Lycopene Rich Foods for Dogs

 

★ 4 min read

In this article:

1. What is lycopene
   
2. Health benefits of lycopene for your dog
3. Lycopene rich foods for dogs
   
4. How to include lycopene rich foods in your dog's diet
   

What is Lycopene

Lycopene is a naturally occurring plant-based pigment that gives some fruit and vegetables their orange, pink and red color. As a pigment, lycopene helps protect plants from oxidative stress caused by photo-sensitization.  

Lycopene is a powerful anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, carotenoid that cannot be made by the body (dog, human, etc.).  It must be obtained by eating lycopene rich plant material.

After ingestion lycopene enters the lymphatic system, then moves on to organs such as the adrenal glands, colon and liver. The skin only absorbs a small part of ingested lycopene.

Once consumed, lycopene enters the lymphatic system, then moves to various locations where it is stored. These locations include:

- Adrenal glands

- Brain

- Liver (the primary storage location) 

- Kidneys

- Lungs

- Ovaries

- Prostate

- Skin 

- Testes

 

Health Benefits of Lycopene For Your Dog

Lycopene plays an important role in disease prevention and treatment.

Lycopene rich foods in your dog's diet can help prevent and treat inflammatory issues and disease, including:

Aging

Anemia

Arthritis

Asthma

Atopic dermatitis

Benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH)

Bone loss due to osteoarthritis

Cancer

Lycopene is an anti-carcinogenic, anti-proliferative, anti-apoptotic. Lycopene helps protect healthy cells, assists in stopping the spread of cancer (matastasis), inhibits tumor growth and helps kill cancerous cells.

Lycopene fights a wide variety of cancers, including:

- Brain cancer

- Cervical cancer

- Colon cancer

- Kidney cancer

- Liver cancer

- Lung cancer

- Lymphoma

- Mammary (breast) cancer

- Oral cancers

- Ovarian cancer 

- Pancreatic cancer

- Squamous cell carcinomas

Cardiovascular issues and disease

Including:

- High blood pressure

- High cholesterol

Colitis

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD, chronic bronchitis)

Detoxification

Diabetes Type II

Complications including:

- Insulin resistance

- Kidney issues (nephropathy)

- Neuropathy

Immune system support

Immune mediated diseases

Kidney damage

Liver damage and disease

Metabolic    Syndrome

Neurological issues and disease

Including:

- Cognitive decline

- Degenerative Disk Disease

- Dementia

- Epilepsy

- Seizures

- Spinal cord injury

Oral health issues

Pancreatitis

Skin Issues

 - Atopic dermatitis

- UVA radiation damage, lycopene is a natural sunscreen

- Melanoma

-  Psoriasis

Toxicity

From synthetic chemical substances, and natural substances, including:

- acetaminophen and other conventional medications

- aluminum

- aflatoxins

- bisphenol (BPA)

- chemotherapy

- fluoride

- heavy metals

- pesticides

- phthalate

- radiation

Lycopene Rich Foods for Dogs

A dog's species appropriate diet includes a small amount of fresh plant material: vegetables, fruit, herbal plants, seeds and nuts.

Refer to the list of lycopene fruit and vegetables further below, and the general guideline for including vegetables and fruit in your dog's diet.

Offer your dog the items from the list and allow her to self-select the lycopene fruit and vegetables she prefers. 

• Never force your dog to eat items she does not want. 
• Read about self-selection here.
  
• Once you know your dog's preferences, you can add the items to your dog's diet, directions provided further below.
  

 

Richest Sources of  Lycopene Fruit and Vegetables for Dogs

Tomato

Lycopene per 100g of tomato product:

Sundried tomato provides more than 3x the lycopene found in tomato sauce. Choose organic sundried tomatoes. See the lycopene comparison below: 

Sundried tomato – 45.0 mg per 100g 

Tomato paste – 28.7 mg per 100g 

Tomato sauce – 14 mg per 100g 

Steamed tomato – 3 mg per 100g 

Raw tomato – 2.5 mg per 100g

 

Canned Tomato Products

I don't recommend using canned products as part of a dog's daily diet due to the toxic exposure from cans and can-linings. 

