Tomato sauce is good for your gut: Cooked is healthier than raw for gut bacteria

Cooked tomato sauce boosts the levels of healthy bacteria in the gut, according to research.

Spanish scientists found that tomatoes have a better probiotic effect in the gut when fried into a sauce, rather than when eaten raw.

Although a healthy bacteria in the gut prevents some antioxidants being absorbed from tomato sauce, the sauce boosts the effectiveness of that same bacteria.

The researchers say this makes cooked tomato sauce better for gut health than raw tomatoes, because the cooking process preserves the important chemical which gives tomatoes their red colour.

Understanding how both cooking and digestion affect the health benefits of food would help manufacturers make health-boosting foods, the researchers say.

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