The benefits of islands are many and varied, so what are the most important of them? How can you benefit from carrots to boost your health and protect you from diseases? Details are as follows.
Studies show time and time again the benefits of carrots and the contribution of eating them in fighting diseases, and the strength of carrots in protecting against various diseases stems from its richness in important nutrients, such as beta-carotenoids.
Food in Carrots
Carrots contain a wide range of important nutrients. To be precise, each chopped cup of carrots contains the following proportions:
- 52 calories.
- 12.26 grams of carbohydrates.
- 1.19 grams of protein.
- 3 grams of sugar.
- 7.6 mg of vitamin C.
- 42 mg of calcium.
- 45 mg of phosphorous.
- 3.6 grams of fiber.
- 15 mg of magnesium.
- 0.38 mg of iron.
- 1069 micrograms of vitamin A.
- 0.31 mg of zinc.
- 16.9 mcg of vitamin K.
- 410 mg of potassium.
- 24 micrograms of folic acid.
- 88 mg of sodium.
It is worth noting here that eating one cup of chopped carrots daily gives the body the full daily needs of vitamin A, and carrots are rich in beta carotenoids and B vitamins.
Benefits of Carrots
The benefits of carrots that stem from its nutrient contents are numerous, here is a list of the most important:
1- Rich in Beta-Carotene
Beta-carotene is a family of carotenoids, and carotenoids are a large family of chromosomes responsible for the yellow, orange and red coloration in many vegetables and fruits.
Beta-carotenoids help:
- Reducing the chances of developing several diseases, such as: heart disease, stroke, cancer and blindness.
- Slow down the aging process.
- Reducing diabetes complications.
- Improve lung function.
Beta-carotene is known among the carotenoids and is also used as the main source of vitamin A (it is even called a conjugate – vitamin A).
Vitamin A is necessary for the following: for vision, for maintaining the proper functioning of the immune system, for proper growth, for maintaining healthy skin and reducing the risk of cancer.
2- Eye Health
The common saying about carrots’ ability to improve vision is not just a myth, it is a fact.
Vitamin A, which is found in high concentrations in carrots, helps protect the eyes from diseases in general, and to protect them from any damage that may cause blindness in particular.
But it is worth noting here that the benefit of carrots to improve eyesight does not occur unless the person originally suffers from a significant deficiency in his vitamin A levels.
3- a Strong Cancer Fighter
The beta-carotene in carrots encourages communication between cells, which may help prevent cancer. Improper communication between cells may be one of the causes of overgrowth of cancer-causing cells.
Beta-carotene helps improve communication between cells by activating a gene that produces tiny holes in the cell, allowing information to be transferred from one cell to another.
Studies of the benefits of carrots show that all the basic dietary carotenoids help with cellular communication, but beta-carotene does that better than others.
4- Diabetes Control
The high content of carrots in various antioxidants makes them one of the types of vegetables that help improve blood sugar levels and keep them under control, especially since carrots have a very low glycemic index.
5- Encouraging the Activity of “Predator” Cells for Tumors
Beta-carotene also acts as an antioxidant, and thus may encourage the activity of predatory cells for tumors called “natural killer cells”. It appears that oxidative stress harms these cells, which can harm their functioning.
In an experiment that examined the effect of consuming fresh extracts of vegetables and fruits that contained essential carotenoids, it was found that vegetable extracts led to a significant increase in the activity of natural killer cells.
6- Strengthening the Immune System
Carrots contain a variety of nutrients that are needed by the immune system, such as vitamin C and various antioxidants.
Vitamin C helps protect the body from various diseases, such as flu and colds.
7- Correct Dna Defects
It was found that beta-carotene promotes the action of enzymes that correct defects in the DNA.
In a study of 23 healthy men, it was found that carrot juice rich in beta-carotene and tomato juice rich in lycopene were very effective in this task.
8- Reducing Bad Cholesterol
Beta-carotene, among the benefits of carrots, also contributes to reducing cholesterol in the blood, as studies have shown that it helps to control the activity of enzymes associated with cholesterol production.
Carrots also contain other components that contribute to lowering cholesterol levels, such as dietary fiber.
It was found that eating two large carrots per day for a week helped reduce cholesterol levels by 11%. It was also found that increasing the intake of carrots contributed to reducing the risk of stroke.
9- Combating Heart Disease
Beta-cryptoxentine is another yellow-orange pigment in the family of crotenoids (it also forms a co-vitamin A). It appears to play an important role in preventing heart disease.
Epidemiological studies indicate that consumption of beta-cryptoxentine and lutein is associated with a lower incidence of heart disease.
The heart benefits of carrots also stem from its high potassium content, which makes eating carrots regularly helps lower high blood pressure.
10- Carrots Are a Source of Vitamins
One of the benefits of carrots is that it is rich in vitamins. In terms of “traditional” food ingredients, carrots are a source of:
- Potassium: It is a mineral that reduces the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, and bone strength.
- Group B vitamins: They are necessary for the production of energy in the body and help prevent birth defects in the nervous system of the fetus and reduce levels of homocysteine in the blood, which reduces the risk of heart disease.
- Beta-carotene: It helps reduce the risk of cancer and is used as a basic substance for the production of vitamin A, which is necessary for vision and for maintaining the immune system, for proper growth, and for maintaining healthy skin.
- Vitamin C: It is an effective antioxidant that helps reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, cancer, and possibly cataracts and diabetes complications.
- Vitamin K: necessary for the treatment of blood clotting and helps in strengthening the bones.
- Vitamin E: a powerful antioxidant that helps prevent heart disease and the aging process, proper immune system functioning, cancer prevention and skin health.
- Dietary fiber: contributes to regulating the work of the digestive system and slows the absorption of substances from food such as sugar and cholesterol.
One of the easiest ways to increase your carrot eating is to buy freshly washed and ready-to-eat dwarf carrots, all you have to do is open the bag and enjoy nibbling on these sweet and healthy snacks. And refer to this article for Carrots benefits for diet