Carrot Juice Benefits & Eating Carrots for Good Health

Carrot juice is a wonderful cocktail of vitamins that helps pumps up immunity and also in proper functioning of body organs. It contains a lot of anti-oxidants and is the largest source of dietary Vitamin A for protection for a healthy heart and prevention of cardiovascular disease.

1. Wash the carrots gently and thoroughly in clean water using a vegetable brush.

2. With a knife, scrape the outer layer of the carrot. Take great care not to peel because just below the skin is where most of the essential nutrients and anti-oxidants are stored.

3. Chop the carrots into sizeable cubes and blend them. Add a little water for effectiveness while blending and to dilute the health drink.

4. Strain the juice into a bottle and immediately close the jar tightly and store in the refrigerator, this is to prevent oxidation from taking place.

5. Serve chilled and enjoy. Note; There's no need to add any sugar and that's one of very great benefits of carrots, carrot juice in particular. Carrots contain low amount of natural sugars but they are sweet enough without adding any sugar or sweeteners. Perhaps, you may add honey, if you'd like.

Is carrot juice better than eating raw carrots? Yes, the one major difference between carrot juice and raw carrots is that carrot juice contains more nutrients than raw carrots. Both carrot juice and raw carrots give us nutritive carbohydrates and minerals but apparently, more anti-oxidants are released faster in condensing the carrot into juice than plainly munching the carrot. Another reason is that carrot juice can also be easily digested by the body enzymes compared to raw carrots. This is because the juice consists of only half the dietary fiber in whole carrots and fiber takes a long time to break down. Even though the carrot juice contains a tad more nutrients than raw and whole carrots, crunchy carrot sticks are still nutritious to munch on as a fat-free snack.

You can have carrots raw, cooked, canned, chopped, juiced or any other way you want it, it doesn't matter because unlike other fruits and vegetables, carrots retain their nutritional value and fibre even when cooked. In fact, you may think that the heat applied during cooking carrots may destroy the essential vitamins and minerals but surprisingly, studies have shown that cooking vegetables like carrots actually releases and facilitates more efficient absorption of the anti-oxidants into the digestive system. That means you can enjoy your carrots in any way you may want them! Here are a few ideas of how you can add carrots to your diet.

Make a refreshing juice! Carrot juice is a wonderful energizer, especially since it contains a lot of beneficial vitamins. You can blend yourself a healthy drink by blending carrot juice with a measurable amount of ginger-you don't want to burn your throat! Add a dash of lemon squeeze for a slightly tangy taste.

Toss it in a salad! You can either shred those carrots or chop them lengwise and toss them into your salad. Add spinach and tomatoes too for a colorful and immune-boosting salad. Remember, spinach and other dark leaved vegetables are also rich in beta carotene that promotes well functioning body organs. That's an added bonus!

A nourishing fat-free soup? You can prepare a totally healthy dish- no fat allowed! Just pick a couple of your favorite vegetables, get them chopped and a little other ingredients of your choice, fro example;extra virgin oil, a few garlic cloves and spicy seasoning and cook over a low fire. This appetizing soup is very satisfying and keeps you full as well.

Yummy Carrot casserole. A delightfully easy and simple to prepare dish. You can choose a variety of foods to go with the carrots- baked potatoes, roast chicken, or perhaps cheddar cheese? All are just so tempting, which one to choose?!

A feisty orange carrot pudding. For desert, a delicious cold carrot pudding with cream cheese frosting would be absolutely satisfying. If not, try out the unique Indian carrot pudding that is just as rich and creamy.