THE HEALTH BENEFIT OF EATING CARROT
THE MEDICINAL VALUES OF CARROT
When you see carrot fresh and neat in market don’t ever get convinced that it is a tuber vegetable.
It is crunchy, delicious and naturally sugary so you can choose it as an
additive or stimulant to most of your meal or tagged it as one of the vegetable
which you can choose for your diet. Fortunately, carrot has amazing health
benefit, it contains essential compound like beta-corotenes, vitamin –A,
falcarinol, minerals, and the indispensable anti-oxidant in considerably large
amounts.
To check the scientific study of it, botanically, they belong
to the Apiaceae or umbelliferous family in the genus; Daucus. Therefore its
scientific name is daucus carota. Some other close members are available which
include dill, cumin, parsley, parsnips, etc.
Daucus
carota species are commonly cultivated across the world mainly because of their
prized taproot. It is a biennial plant which bears flowers in the second
season. But, it is commonly harvested
much prematurely so as to let the harvesting be when the root is about
an inch in diameter, juicy and tender.
Carrots has varieties in colour and shape which lies on the
cultivar types, the long ones are the oriental taproots, with flat top end,
tail-like lower parts. In many areas of Asia they are one of the winter season
crops.
Also available is the European carrots, which are cylindrical
with curved ends, bright orange colour in difference to saffron coloured Asian
cultivars.
HEALTH
BENEFITS OF CARROT
1. Carrots are extraordinarily a rich source
of vitamin-A and carotenes. In a formal analysis 100g of fresh carrots contains
8285µg of beta-carotenes and 16,709 IU of vitamin-A.
Research has
established the fact that the compound flavonoid in carrots is quiet potential
enough to protect against oral cavity, skin, and lung cancers.
2. Carrots which are sweet and crunchy are
considerably rich in anti-oxidants, vitamins and dietary fiber. They provide
with negligible amount of cholesterol and fat 41 calories in every fresh 100g
consumed.
3. Generally in humans, in the liver cell
carotenes is converted into vitamin-A and naturally they are rich source of
carotenes and vitamin-A. Tender and fresh 100g of carrot contains approximately
8285µg of beta-carotene and 16706 IU of vitamin-A. Recent studies confirmed
that flavonoid compounds which are available in carrots its potential to
protect from lung, oral cavity and skin cancers.
4. Being able to be converted to vitamin-A in
the liver cells, these root contains an important carotene which is
beta-carotene and is one of the natural anti-oxidants that protects the body
against harmful oxygen-derived free radicals.
5. It additionally performs the function of
vitamin-A such as proper maintenance of the eye, maintenance of epithelial
integrity, production of sperm, growth and development.
6. Carrot is a very rich source of
polyacetylene antioxidant and falcarinol. A series of research on laboratory
animals shows that falcarinol available in carrots can surely help the immune
system to protect against diseases and cancers by destroying pre-cancerous
cells
7. Vitamin-c which is present in carrot in
considerable amount provides about 9% of RDA, being also water soluble enhances
its anti-oxidant effect which helps in the protection against by scavenging
action on the harmful free radicals. It helps the body to maintain healthy
connective tissue, teeth and gum.
8. Additionally, they are naturally abundant
rich in B-complex groups of vitamins such as folic acid, vitamin
B-6(pyridoxine), pantothenic acid, thamin, etc. During substrate metabolism in
the body they acts as co-factors to enzymes.
9. Carrots also contains healthy level of
minerals such as copper, potassium, phosphorus, manganese and calcium.
Potassium which is an essential component of cell and body fluids helps to
control the heart rate and blood pressure by countering effects of sodium. The human
body utilizes manganese as a co-factor for the anti-oxidant enzymes.
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