On Sat, Jul 18, 2026 at 5:12 PM Grant wrote:
Here in Utah, Taco Bell is highly suspect because they get their lettuce from Mexico.
For a long time I liked to eat salads. But lettuce doesn't keep very long and now I am highly suspicious of things like that.
I eat Roma tomatoes for the higher lycopene content.
I have concluded that a moderate amount of chips with salsa is healthy, and a good substitute for salads. The high fiber is filling and helps with appetite.
Tortilla chips are high in resistant starch, which is linked to some health benefits.
Google AI says...
Yes, lycopene is highly beneficial. It is a potent antioxidant found in red foods like tomatoes, watermelon, and pink grapefruit. It protects your cells from oxidative stress and is associated with a lower risk of heart disease, prostate cancer, and strokes. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
For maximum benefit, consider these key details:
- Better with fat: Lycopene is fat-soluble. Eating lycopene-rich foods with healthy fats (like cooking tomatoes in olive oil or eating them with avocado) boosts your body's absorption by up to 4.4 times. [1, 2, 3]
- Better when cooked: Heating and processing tomatoes (e.g., in tomato paste, sauce, or salsa) actually makes lycopene more bioavailable than eating them raw. [1]
Yes, salsa contains lycopene. Because tomatoes are the primary ingredient in traditional red salsa, the condiment is packed with this powerful antioxidant. Lycopene is linked to reduced inflammation, better heart health, and a lower risk of certain cancers. [1, 2, 3, 4]
The bioavailability of lycopene actually improves when tomatoes are cooked, processed, or mixed with a little fat (like avocado), making this flavorful condiment an excellent way to boost your daily nutrient intake. [1, 2, 3]
Yes, resistant starch is highly beneficial. It bypasses small intestine digestion, reaching the colon intact to feed beneficial gut bacteria. This produces short-chain fatty acids (like butyrate) that improve gut health, stabilize blood sugar, increase satiety, and support heart health. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Key benefits of resistant starch include:
- Blood Sugar Control: Because it resists digestion, it does not cause blood sugar spikes. Some research indicates it can also increase insulin sensitivity. [1, 2]
- Gut Health & Digestion: It acts as a prebiotic, nourishing your microbiome and protecting the lining of the colon, which may lower the risk of colorectal cancer. [1, 2]
- Weight Management: By fueling the production of satiety hormones like GLP-1, it helps you feel full longer. [1]
You can naturally incorporate resistant starch into your diet by eating legumes, seeds, unripe (green) bananas, and whole grains. Additionally, cooking and subsequently cooling starchy carbohydrates (like rice, pasta, and potatoes) turns them into resistant starches. [1, 2]
Yes, corn tortillas contain resistant starch. The traditional process of making them—called nixtamalization, where corn is soaked in an alkaline lime solution—alters the starch and naturally increases resistant starch. [1, 2, 3]
You can boost the resistant starch content even further by cooking and cooling them (e.g., storing them in the fridge), which causes the starches to crystallize and become more resistant to digestion. For example, fresh corn tortillas might contain roughly 2.6 g of resistant starch, but this can increase to over 3.5 g after being chilled in the refrigerator. [1, 2, 3]
