Research review
Does lycopene help with blood pressure? What the research does and doesn't show
The largest, most recent pooled analysis of lycopene trials found no significant effect on blood pressure; a handful of smaller, older meta-analyses found a modest drop in systolic blood pressure, mostly tied to standardized tomato extract rather than lycopene alone.
The evidence on lycopene and blood pressure is mixed. The largest, most recent pooled analysis of randomized trials found no significant effect on blood pressure; a few smaller, older meta-analyses found a modest drop in systolic blood pressure, mostly tied to standardized tomato extract or seen in people who already had high blood pressure.
What the evidence doesn't support
It doesn't support lycopene supplements, broadly, as a reliable way to lower blood pressure. The largest pooled analysis to date — 34 randomized trials — found no significant effect on either systolic or diastolic blood pressure, alongside no effect on cholesterol, blood sugar or inflammation markers. It doesn't support raw or synthetic lycopene specifically: even the meta-analyses that did find a blood-pressure effect traced it mostly to standardized tomato extract, not lycopene supplemented on its own. And no trial reviewed here found lycopene raising blood pressure, so it also doesn't support a concern that it would.
What the trials found
The largest and most recent analysis is a 2023 meta-analysis of 34 randomized controlled trials testing lycopene and tomato products against a range of cardiovascular markers, including systolic and diastolic blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, body weight and inflammation. Across all 34 trials, none of those measures changed significantly; the only significant change was in a marker of oxidative stress, not blood pressure itself.
A 2021 network meta-analysis pooled 11 randomized trials (six different forms of tomato, lycopene and related products) and found that standardized tomato extract significantly lowered systolic blood pressure by about 5.9 mmHg compared with placebo, with a larger drop of about 8.1 mmHg in people who already had hypertension. Diastolic blood pressure didn't change significantly. Other forms tested — including synthetic lycopene and a tomato-containing diet — did not show a consistent, significant effect on either measure.
An earlier, smaller meta-analysis from 2013 pooled 6 trials of lycopene supplementation and found a significant systolic blood pressure reduction of about 5 mmHg overall, with a larger effect at doses above 12 mg/day and in people with a higher starting blood pressure. Diastolic blood pressure again showed no significant change in that analysis.
Taken together, the pattern across a decade of meta-analyses is a shrinking effect: smaller, earlier pooled analyses found a modest systolic benefit, mainly at higher doses or with a standardized tomato extract; the largest and newest pooled analysis, with more trials and more statistical power, found nothing significant at all.
| Study | Design | Population / dose | Finding |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 meta-analysis | 34 RCTs | Mixed adults, varied doses | No significant effect on SBP, DBP or other cardiovascular markers |
| 2021 network meta-analysis | 11 RCTs | Mixed and hypertensive adults | Standardized tomato extract lowered SBP; other forms did not |
| 2013 meta-analysis | 6 RCTs | Adults, doses above/below 12 mg/day | SBP reduced at higher doses; DBP unchanged |
Questions people ask
Does lycopene lower blood pressure?
It depends which body of evidence you look at. Older, smaller meta-analyses found a modest reduction in systolic blood pressure, particularly with standardized tomato extract or at doses above 12 mg/day. The largest and most recent meta-analysis, pooling 34 trials, found no significant effect on blood pressure at all. Nothing here establishes a reliable, dose-specific effect for a lycopene supplement.
Can lycopene raise blood pressure?
No trial reviewed here found lycopene raising blood pressure. What's contested in the research is whether it affects blood pressure at all — not whether it raises it, which no trial found.
When to talk to a doctor
Anyone with high blood pressure, or on medication for it, should work with their doctor on monitoring and next steps rather than a supplement label. Lycopene is not a substitute for prescribed blood-pressure care, and nothing in the evidence above supports using it that way.
Related reading: lycopene and cholesterol, reviewed, lycopene: what the research does and doesn't show, and what is lycopene.
Sources
- The Effects of Lycopene and Tomato Consumption on Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Adults: A Grade Assessment Systematic Review and Meta-analysis A meta-analysis of 34 randomized trials found lycopene and tomato products had no significant effect on blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, inflammation or body weight; the only significant change was in an oxidative-stress marker.
- Effect of tomato, lycopene and related products on blood pressure: A systematic review and network meta-analysis A network meta-analysis of 11 randomized trials found standardized tomato extract significantly lowered systolic blood pressure, with a larger effect in people with hypertension, but other lycopene forms — including synthetic lycopene — showed no consistent effect.
- Lycopene supplement and blood pressure: an updated meta-analysis of intervention trials A meta-analysis of 6 randomized trials found lycopene supplementation significantly lowered systolic blood pressure overall, with a larger effect at doses above 12 mg/day, but found no significant effect on diastolic blood pressure.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.