The benefits and harms of carrots The benefits and harms of carrots in nutrition

Different types of root vegetables - boiled, steamed, dried, fresh

Despite the fact that fresh carrots contain many vitamins and elements, in another form they have no less beneficial properties. The root vegetable can be boiled, steamed or eaten dried (what are the benefits and harms of boiled carrots?). It all depends on the folk recipe and what it is used for.

After cooking, the vegetable serves to increase appetite and improve intestinal function; fresh carrots are an indispensable product during weight loss. Steamed root vegetables retain all their beneficial properties. Decoctions and teas are made from dried vegetables, which are also rich in vitamins.

Everything about the chemical composition

Carrots are rich in carotenoids, which are so necessary to protect the body against cancer, diabetes and atherosclerosis. One root vegetable contains fiber, ash, water, starch, beta-carotene, iodine, phosphorus, nicotinic acid, calcium, potassium, magnesium and iron, vitamins A, B, C, E, D, K and PP, amino acids and many other useful substances. 100 g of product contains:

6.9 grams carbohydrates;
1 g protein;
0.2 g fat;
3.6 g plant fibers;
energy value is 26-35 Kcal.

You will find more information about the chemical composition and calorie content of the vegetable here.

What are its health benefits?

Almost everyone knows about the benefits of carrots for human vision, but besides this, the culture has many other properties, including:

strengthening the immune system, as well as resisting viruses and infectious diseases;
affects the development and growth of the child in the womb;
helps get rid of dysbiosis and restores intestinal microflora;
reduces pain when wounds, burns and ulcers appear, promotes their healing;
reduces cholesterol levels;
prevents the development of atherosclerosis, stroke and heart attack.

For men

In its raw form, carrots can help get rid of symptoms of fatigue and also increase potency. Dishes containing this root vegetable are useful to eat after heavy physical exertion and in case of oxygen deficiency. The vegetable prevents prostate enlargement or reduces unpleasant symptoms during illness.

Read more about the benefits and harms of carrots for men here.

For women

Constant consumption of carrots normalizes the menstrual cycle and estrogen production, and also helps to stay slim and young.

Vitamins and microelements contained in the root vegetable nourish and moisturize the skin, help get rid of acne and other inflammations on the face.

During pregnancy and after childbirth, it is recommended to drink carrot juice in small quantities so that all the beneficial properties of the vegetable pass through the mother to the child.

The benefits and harms of carrots for the female body are discussed in this publication.

For children

All the beneficial substances and vitamins contained in carrots contribute to the healthy growth of the child, and also strengthen his immunity, bones and teeth. Carrot juice improves appetite and digestive system function. Children with vision problems are recommended to regularly consume this vegetable, as it contains vitamin A, which helps cope with eye problems.

Important! Eating carrots helps the heart function smoothly, strengthens blood vessels and removes excess cholesterol from the body.

Useful and medicinal properties of tops

Due to the bitter taste and ignorance of all the beneficial properties, carrot tops are often thrown away. But just holding the leaves in water for a few seconds is enough and the bitterness will go away. The tops contain chlorophyll, keratin, magnesium, potassium, calcium, selenium and vitamins B, K, PP, D and C.

The tops of the vegetable are no less useful than the root vegetable itself. They can be added to salads and hot dishes, prepared cocktails and teas. For medicinal purposes, you can make masks, compresses, decoctions and infusions from the tops.

Benefit:

prevention of visual impairment;
cleansing blood and lymph from toxins;
reducing the risk of cancer;
help in the fight against excess weight;
strengthening the immune system;
decreased blood pressure;
improvement of metabolism.

Harm:

indigestion;
the appearance of colic;
the occurrence of allergies.