 

While most food companies have replaced toxic BPA can linings with acrylic and polyester linings, toxic chemical contamination of canned food is still an issue. Non-intentionally added substances (NIAS) present in the can, and can lining migrate (leak and move), into the food.

 

Metal can and lining migrates to food include:

• Acrylic resins
• Amino resins (plastic polymers made with aldehyde)
• Catalysts
• Esters, organic and inorganic
• Epoxidized edible oils (plasticizers)
• Lubricants and waxes of various type and origins
• Metals
• Oligomers (a type of polymer present in acrylic and polyester)
• Reaction accelerators to remove oxygen from canned food

 

Research has shown that even short-term feeding of canned food products increases the concentration of toxins in a dog’s body.

 

Use products sold in glass bottles, rather than canned products.

How About Tomato Pomace in Pet Food Products?

Tomato Pomace used in pet food products is not a source of lycopene.  Tomato pomace is made from the waste and effluent (by-products), left over from processing tomatoes for other purposes. The pomace goes through two intense processing procedures that destroy any remaining nutritional value.  The tomato pomace used in pet food is derived from tomatoes grown using a wide-range of synthetic-chemical herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers. The toxic residue remains in the pomace after processing. Read more about the issues with tomato pomace in pet food here.

 Guava, Papaya, Red Grapefruit and Watermelon

 Guava (pink guava), fresh - 5 mg lycopene per 100g 

Watermelon, fresh - 4.5 mg per 100g 

Papaya, fresh - 1.8 mg per 100g 

Grapefruit, fresh - 1.4 mg lycopene per 100g

 

Summary List of Lycopene Fruit and Vegetables for Dogs

Richest sources:

- Gac fruit

- Guava

- Papaya

- Red Grapefruit 

- Watermelon

- Tomato

Good sources:

- Apricots

- Cantaloupe and other orange melons

- Carrot

- Cranberry

- Peach

- Persimmon

- Pomegranate 

- Pumpkin

- Red bell pepper

- Red cabbage

- Rosehip

Minor source:

Asparagus

Parsley

 

How To Include Lycopene Rich Foods in Your Dog's Diet

How Much Vegetables and Fruit To Include in Your Dog's Diet

General guideline for including vegetables and fruit in a species appropriate diet:

Vegetables, leafy greens: 

• 7% to 10% of the daily food intake, but can be more depending on the individual dog's situation.

Fruit: 

• 1% to 3% of the diet, but can be more depending on the individual dog's situation.
  

 

How to Prepare Vegetables and Fruit to Include in Your Dog's Diet

Follow the instructions provided in this article.  

The article also provides an extensive list of appropriate vegetables and fruit for dogs.

Maximize the Bioavalability of Lycopene

Lycopene is a fat-soluble carotinoid, this means it should be consumed with a good-source fat to ensure bioavailablility of the lycopene. Include at least one good-quality, species appropriate fat with the lycopene rich food you'll be adding to your dog's meal.  

Examples of  dog appropriate fats to serve with lycopene rich foods are listed below.  

Click the link for each item for: dosing guidelines, serving recommendations, health benefits and other important information.

Avocado

Eggs

Coconut oil

Flax seed oil

Hemp seed oil

Krill oil 

Wild-caught fatty (oily) fish  

Sardines and other small fatty (oily) fish

 

Cautions

Supplemental forms of lycopene:

Concentrated lycopene supplements, e.g. synthetic lycopene supplements, encapsulated lycopene supplements, lycopene softgel supplements, etc. should not be given to dogs. 

Concentrated lycopene supplements can lead to excess intake of lycopene which can cause lycopenemia (discoloration of the skin), gastrointestinal issues. Concentrated lycopene supplementation can cause birth of underweight puppies and/or premature labour in pregnant dogs.

Lycopene should be obtained by including an appropriate amount of lycopene rich fresh food in the diet. Refer to the section above 'How Much To Include in Your Dog's Diet'.

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Article and graphics by Karen Rosenfeld