番茄，又叫西红柿，是我们日常生活中必不可少的蔬菜，由于它火红的外表，更成为厨师们精彩的配餐中不可或缺的原料。西红柿原产秘鲁森林，称为“狼桃”，因其艳丽诱人，人疑有毒，只观赏而不敢吃。十六世纪，被英国一个公爵带回欧洲，仍只作观赏用。过了差不多二百年，法国一位画家冒险一试，发现这种果实既可口又营养丰富，于是广为传播。后来，西红柿传到了中国，最初仍用来观赏，直到光绪晚期，才正式以食物为名。随着科技的进步，西红柿越来越丰富的营养价值被人所发现，现如今，西红柿这种最普遍的大众食品，已经被科学家们冠以了“超级食品”的名号！

At this rate, scientists will have to come up with a better description for the tomato than mere "superfood".

如果是这样的话，恐怕科学家们得找一个比“超级食品”更合适的词语来形容西红柿了。

While it has long been credited with cutting cholesterol and preventing some cancers, the fruit now appears to have two more healthgiving benefits.

西红柿一直以能够降低胆固醇和预防一些癌症而著称，而现在它又多了两个新的保健功效。

Protection against sunburn and helping keep the skin looking youthful are the latest pluses, a study has found.

一项最新研究发现，西红柿能够增强皮肤防晒能力，并有助于保持肌肤年轻。

Professor Mark Birch-Machin said tomatoes could provide a cheap and easy way of improving health.

马克伯齐-麦辰教授说，西红柿是一种简单经济的保健食品。

"I went into the study as a sceptic," he added. "But I was quite surprised with the significance of the findings."

他说：“我是抱着怀疑的态度进行这项研究的。但研究结果让我十分惊讶。”

Researchers at Manchester and Newcastle universities recommend two tomato-based meals a day for optimum health.

曼彻斯特和纽卡斯尔大学的研究人员们建议，每天吃两顿西红柿最有益于身体健康。

Possible menus include a glass of tomato juice with breakfast and a salad later or tomato soup for lunch and pasta with a tomato sauce for dinner.

比如，早餐可以喝杯番茄汁，之后吃份沙拉或者午餐喝点西红柿汤，晚餐吃番茄酱通心粉。

To test the fruit's ability to protect the skin, ten volunteers were asked to eat five tablespoons of tomato paste mixed with olive oil every day for three months.

为了检验西红柿的护肤功效，研究人员让十位志愿者连续三个月每天食用五汤匙拌有橄榄油的西红柿酱。

Another ten had a daily dose of olive oil--minus the tomato paste.

另外十名志愿者只吃橄榄油，不吃西红柿酱。

Tests using ultra-violet lamps showed the tomato-eaters were a third better protected against sunburn at the end of the study than at the start, the British Society for Investigative Dermatology's annual conference heard.

使用紫外线灯的检测结果显示，吃西红柿酱的那组研究对象的皮肤防晒能力在研究结束时比开始时增强了三分之一。该研究结果在英国皮肤病学研究学会的年度研讨会上公布。

Other tests suggested the tomato-based diet had boosted production of collagen, the protein that keeps skin supple.

其他一些测试表明，含有西红柿的食物能够促进人体内胶原质的产生，胶原质是一种能够保持皮肤柔滑细腻的蛋白质。

If that were not enough, the fruit also protects our mitochondria--the elements of cells which turn the food we eat into energy.

如果这些功效还不足以说明问题，西红柿还可以保护我们体内的线粒体。线粒体是一种能够把我们摄入的食物转化为能量的细胞因子。

Professor Birch-Machin, of Newcastle University, said: "Being kind to our mitochondria is likely to contribute to improved skin health, which in turn may have an anti-ageing effect."

纽卡斯尔大学的伯齐-麦辰教授说：“保护线粒体有助于促进皮肤健康，从而达到抗衰老的效果。”

The researchers stressed, however, that their findings were not an excuse to throw away the suncream. Professor Lesley Rhodes, a Manchester University dermatologist, said: "People should not think tomatoes in any way can replace suncreams but they may be a good additive.

然而，研究人员强调，这一研究结果并不是说你可以不用防晒霜了。曼彻斯特大学皮肤病学家莱斯利·罗德教授说：“认为西红柿可以取代防晒霜的想法是错误的，不过西红柿可以起到很好的补充作用。”

The fruit's benefits are credited to lycopene, the pigment behind its distinctive red skin.

西红柿的这些功效都要归功于茄红素，也就是那些藏在西红柿鲜亮的红色表皮下的色素。

Lycopene, a powerful antioxidant capable of mopping up free radicals--the harmful molecules linked to cancer--is made easier for the body to absorb when tomatoes are cooked or processed.

茄红素是一种能够清除自由基的强抗氧化剂，它在西红柿被烹制或加工后更容易被人体吸收。自由基是一种有害的致癌分子。