Carrots in the fight against cancer

Official medicine confirms the information that carrots can fight cancer.
Numerous studies by Japanese scientists have proven that the inclusion of carotenoids in the diet helps reduce the risk of lung cancer, prostate cancer and pancreatic cancer. Scientists from the United States working on the problem of breast cancer have noticed that carrots have a beneficial effect on body cells that have undergone malignant degeneration. Eating root vegetables or juice from them activates reverse processes in these cells. Therefore, this vegetable is effective in fighting breast cancer at an early stage. Researchers attribute this to its high content of retinoic acid (a derivative of vitamin A). In the future, they hope to use this in the search for an effective drug against cancer.

In these studies, American scientists are supported by colleagues from Germany. They recommend composing your menu so that more than half of the diet consists of vegetable and fruit salads with the obligatory inclusion of carrots. A diet high in carotenoids is especially recommended for smokers, as they have a significantly higher risk of cancer.

Contraindications for use

Raw carrots and freshly squeezed juice are contraindicated if you have:

gastritis and stomach ulcers;
intestinal inflammation;
diabetes mellitus;
acute pancreatitis;
allergies to vegetables.

The harm of carrots depends on the amount consumed. Children should be introduced to the product closer to one year, but vegetable juice can be given as early as 6 months (you can learn about the benefits and harms of carrot juice here). If the child is breastfed, then it is possible later, since he receives all the vitamins of this vegetable in mother’s milk.

Therefore, during pregnancy and lactation, consumption of carrots is recommended. This root vegetable not only maintains hemoglobin levels in the blood, but also promotes normal development and growth of the fetus.

However, pregnant and lactating women should not consume carrot tops due to the caffeine they contain. This also applies to people with gastrointestinal diseases.

About the benefits of carrot juice

Treatment with carrot juice allows you to:

☘️strengthen immunity due to vitamin C content;
☘️improve vision - this drink contains a lot of vitamin A, which, moreover, is a powerful antioxidant;
☘️improve skin condition thanks to the mentioned vitamins A and C, which promote rapid healing of wounds, collagen formation, and cell healing;
☘️eliminate the negative effects of salts, control blood pressure, which is especially useful for people suffering from hypertension;
☘️ eliminate stomach problems, improve the functioning of the digestive system;
☘️reduce cholesterol, which has a positive effect on the well-being and health of the body in general.

Carrot juice is used as a diuretic to dissolve sand in the bladder. The drink is also useful for rinsing the mouth in the presence of inflammatory processes.

⚠️With regular consumption of juice, you can get rid of toxicosis.

Contraindications to drinking juice

Carrot juice is a concentrated drink, so it is not recommended to use it if you have the following health problems:

❣️individual intolerance to the drink;
❣️allergic reactions to carrots;
❣️liver diseases;
❣️ulcers in the housing complex;
❣️exacerbation of colitis, gastritis.

⚠️If a person is diagnosed with diabetes, then before drinking carrot juice, you should consult a doctor.

Dosage

It is recommended to consume no more than 300 g per day. This is approximately 3-4 vegetables. To strengthen your immune system, you can eat 100 g of grated root vegetables with the addition of sour cream and vegetable oil for breakfast every day.

It is advisable for pregnant and lactating women to eat half as much carrots per day, but you need to focus on your feelings and well-being.

Children under one year old, starting from six months, can be given one drop of juice every day. During the cold season, daily consumption of carrots will help resist viruses and infections.

Important! You should always look at the body’s reaction to root vegetables and remember that everything should be in moderation.

List of recipes

Masks

For hair

A mask will help against hair loss, for which you will need:

medium-sized raw carrots – 1 pc.;
chopped banana peel - 2 tbsp. l.;
almond oil – 50 ml;
sour cream – 30 g.

Peel and chop the peeled carrots in a blender or grate.
Add the peel of a finely chopped banana, sour cream and butter to the root vegetable, mix everything.

The finished mixture is distributed over the hair, after 15 minutes it needs to be washed off.

For facial skin

Using a carrot mask you can make wrinkles less noticeable. To do this you need:

sour cream – 1 tablespoon;
potato starch – 1 tablespoon;
warm boiled water - half a glass;
carrot juice – 5 tablespoons.

