Carrots: RAW or COOKED (which is Best for the Body)???

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                           Carrots are everyone's favorite. It's best known for its rich content of Pro-Vitamin A (B-carotene) which is good for the eyes. This pro-vitamin A comes in form of compounds called CAROTENOIDS. Carotenoids as antioxidant helps to fight against free radicals and prevent damage to the cells, thus it's anti-aging properties on the skin.
Steamed Carrots!!

                                But the question is?????

 What best way should carrots be eaten to maximize increase the bioavailability of its carotenoids in our body?.

 Taking this a little deeper, Biovailability in respect to food nutrient is the amount of nutrient from a given quantity in a food available for use by the body for its necessary function.

Vitamin A deficiency remains a major nutritional problem in the world and can lead to Blindness if not well corrected. We usually rely primarily on dietary sources of pro-vitamin A carotenoids (like carrots, vegetables) to meet vitamin A needs. 

 - Have you ever wondered why most people consume lots of carrot and still have deficiency?? The problem lies in method of preparation before consuming it. 

 ANSWER: The BEST WAY to consume your carrots either for yourself or kids is STEAMING over Low Heat before use in food preparations like salads, smoothies or as a snack. 

 A research by Rock et al., 1998 in women showed that the bioavailability of B-carotene in raw carrots and spinach were lower than those found in the processed ones (subjected to heat) after consumption in women (please click on reference 1 to read further).

 Be it in salad, smoothies, as a snack, or in main dish, steamed carrots provides better benefits in supplying your body with enough carotenoids from a given quantity than the raw one.

 Procedure for Steamed Carrots
Cleaned Carrots in pot!!
  • 2 big carrots
  • 1/2 teaspoon to vegetable oil (good for absorption)
  • 1 teaspoon of water
Method
  • Clean up carrots and cut into big chunks
  • Put in a small pot, add water and place over low heat, cover pot.
  • Allow to steam for 5minutes until water dries up.
  • Add in oil, stir and bring down for use.

 References
  1. Cheryl L. Rock, Jennifer L. Lovalvo, Curt Emenhiser, Mack T. Ruffi,Shirley W. Flatt,Steven J. Schwartz. (1998). Bio-availability of β-Carotene Is Lower in Raw than in Processed Carrots and Spinach in Women.The Journal of Nutrition, Volume 128, Issue 5, 1 May 1998, Pages 913–916. https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/128.5.913
      2.  https://academic.oup.com/jn/article/130/3/503/4686253

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