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Lyc4.5
Lycopene Research
Mostly mechanism / observational
35 peer-reviewed studies
What the evidence says
Mostly mechanism / observational
Most Lycopene studies are mechanism or observational rather than RCTs that measure a clinical effect — keep findings provisional.
Most evidence is from high-quality meta-analyses and randomised trials published 2015–2026 with a typical study size of 2,970 participants.
Based on 35 studies · 11 meta-analyses · 11 RCTs · 818,734 total participants
Confidence
High confidence
By outcome
Heart & blood pressureReduced oxidative-stress marker (MDA) but no significant effect on cholesterol, blood pressure, or glucose in RCTs · Unclear
Mostly mechanism / observational3 studies
BPH & lower urinary tract symptoms
Too few graded studies1 study
Active research area
27 studies in the last 5 years · Latest meta-analysis: 2026
201520202026
1Meta-Analysisn=9,131 · very large study2026
In plain English: The effect appears more pronounced in men, highlighting potential sex-specific differences in carotenoid metabolism and cardiovascular risk modulation.
Cavero-Redondo I et al. · Nutrients (2026)
Pooled odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated via random effects models.
High circulating lycopene levels were significantly associated with low IMT (pooled OR = 0.70; 95% CI: 0.59-0.84; I2 = 65.7%).
The association was stronger in men (OR = 0.62; 95% CI: 0.45-0.84) than in women (OR = 0.74; 95% CI: 0.58-0.95).
In plain English: Larger, high-quality randomized trials are needed to confirm these findings and clarify the role of lycopene in male reproductive health.
Viña I, Viña JR. · International journal of molecular sciences (2025)
Standardized mean differences (SMDs) were calculated for the key outcomes.
Lycopene supplementation significantly improved sperm concentration (SMD 0.33, 95% CI [0.02-0.65], p = 0.037) and nonprogressive motility (SMD 0.45, 95% CI [0.04-0.87], p = 0.032).
No statistically significant effects were observed on total motility, progressive motility, normal or abnormal morphology, semen volume, or DNA damage.
In plain English: Further RCTs are needed to verify the influence of lycopene provided within supplements, functional foods, and regular food products on various mental health problems in diverse populations.
Głąbska D, Guzek D, Jílková A, Kołota-Burdzy A, Skolmowska D, Kouřimská L. · Nutrients (2025)
In spite of the fact that all six included studies were RCTs, the comparison between the intervention group and placebo group was made in only four studies, and none of them stated the difference between the compared groups.
A low risk of bias was concluded for three studies (all of them not confirming the influence of lycopene on mental health), and a high risk of bias was found in three studies (one of them not confirming, and two not conclusive).
Conclusions : The evidence gathered within the systematic review of RCTs did not confirm any influence of lycopene on mental health.
17Systematic Reviewn=108,574 · very large study2025
Balali A, Fathzadeh K, Askari G, Sadeghi O. · Frontiers in nutrition (2025)
High intakes and high levels of lycopene compared to low amounts were, respectively, associated with 5% (Pooled RR: 0.95, 95% CI: 0.92-0.98, I 2 = 26.4%, p = 0.002) and 11% (Pooled RR: 0.89, 95% CI: 0.84-0.95, I 2 = 15.0%, p < 0.001) reduction in overall cancer risk.
Also, each 10 μg/dL increase in blood levels of lycopene was associated with a 5% lower risk of overall cancer.
Moreover, we found a linear inverse association between dietary lycopene intake and prostate cancer risk (Pooled RR 0.99, 95% CI 0.97-1.00, I 2 = 0, p = 0.045).
López-Solís R, Castro-Barquero S, Donat-Vargas C, Corrado M, Arancibia-Riveros C, Martínez-González MÁ, Salas-Salvadó J, Sorlí JV, Serra-Majem L, Fitó M, Pintó X, Fiol M, Lapetra J, Gómez-Gracia E, Toledo E, Ramírez-Sabio JB, Babio N, Estruch R, Ros E, Lamuela-Raventós RM. · BMC medicine (2025)
Cox proportional hazard models were used to estimate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) across lycopene intake quartiles.
Participants in the highest quartile of lycopene intake had a significantly lower risk of prostate cancer than those in the lowest quartile (HR: 0.46; 95% CI: 0.23-0.95; p-trend = 0.035).
A nonlinear dose-response relationship was observed, with a significant inverse association emerging at intakes above 4.9 mg/day (HR: 0.36; 95% CI: 0.13-0.98).
In plain English: This review underscores the need to standardize tomato-derived interventions to improve comparability and strengthen the evidence base.
In the RCTs, tomato-based interventions produced a small but significant reduction in waist circumference (MD: -1.153 cm, 95% CI: -2.27 to -0.04, p = 0.0432), with no consistent effects on body weight or BMI.
Tomato-based interventions confer modest but biologically consistent benefits, targeting visceral adiposity and cardiometabolic pathways rather than overall weight loss.
The absence of a lycopene dose response and the efficacy of lycopene-free matrices support a food-matrix synergy rather than lycopene as the primary bioactive compound.
In plain English: Nevertheless, robust clinical validation is required to confirm the therapeutic potential of these combinations and to establish LYP as an effective adjuvant in cancer treatment.
Vishwa R, Sailo BL, BharathwajChetty B, Hegde M, Alqahtani MS, Abbas M, Ahn KS, Kunnumakkara AB. · Journal of biochemical and molecular toxicology (2025)
These studies collectively demonstrate that LYP, when used in combination with other therapeutic agents, can modulate several key oncogenic signaling pathways, including JAK2, MAPK, Akt/mTOR, IGF-1R, Akt/EZH2/AR, and PPARγ/LXRα/ABCA1.
Additionally, LYP influences the activity of NF-κB, IFN-γ, and Nrf2, and also modulates cellular processes such as autophagy, apoptosis, and antioxidant defense mechanisms.
Nevertheless, robust clinical validation is required to confirm the therapeutic potential of these combinations and to establish LYP as an effective adjuvant in cancer treatment.