The researchers don't know if tomatoes rich in cis- lycopene would provide greater health benefits to humans, but the study's results suggest that tomatoes can be used to increase both the intake and absorption of the health-beneficial compounds.

Research involving tomato sauce made from an heirloom tomato variety named the tangerine tomato has established that a specific chemical form of lycopene is more effective in increasing the levels of this much-heralded antioxidant in people's blood.