The women were instructed to avoid all vegetables and fruits that are
known to contain lycopene and/or b-carotene, both fresh and cooked (e.g.,
tomato sauce for spaghetti) during the trial. Each woman received either
mashed tomatoes or frozen carrot puree, as it has been shown that carotenoids
are better absorbed from processed vegetables [13]. Both products came
from an organic farm in England and were transported frozen to Israel. Each
woman received either four sachets of carrot puree or four portions of mashed
tomato. Each sachet contained 300 mg of carrot puree with the equivalent of
15 mg b-carotene, and each 50-mg portion of mashed tomato contained the
equivalent of 15 mg lycopene. These dosages represent the average amounts
consumed by adults eating Western diets [14]. The subjects were instructed to
eat the supplement with a fat-rich yogurt in the morning, one portion or
sachet per day