Studies show that growing tomatoes has a great physical and mental healing property. Tomatoes aren’t only nutritionally healthy for you, they also benefit your health to merely grow them.

*1.   Physical Activity For Your Body & Mind

Growing tomatoes is physical activity which is very beneficial. And, it is mentally beneficial as well because it is a release for emotions and creativity.

Growing and tending your own tomatoes is a powerful stress reliever.

*2.   Gives You A Sense of Accomplishment & Raises Your Self-Esteem

Planting tomato seeds, watching it grow, tending to its needs, and harvesting the fruits of your labor can do wonders to gain a sense of accomplishment and raise self- esteem.

*3.   Allows You To Stay Healthy

Eating more fresh produce is one of the most important things you and your family can do to stay healthy. When tomatoes are grown in your backyard, you won’t be able to resist them. Their vitamin content will be at their highest levels as you bite into them straight from the garden.

If you grow your own tomatoes, you are more likely to eat them within a few hours of harvesting. This means there will be a greater number of nutrients in them, and therefore in you.

A greater number of vitamins, antioxidants and minerals will boost your immune system and help expel harmful free radicals from the body (free radicals attack the body’s cells, and can lead to the development of diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer’s).

*4. Gives You a Chance to Enjoy Better Taste & Flavor

Fresh tomatoes is the best food. How long has the tomatoes on your supermarket shelf been there? How long did they travel from the farm to your table? And,

Comparing the flavor of a homegrown tomato with the taste of a store-bought one is like comparing apples to wallpaper paste. If it tastes better, you’ll be more likely to eat the healthy, fresh produce that you know your body needs.

*5.   Helps you to stop worrying about food safety

With recalls on peanut butter, spinach, tomatoes and more, many people are concerned about food safety in our global food marketplace.

When you responsibly grow your own food, you don’t have to worry about contamination that may occur at the farm, manufacturing plant, or transportation process.

This means that when the whole world is avoiding tomatoes, for example, you don’t have to go without—you can trust that your food is safe and healthy to eat.

Eating fresh, well ripen, juicy and tasty organically grown tomatoes free of pesticide and herbicide has its own distinctive health benefits, especially for children.

*6.    Makes You More In Tune With Nature

Growing tomatoes brings you closer to nature and helps to lead a healthier lifestyle.

*7.   Allows You To Take Advantage of Cancer-Fighting Antioxidants

New research suggests that antioxidants taken as pill-form supplements do not provide the same benefits of antioxidants within foods.

It is far more beneficial to eat a tomato–you receive a great dose of cancer-fighting antioxidants through this fruit–than to take vitamin A pills.

Look to whole foods, including fresh ripe tomatoes, as your primary source of nutrition. You’ll stand a much better chance of avoiding cancer this way.

Also, since tomato’s main carotenoid, lycopene, is fat-soluble, make sure you eat tomatoes with olive oil or other good fat.

*8.  Helps You to Fight Heart Disease

Potassium helps prevent high blood pressure and lessens the chance of having heart disease. A single serving of tomatoes–about 1 cup–provides more than 10 percent of your daily nutritional need for potassium.

Tomatoes are considered a “very good” source of potassium by the Whole Foods Food Rating System.

*9.   Promotes a Healthy Colon and Prostate

The antioxidant lycopene found in tomatoes is especially successful at fighting against colon and prostate cancers. The combination of the antioxidants as well as the other nutrients in tomatoes work together to provide these incredible benefits.

This team also works against breast cancer, and cancer of the lung and pancreas. When tomatoes are in season, eat them daily for a good dose of cancer prevention.

*10.   Reduces Blood Clots and Inflammation

Drink fresh juiced tomato beverages (bottled is second-best) to help with the reduction of blood clots and to help reduce inflammation.

The vitamin C and beta-carotene (vitamin A) in tomatoes are excellent antioxidants and they work to eliminate free radicals in the body that contribute to cancer-friendly conditions and painful inflammation.

One study showed that people who drank 8 oz. of tomato juice daily showed reduced platelet clumping in their blood. Those who drank a placebo had no such improvement.

*11.  Supplies Your Body With Potassium & Dietary Fiber

Potassium in tomatoes is an essential mineral that helps regulate blood pressure and aids muscle contractions. It may reduce the risk of kidney stones and bone loss.

Fiber can aid digestion by preventing constipation.

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Yours truly, Polly – Organic Gardener