Top 10 Foods Highest in Lycopene

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Top 10 Foods Highest in Lycopene

Lycopene is currently the most powerful antioxidant which has been measured in food (2) and is thought to play a role in preventing cancer, heart disease, and macular degeneration (3,4,5,6,7,8). How large a protective role lycopene plays is a controversial issue, still under scientific study.

Lycopene is a carotenoid that gives many fruits and vegetables their red color. Eating lycopene in excess amounts can cause the skin and liver to have a yellow color. Unlike other carotenes, lycopene does not get converted into vitamin A.

There are no known symptoms of a lycopene deficiency, and no daily value (DV) for lycopene.

High lycopene foods include guavas, cooked tomatoes, watermelon, grapefruit, papaya, sweet red peppers, persimmon, asparagus, red cabbage, and mangos.

List of High Lycopene Foods

Half a guava1 Guavas
Lycopene
per Cup		Lycopene
per 100g		Lycopene
per 200 Calories
8587mcg5204mcg15306mcg
Nutrition Facts for Guavas. (Source)
Tomatoes2 Tomato
Lycopene
per Cup Cooked		Lycopene
per 100g		Lycopene
per 200 Calories
7298mcg3041mcg33789mcg
Nutrition Facts for Cooked Tomatoes. (Source)

More Tomato Products High in Lycopene

  • 18984mcg in a 1/4 cup of tomato paste
  • 16784mcg in 1/2 cup of tomato sauce
  • 1433mcg in 1 cup of minestrone soup
Watermelon3 Watermelon
Lycopene
per Cup		Lycopene
per 100g		Lycopene
per 200 Calories
6979mcg4532mcg30213mcg
Nutrition Facts for Watermelon. (Source)
Cross section of grapefruit4 Grapefruit
Lycopene
1 Cup Sections		Lycopene
per 100g		Lycopene
per 200 Calories
3264mcg1419mcg6757mcg
Nutrition Facts for Pink Grapefruit. (Source)
Papayas5 Papaya
Lycopene
per Cup		Lycopene
per 100g		Lycopene
per 200 Calories
2651mcg1828mcg8502mcg
Nutrition Facts for Papaya. (Source)
Mamey Sapote provides 384mcg per cup.
Red Bell Peppers6 Red Bell Peppers
Lycopene
per Cup Cooked		Lycopene
per 100g		Lycopene
per 200 Calories
513mcg484mcg728mcg
Nutrition Facts for Red Bell Peppers (Cooked). (Source)
Persimmons7 Persimmon
Lycopene
per Fruit		Lycopene
per 100g		Lycopene
per 200 Calories
267mcg159mcg454mcg
Nutrition Facts for Fuyu Persimmon. (Source)
Asparagus8 Asparagus
Lycopene
per Cup Cooked		Lycopene
per 100g		Lycopene
per 200 Calories
54mcg30mcg273mcg
Nutrition Facts for Asparagus (Cooked). (Source)
Half a Red Cabbage9 Red Cabbage
Lycopene
per Cup Chopped		Lycopene
per 100g		Lycopene
per 200 Calories
18mcg20mcg129mcg
Nutrition Facts for Red Cabbage. (Source)
Mangos10 Mangos
Lycopene
per Cup		Lycopene
per 100g		Lycopene
per 200 Calories
5mcg3mcg10mcg
Nutrition Facts for Mangos. (Source)
See All 89 Foods High in Lycopene Next ➞

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Foods high in lycopene include guavas, cooked tomatoes, watermelon, grapefruit, papaya, sweet red peppers, persimmon, asparagus, red cabbage, and mangos.

High Lycopene Foods by Nutrient Density

FoodServingLycopene
1 Sun-Dried Tomatoes
View (Source)
100 grams45902mcg
2 Pasta Sauce
View (Source)
100 grams12717mcg
3 Ketchup
View (Source)
100 grams12062mcg
4 Rose Hips
View (Source)
100 grams6800mcg
5 Canned Minestrone
View (Source)
100 grams5963mcg
6 Guavas
View (Source)
100 grams5204mcg
7 Manhattan Clam Chowder
View (Source)
100 grams5112mcg
8 Watermelon
View (Source)
100 grams4532mcg
9 Tomato
View (Source)
100 grams3041mcg
10 Papaya
View (Source)
100 grams1828mcg

Health Benefits of Lycopene

  • Reduced Cancer Risk. (3,4,5,6)
  • Protection Against Heart Disease. (7)
  • Reduced Risk of Macular Degeneration. (8)

Warnings

Consuming excess amounts of lycopene can lead to skin discolorations known as lycopenodermia. This condition is considered harmless and will go away on its own when lycopene is no longer consumed. Upper limits for intake of lycopene have not been established, and consuming high doses of lycopene should be approached with caution and under supervision of a doctor.

About the Data

Data for the curated food lists comes from the USDA Food Data Central Repository.

You can check our data against the USDA by clicking the (Source) link at the bottom of each food listing.

Note: When checking data please be sure the serving sizes are the same. In the rare case you find any difference, please contact us and we will fix it right away.

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Data Sources and References

  1. U.S. Agricultural Research Service Food Data Central
  2. Mascio PD, Kaiser S, Sies H. Lycopene as the most efficient biological carotenoid singlet oxygen quencher. Biochemistry and Biophysics Volume 274, Issue 2, 1 November 1989, Pages 532-538.
  3. Giovannucci E, Ascherio A, Rimm EB, et al. Intake of carotenoids and retinol in relation to risk of prostate cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst. 1995;87:1767-1776.
  4. Sies H, Stahl W. Lycopene: antioxidant and biological effects and its bioavailability in the human. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med. 1998;218:121-124.
  5. Rao AV, Agarwal S. Bioavailability and in vivo antioxidant properties of lycopene from tomato products and their possible role in the prevention of cancer. Nutr Cancer. 1998;31:199-203.
  6. Franceschi S, Bidoli E, La Vecchia C, et al. Tomatoes and risk of digestive-tract cancers. Int J Cancer. 1994;59:181-184.
  7. Sesso HD, Liu S, Gaziano JM, et al. Dietary lycopene, tomato-based food products and cardiovascular disease in women. J Nutr. 2003;133:2336-2341.
  8. Mares-Perlman JA, Brady WE, Klein R, et al. Serum antioxidants and age-related macular degeneration in a population-based case-control study. Arch Ophthalmol. 1995;113:1518-1523.
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