First you need to dissolve and cook the starch until it becomes jelly-like for 15 minutes.
Mix all ingredients and apply in three thin layers to the face.

Before each application, you need to wait until the previous layer dries. To obtain the desired result, the mask should be done once a week.

Oil

To prepare carrot oil you will need:

grated fresh carrots – 1 cup;
unrefined sunflower oil – 1 cup.

In a small saucepan, add oil to the carrots, cover with a lid and leave in a water bath for 15 minutes until it comes to a full boil.
After cooling, the mixture is squeezed out and filtered using a double layer of gauze.

For skin cancer, you can lubricate the affected areas of the skin three times a week.

Oil can also be made from carrot seeds (we talked about this in this article).

For the liver

For liver diseases, you can prepare freshly squeezed carrot juice, which you need to drink in its pure form or add milk to it. To do this, the ingredients are mixed in equal proportions. You need to drink the drink fresh, one glass on an empty stomach.

For heartburn

Carrot tea will help get rid of heartburn. You will need to make a preparation for welding in advance. To do this, washed medium-sized root vegetables are grated on a coarse grater or finely chopped. You can dry it in a special dryer, in the sun or in an oven at 200 degrees for 20 minutes.

To prepare tea you need 1-2 tsp. pour 250 ml of boiling water over dried vegetables. After the tea has steeped for 30 minutes, you can drink it.

Attention! To get rid of heartburn, it is not recommended to add other ingredients to the drink.

Against cough

To remove phlegm from the lungs, you can prepare a mixture:

You need to peel half a kilogram of carrots, finely chop them, boil them and puree them in a blender.
Add 2 tablespoons of honey and carrot puree to the water in which the vegetable was boiled.

The mixture is stored in the refrigerator. Every day you need to eat 3-4 spoons of a little warmed mixture.

To cleanse the human body

A mixture of carrots and raisins is used to cleanse the body. To prepare the cleansing mixture you will need:

1 kg carrots;
1 kg brown raisins.

Carrots are cut into rings into the pan and washed raisins are added, everything is filled with 2.5 liters of water and put on the fire to boil.
Then simmer this mixture over low heat for 1.5 hours, remembering to stir.
Then the mixture needs to be cooled and the carrots and raisins squeezed out.

Store the cake and broth in the refrigerator. For two weeks, every day you need to eat 2 tablespoons of raisin-carrot mixture in the morning on an empty stomach, and before going to bed, drink half a glass of heated broth. After two months, the session can be repeated.

For vision

For your eyesight, you can prepare a very simple, tasty and at the same time healthy dish. To do this, you need to mix half a glass of freshly squeezed carrot juice with a glass of ice cream using a mixer or blender. The drink can be drunk in the morning on an empty stomach every day.

Rules for collecting carrot seeds, drying, storing

It is not easy to obtain high-quality seeds - you will have to independently grow root crops to obtain planting material. For planting, use large, bright root vegetables. Store separately from the rest of the harvest in a cool cellar or basement.

In the spring, after the soil has warmed up, place the root crops in previously prepared soil. Plant care is simple and consists of regular watering, application of complex fertilizers, and loosening the soil. The vegetable crop begins to bloom in mid-summer. It is recommended to collect powerful, developed inflorescences to obtain good seeds. The main sign of ripening of planting material is the browning of umbrellas.

Dry the inflorescences in a warm room with low humidity. For convenience, it is recommended to tie them in small bundles. In order not to lose the seeds, after wilting, wrap the inflorescences with thin sheets of paper and newspapers to prevent the seeds from scattering.

Article for you:

Medicinal properties of fenugreek seeds and their use in folk medicine

It is strictly forbidden to dry inflorescences at home using an oven or dryer. High temperatures will quickly destroy the most valuable element of plant raw materials - essential oil.

Grind the dried umbrellas with your hands, pack the resulting seeds into canvas bags or small cardboard boxes. The shelf life is up to three years, the medicinal properties do not decrease.