Carrot is a universal favorite vegetable, found in almost every cuisine around the world. But what makes this crunchy root vegetable so beloved? What are the benefits of eating it? Carrot is packed with essential vitamins and minerals, such as vitamin A, vitamin K, potassium, and folate. It is also low in calories and fat, making it a great choice for weight loss. Plus, it’s high fiber content keeps you full and helps regulate digestion. It is a rich source of beta-carotene, which is converted to vitamin A in the body. Carrot is packed with antioxidants, which can help reduce inflammation and protect cells from damage caused by free radicals. This can help reduce your risk of developing certain types of cancer, such as colon, prostate, and breast cancer.
Carrot Nutrition Facts and Calories Chart
It is a popular root vegetable that is packed full of nutritional goodness. It is a great source of beta carotene, fiber, vitamin K, potassium, and antioxidants. The vitamin A in it is great for your skin, as it helps keep it looking youthful and glowing. Eating carrot can also help protect your skin from sun damage. Eating carrot can help promote good eye health, reduce cholesterol, and improve digestion. Vitamin A is essential for healthy eyes and vision, and eating carrot can help reduce your risk of developing night blindness and other vision problems. It is also low in calories and fat, making it an excellent addition to any healthy diet. Carrot can be eaten raw, cooked, steamed, or juiced. It’s sweet flavor make it a versatile and delicious vegetable that can be enjoyed in a variety of dishes. Nutritional value per 100 g:
- Biotin: 0
- Calcium: 34 mg
- Carbohydrates (Carbs): 8.5 g
- Chloride: 71 mg
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
- Choline: 12.7 mg
- Chromium: 0
- Copper: 0.1 mg
- Dietary Fiber: 2.8 g
- Energy (Calories): 41 kcal
- Fat: 0.2 g
- Iodine: 0
- Iron: 0.4 mg
- Magnesium: 16 mg
- Manganese: 0.2 mg
- Molybdenum: 0
- Pantothenic Acid: 0.2 mg
- Phosphorus: 29 mg
- Potassium: 320 mg
- Protein: 0.9 g
- Saturated fat: 0.1 g
- Selenium: 0
- Sodium: 68 mg
- Sugars: 4.7 g
- Vitamin A: 9377 IU
- Vitamin B1 (Thiamin): 0.1 mg
- Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin): 0.1 mg
- Vitamin B3 (Niacin): 0.7 mg
- Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic Acid): 0.2 mg
- Vitamin B6: 0.2 mg
- Vitamin B9 (Folate / Folic Acid): 25 µg
- Vitamin B12: 0
- Vitamin C: 5.9 mg
- Vitamin D: 0
- Vitamin E: 0.2 mg
- Vitamin K: 16.4 µg
- Water: 88.3 g
- Zinc: 0.2 mg
Carrot In India
Carrots were first used as medicinal herbs rather than as vegetables, and they have the dual purpose of acting as therapeutic agents, and providing the best source of beta carotene which is a form of vitamin A in the human diet. They are useful in the treatment of asthma, bad breath, burns, cholesterol, constipation, diarrhea, fatigue, hot flashes, hypoglycemia, nervousness, weakness. Dried carrot powder will restore energy, and can help to treat infections, glandular problems, headaches, or joint problems.
- Scientific Binomial: Daucus carota
- Common English: Cultivated Carrot / Queen Anne’s Lace / Bird’s Nest / Bees’ Nest Plant
- Ayurvedic: Gaajara / Garjara / Granjana
- Unani: Gaajar
- Sanskrit: Dindiramodaka / Gajara / Gajida / Garijara
- Hindi / Urdu: Gajar
- Bengali: Gajor
- Marathi: Gajar
- Telugu: Gajjara-gedda
- Tamil: Gajjarakkilangu / Karttukkilangu / Mangal Mullangi
- Gujarati
- Kannada: Gajjari / Gajjara Gadde
- Malayalam: Carrot
- Oriya
- Punjabi / Sindhi
- Assamese
- Kashmiri
- Konkani
- Manipuri
- Dogri
- Bhojpuri
Home Remedies
Carrots around the world grow in all shapes and colors. Westerners would mistake the Asian types, with their bulbous purple red roots, for beets. Other colors are pale and deep yellow, orange red, purple and white. The roots range from spherical to cylindrical. One variety in the Far East grows up to a yard long. But whatever is the color and shape of carrot, the uses are almost the same.
