other lung infections. It
increases the body's resistance and prevents drug resistance and the relapse which are so common in
tubercular patients. In asthmatics, it reduces the congestion in the bronchioles and checks the hyper-secretion of mucous and
reduces the spasms.
Painful Joints
The juice of the whole plant including leaves, mixed with equal quantity of sesame oil, is heated until all the watery part
is evaporated and the oil is preserved in a bottle. This oil, massaged over painful joints and sprains and fomented with dry heat gives
a great relief.
