Carrot Nutritional Information And Health Benefits Of Carrots

Carrots are easily identified by their orange-red color and by the delicious crunch that they pack into salads. Often identified as the favorite food of Bugs Bunny, carrots are packed with health. You can chop carrots into bits and cook a tasty curry or stir-fry it; use carrot sticks as salads and snacks; and, squeeze the juice for a healthy yet tasty beverage. Do away with aerated drinks and sip a glass of carrot juice instead. There is so much to be said about the health benefits of carrot juice.

History of carrots: Carrots were first cultivated in the Middle Eastern and Central Asian countries and used to be deep purple in color.

Yellow carrots sprung up during the pre-Hellenic times in Afghanistan. Carrots were extensively used by the Romans and the Greeks in medicines.

Carrot Health Benefits

Antioxidant: Carrots have antioxidant qualities and is vitamin A carotene rich. The antioxidant qualities help to protect people against cardiovascular diseases. The vegetable also protects people from cancer and promotes good vision.

Carotenoids Prevent Heart Disease: Scientists have carried out studies, where they have studied people with a diet high in carotenoids. The research has shown that those with more carotenoids in their diet have lesser chances of getting heart disease, vis a vis those who have carotenoid deficient diet.

Better Vision because of vitamin A: Research has shown that beta-carotene protects vision and is especially good for night vision. Beta-carotene is converted to vitamin a in the liver, which when reaches the retina, is turned into rhodopsin, a purple pigment good for night-vision. The antioxidant properties of beta carotene protect muscles from degenerating and prevent senile cataracts, which often makes elderly people blind.

Better Health: Some of the other benefits of carrots involve lowering the risk of lung cancer. A carrot a day may keep lung cancer at bay!

Blood Sugar Regulation: If you eat a carrot everyday or eat food cooked with carrots, then carotenoids may help regulate your blood sugar level. So this is another carrots health benefits.

The Magic of Falcarinol: Carrots are rich in a phytonutrient known as falcarinol, which is said to reduce the risk of cancers. Studies suggest that falcarinol protects people from colon cancer.

Health benefits from soluble fiber: Carrots is said to have fat fighting features, with high fiber content, part of which is calcium pectate, a soluble fiber. The soluble fiber can lower blood-cholesterol by binding and combating bile acids.

Submitted on February 24, 2009