U.K. retailer Marks & Spencer now offers a ‘super’ tomato enriched with selenium, a powerful antioxidant that helps boost the immune system and may help prevent cancer, reports the Daily Mail.
Already, rich in lycopene, the ordinary tomato is considered a super food. Fortified with selenium – which is naturally found in Brazil nuts, cashews, walnuts, sunflower seeds, and fresh tuna – the mineral is also very important for the thyroid gland.
In the U.K., there are low concentrations in farm soil which means little selenium finds its way into local foods.
“Selenium plays an important role in supporting the immune system, and it’s thought that getting adequate selenium reduces our risk of cancer,” said Dr Carina Norris of the Nutrition Society.
“But many people in the UK don’t get enough from their diets – the latest data suggests the average person consumes well below the (daily) target of 60 micrograms for women and 75 for men.”
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