I remember as a child my mother telling me to eat my carrots as they would help me see in the dark and I have recently been telling my five year old the same story. Why are carrots so good for you? DS.
The humble carrot is a vegetable most of us take for granted. Carrots have an ancient history originating in of all places Afghanistan. The Greeks and the Romans ate carrots and in fact, the Greeks called the carrot ‘Philtron’ and used it as an aphrodisiac. Something not necessary to go into with your five year old at this stage!
In Asia, the carrot was an established root crop and was then introduced to Europe in the 13th century. It was the Middle Ages before the carrot became better known and doctors of the time prescribed carrots for numerous ills including snakebite. In those days, the carrot was available in far more radiant colours including red, purple, black, yellow and white. They were cultivated together and over time, it resulted in the orange vegetable we know today.
The Elizabethans on receiving the carrots from mainland Europe did some rather strange things with them. Some ate the roots but others used the feathery foliage for decoration in hats and on their clothes. I am sure like every fashion statement this may come and revisit us at some point. The colonists took the carrot to America but they were not cultivated there until the last couple of centuries.
THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF CARROTS?
 Beta Carotene under the microscope
Carrots eaten as a fresh, raw and unprocessed food is full of nutrients including Vitamin A (retinol), beta-carotene (turned into Vitamin A in the body), other carotenoids, B Vitamins, Vitamin C and minerals calcium and potassium. Of all of the nutrients, Beta-Carotene and latterly Alpha Carotene are seen as the most important properties of the carrot. As far as the eyes are concerned it is the Vitamin A and the Beta-carotene which are the most important nutrients.
Vitamin A, helps your eyes adjust to light changes when you come in from outside and helps keep your eyes, skin and mucous membranes moist. Vitamin A also prevents night blindness. If the vitamin A deficiency causing night blindness is not corrected, it can then lead to a condition called xerophthalmia, causing extremely dry eyes, possibly corneal ulcers and swollen eyelids. If left untreated, xerophthalmia can lead to blindness. In fact, vitamin A deficiency is one of the leading causes of blindness in developing countries. Vitamin A may possibly prevent cataracts from forming and may help prevent macular degeneration, which is the leading cause of blindness in the world.
Beta-carotene is one of about 500 compounds called carotenoids, which are present in most fruit and vegetables. The body changes beta-carotene into Vitamin A, which promotes a healthy immune system and healthy cell growth. The body can only change so much beta-carotene into Vitamin A and any excess boosts the immune system and is a powerful antioxidant in its own right. Antioxidants prevent free radical damage to cells, tissues and most importantly to the fat in our bloodstream that can lead to blocked arteries and heart disease.
Alpha carotene has often been overlooked in carrots but some interesting studies in Japan indicate that Alpha carotene might be even more powerful than Beta-carotene in the fight against cancer.
ACIDITY IN THE BODY
As far as our general health is concerned, carrots play an important role in neutralising acid in the body. If you have a health problem, you are very likely to be acidic.
Too much acid will decrease the energy production in the cells and the ability to repair damaged cells. The body is unable to detox heavy metals and that allows tumour cells to thrive. It will also cause a depressed immune system leaving the body wide open to infections. Being mildly acidic can cause headaches, stomach problems and general fatigue but if the body continues to accumulate acid in tissues and blood stream far more serious health problems will develop such as degenerative diseases and cancer. Carrot is an alkaline forming food that works with the pH in your body to ensure that safe levels are maintained.
Apart from neutralising the overall acidity in your body, one of the areas that eating carrots or drinking carrot juice may help you is with acid stomach and it would certainly be healthier for you than consuming packets of antacid tablets. If you are suffering from urinary tract infections where the urine is acidic, carrot juice combined with cranberry juice (to prevent the adhesion of bacteria to the soft tissues) will help speed your recovery.
An excellent way to get plenty of carrots in your diet is in juice combined with a fresh orange. I drink this mixture everyday and have found that it certainly improves inflammation, particularly in joints after exercise.
On a final note, we often feed carrots to horses as a treat but in fact, racehorse breeders use carrots as part of the normal diet to increase performance and health in their animals. Who knows if you start including more carrots in your diet you may be eligible for the Grand National next year.
For more information on nutrients and superfoods visit www.justfoodforhealth.com and if you have any questions that you would like included in the Health and Vitality mailbag send them in strict confidence to sally@moyhill.com
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