- Kidney Strengthener: Wild carrot also known as Queen Annes Lace, is a diuretic, that acts as a urinary antiseptic which is why it is a treatment for cystitis, kidney stones, prostatitis. It is also effective for gout and rheumatism.
- Anemia: Carrot is rich in iron, a good blood builder. It is used in the Ayurvedic treatment of most anemic. For anemia, a combination of pomegranate, cranberry, beet and carrot juice is effective.
- Poison Ivy: In case of poison oak or ivy, drink only carrot juice for 24 hours.
- Controls Cholesterol: A diet supplemented by raw carrot each day helps to lower cholesterol in the body. It’s recommended that you eat a carrot salad or munch on a carrot every time you consume greasy food.
- Menopausal Tension: Carrot seeds have also been found valuable in menopausal tension. A teaspoonful of the seeds should be boiled in a glassful of cow’s milk for about 10 minutes and taken daily as a medicine in this condition.
- Eye Health: Red variety is good to treat minor eye conditions, eat them daily.
- Fertility: This root vegetable is also good for fertility. Consider drinking vegetable juices made from beet, carrot, and spinach three times a week. Since juices are sweet, dilute them with 50% water.
- Mouth Wash: Carrot tops has strong antiseptic action and can be used as an effective mouth wash and gargle in tea form. Bring 3 cups of water to a boil, adding 1/2 cup chopped carrot tops. Simmer for 20 minutes, steeping another 30 minutes. Strain and store in refrigerator. Rinse and gargle mouth each morning with some.
- Infant Diarrhea: Cooked carrots are good to treat diarrhea in infants. Carrot soup is a traditional home remedy for infant diarrhea. OR Cook some carrots until they’re soft, then drop them in a blender with a little water and puree into a baby-food consistency. Eat a quarter to a half-cup each hour. It soothes the bowel and the digestive tract . It also slows down bacterial growth and provides nutrients that are lost during the attack. It is also soothing source of pectin.
- Constipation: It also clear up constipation as well. This root promote some looseness of the stool, while grains and leaves increase bowel gas.
- Chapped Skin: It repair bruises and chapped skin. Grated carrot applied directly to cracked nipples will heal and soothe the pain.
- Skin Care: Raw, grated, cooked, or mashed roots of this vegetable can be applied to wounds, cuts, inflammations, and abscesses to discourage infection and encourage healing. Applying carrot juice is beneficial when applied on burned or swelled skin.
- Improve Memory: It contain carotene. Carotene are good for memory. It also enhance pitta, which brings sharpness of recall. Drink carrot or beet juice, both of which are blood builders and will help improve memory.
- Hypoglycemia: This vegetable contain high amounts of the anti-cancer nutrient, beta-carotene. Equal parts of carrot and pineapple juice make a nice energy drink for those with hypoglycemia. This root along with beets and parsnips, are also good for hypoglycemia. Drink fresh, raw carrot juice daily to energize and cleanse the body. It will help to relieve the effects of stress and fatigue, and boost the body after illness.
- Quit Smoking: It is also helpful to quit smoking addiction. Whenever crave a cigarette just grab a stick of carrot and eat, it is best option to knock the nicotine habit. 2-3 carrots a day works, as the sweet taste of this root satisfies the crave of cigarette.
- Asthma: Some folk remedies suggest that, eating boiled root of this vegetable and drinking the warm broth thereof as a “seldom fail” remedy for relieving asthma. Lukewarm carrot juice also has a similar effect.
Side Effects and Precautions
Eating an excessive quantity may cause the skin to yellow temporarily. Carrot seeds are a nerve tonic and will also induce abortion; avoid during pregnancy.