The carrot is an edible root that originally, dating back to 3,000 BC, was not orange but purple and with a yellowish color inside. Due to the great variety of carrots that existed in Afghanistan, botanical experts consider that this was the origin of this healthy food. Much later, in the 17th century, the Dutch worked to improve the species and came to the variety that we know today, robust and with a characteristic and intense orange color.
The color of the food is much more important than it may initially seem, and in this case, the deep orange of the carrot warns us that it is a food very rich in antioxidants and, therefore, it will act as very positive in our body, helping us effectively to maintain an optimal state of health and well-being. Do you want to discover the amazing properties of carrots? So, keep reading this article from in which we explain all the health properties of carrots.
The nutritional composition of the carrot
All the properties that the carrot has are derived from its healthy nutritional composition, therefore, first of all we are going to see what nutrients 100 grams of raw carrots provide us:
- 3 grams of water
- 41 calories
- 24 milligrams of fat
- 93 grams protein
- 58 grams carbohydrates
- 8 grams fiber
- 33 milligrams of calcium
- 3 milligrams of iron
- 12 milligrams of magnesium
- 35 milligrams of phosphorus
- 320 milligrams of potassium
- 69 milligrams of sodium
- 24 milligrams of zinc
- 9 milligrams of vitamin C
- 07 milligrams of vitamin B1 or thiamine
- 06 milligrams of vitamin B2 or Riboflavin
- 1 milligram of vitamin B3 or Niacin
- 14 milligrams of vitamin B6 or pyridoxine
- 19 micrograms of vitamin B9 or Folic Acid
- 7 IU (International Units) of vitamin A
As we can see, like other vegetables, carrot stands out for an extraordinary contribution of micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) and this will help us cover the daily requirements that our body needs of these important substances, since although they are found in small proportions, they participate in multiple chemical reactions essential for life.
Carrot properties for health
The benefits of carrots are many, so including carrots in our diet on a daily basis, whether raw or boiled, will provide us with nutrients that are very beneficial for the health of our body. Let’s see below what are the properties of the carrot for health:
- The carrot contains beta-carotenes, substances that our body transforms into vitamin A by metabolizing them in the liver. Vitamin A is essential to have an optimal state of health and maintain the proper functioning of the eyeball, skin and all body tissues. Furthermore, vitamin A is necessary for bone formation, reproduction and fertility.
- In addition to the important functions that we have previously mentioned, vitamin A acts as a powerful antioxidant, this implies that it helps us to counteract the damage caused by free radicals and therefore prevents premature aging, as well as multiple degenerative diseases that are caused by oxidative stress.
- Vitamin A is very important for digestive mucosa, therefore it will help us treat constipation and will act as an effective adjunctive treatment in intestinal diseases.
- The raw carrot provides us with a significant amount of vitamin C, which reinforces the antioxidant activity of vitamin A. In addition, vitamin C is essential to keep the immune system in perfect condition and to shorten the recovery period in diseases such as flu and cold, also reducing symptoms.
- This edible root will also help us to have firmer skin and a stronger loco motor system, since another important function of vitamin C is to participate in the endogenous synthesis of elastic and collagen.
- The carrot contains a high amount of potassium together with a low amount of sodium. The foods that house this proportion between both minerals have a diuretic effect, therefore, carrots help us to increase the renal elimination of liquids and with this also help we purify our body. It is especially useful to prevent and treat fluid retention and in those situations where it is necessary to decrease the circulating volume in the blood, such as high blood pressure.
- Raw carrots are an excellent ally in weight loss, since as they contain fiber they help us to keep our appetites under control and they also require a lot of chewing, therefore they are ideal for eating between meals without consuming just a few calories.
- It is an ideal food for pregnant womesince it provides a large amount of folic acid, in the same way, during lactation they help cover the requirements of calcium, folic acid and vitamin A.
Medicinal properties of carrot
In addition to having multiple and important food properties, carrots also offer us interesting healing properties, which we will obtain mainly through natural carrot juice, since it contains the nutrients in the highest concentration.
Carrot juice will be helpful in treating the following disorders:
- It helps reduce the levels of bad cholesterol or LDL cholesterol, also preventing the formation of fatty plaques on the arterial walls, also known as atheroma plaques.
- It is useful to treat stomach problems such as gastritis, heartburn or ulcers, in the same way it will help us to treat intestinal diseases such as ulcerative colitis, irritable colon or diverticulosis. This juice is one of the best juices to deflate the stomach.
- It prevents complications that can be derived from diabetes, such as those caused by poor circulation.
- It helps prevent and treat eye diseasesin an adjuvant way such as glaucoma or cataracts.
Due to its beta-carotene content, carrot juice helps prevent cancer, especially cancer of the mouth, stom
