Rome: A so-called “anti-wrinkle” pizza created by a nutritionist in southern Italy has caused a stir, with pizza purists protesting against the desecration of the national dish, La Stampa newspaper reported on Monday.

The “primula” pizza is made up of three times the amount of fibre found in a classic pizza and boasts that it contains more magnesium and iron, thanks to its ingredients, including wholemeal flour.

At least eight vegetables or sauces in the pizza allegedly create the anti-oxidant effects against ageing: tomatoes, rocket, garlic, courgettes, basil, mushrooms, carrots and spinach.

The formula was devised by Eugenio Luigi Iorio, a nutritionist and biochemist at the University of Naples, in collaboration with Cosimo Mogavero, owner of a restaurant called La Fabbrica dei Sapori (The Taste Factory) restaurant.

Pope Benedict XVI apparently loves the “anti-age” pizza, according to the newspaper. He ate one of the pies during a party for the Vatican guards catered by Mogavero.

But the new invention has its detractors, including the True Neapolitan Pizza Association, which says the wholemeal flour in particular prevents the characteristic crust from forming.

The association has complained in the past about the sale of pizza-by-the-slice, popular in Italy.