How we rate
“Strong” = several concordant meta-analyses or systematic reviews. “Moderate” = one synthesis, or several controlled trials. “Limited” = early trials only. The rating is about the quality of the studies, not about how useful the supplement is.
Lycopene
Red pigment found in tomatoes. It offers slight UV skin protection and slightly lowers systolic blood pressure in certain meta-analyses, but the largest ones find nothing on the heart, and nothing on PSA overall.
Benefits
- Skin and sun: 16 mg of lycopene per day, provided by tomato paste for 12 weeks, reduced markers of UV-induced skin damage; a meta-analysis notes less skin redness after exposure
- Blood pressure: above 12 mg per day, a decrease in systolic pressure in a meta-analysis, especially when it exceeds 120 mmHg at baseline; nothing on diastolic
- Gums: 8 mg per day for 2 weeks reduced gum inflammation and bleeding compared to placebo in people with gingivitis
- Oxidative stress: in 126 healthy men, 15 mg per day for 8 weeks reduced lymphocyte DNA damage and improved vessel function (RH-PAT index)
- Male fertility: in a meta-analysis of four studies, improved sperm concentration and non-progressive motility; nothing on total motility, morphology, or DNA
Precautions
Pregnancy: in a trial of 159 pregnant women, 2 mg of lycopene per day did not prevent pre-eclampsia, and the lycopene group had significantly more premature births and low birth weight babies. Do not take it during pregnancy. Prostate cancer: lycopene does not replace any treatment. Two meta-analyses of six trials find no effect on PSA overall (an effect only when baseline PSA reaches 6.5 µg/L or more), and the phase II trial that saw smaller tumors involved only 26 men. Also worth knowing: the largest meta-analysis (34 studies) finds no effect on lipids, blood glucose, blood pressure, inflammation or weight, and another sees nothing on blood pressure or lipids, even in at-risk individuals. Positive results on blood pressure mainly come from tomato extracts. On mental health, a review of six trials finds no effect.
Recommended dosage
8 to 30 mg per day in trials; more than 12 mg per day for the effect on systolic blood pressure.
How to take it
- For whom: the trials in this profile measure biomarkers (blood pressure, lipids, skin, PSA, sperm) in healthy adults, athletes, or men with prostate cancer, not the occurrence of diseases.
- Dose: 15 mg per day for 8 weeks on oxidative stress, more than 12 mg per day for systolic pressure, 8 mg per day for 2 weeks on gingivitis.
- Skin: 16 mg per day, provided by tomato paste, for 12 weeks in the trial measuring UV protection.
- Form: whole tomato outperforms isolated lycopene in two studies. Standardized tomato extract lowers systolic pressure when synthetic lycopene yields no clear results, and tomato powder protected athletes from post-exercise oxidation when 30 mg of pure lycopene failed to do so.
- Sport: 30 mg per day for one week did not protect the airways of 19 young athletes experiencing exercise-induced breathing difficulties.
- Timing and meals: no study in this profile compares the timing of intake or taking it with a meal.
Did you know?
In trained athletes, 30 mg of pure lycopene changed nothing regarding blood fat oxidation after intense exercise. The same dose of lycopene, provided by tomato powder, reduced it: the rest of the tomato appears to matter just as much as the lycopene.
What the studies say
This systematic review and meta-analysis examined the association between lycopene supplementation and male reproductive health. Based on four clinical studies, lycopene supplementation significantly improved sperm concentration and non-progressive motility. No statistically significant effect was observed on other parameters such as total motility, morphology, or DNA damage.
Viña I, Viña JR. — International journal of molecular sciences (2025) — View the source study
For information only: not a substitute for medical advice. Dietary supplements are not a replacement for a varied, balanced diet. Learn more