Your Health

Carrots

Winnipeg Health Region
Wave, May / June 2009

The carrot is a bundle of tasty goodness. A root vegetable, one carrot contains ample amounts of beta carotene, which is good for your eyes and can also help strengthen your immune system.

But the carrot is much more than a good source of beta carotene. It's loaded with many other nutrients, including vitamin A, thiamin (B1), niacin, folate, B6 and vitamin K. It also has potassium and manganese. Dietitians say a single carrot will provide the average person with a day's supply of vitamin A, and some researchers in England and Denmark say the nutrients contained in carrots may guard against some forms of cancer.

You can incorporate carrots into your diet in a multitude of ways. Baby carrots, for example, can be used in salads or served with vegetable dip. Carrots can also be used in soups and stews or roasted and served up as a side dish to any meal.

According to Eating Well With Canada's Food Guide, a balanced diet should include seven to 10 servings of vegetables and fruit every day for adults, including at least one dark green and one orange vegetable each day. One carrot, or a cup, represents one serving.

Click here for more detailed information about Canada's food guide.

	About Wave Wave is published six times a year by the Winnipeg Health Region in cooperation with the Winnipeg Free Press. It is available at newsstands, hospitals and clinics throughout Winnipeg, as well as McNally Robinson Books. Read the May / June 2009 issue of Wave