The mighty carrot has a lot going for it. In fact, you can go back thousands of years and find mentions of carrots in books and literature.

Carrot are actually roots, and have a crunchy texture and a sweet and minty aromatic taste, while the greens are fresh tasting and slightly bitter. While we usually associate carrots with the color orange, carrots can actually be found in a host of other colors including white, yellow, red, or purple. In fact, purple, yellow and red carrots were the only color varieties of carrots to be cultivated before the 15th or 16th century.

Much of the research on carrots has traditionally focused on carotenoids and their important antioxidant benefits. After all, carrots (along with pumpkin and spinach) rank high on the list of all commonly-consumed U.S. antioxidant vegetables in terms of their beta-carotene content. But recent research has turned the health spotlight onto another category of phytonutrients in carrots called polyacetylenes that can help inhibit the growth of colon cancer cells.

Nutrition Information

1 oz of Baby Carrots (28 grams)

• Total Carbs: 2.3 grams - 1%

• Total Fats: 0 grams - 0%

• Total Protein: 0.2 grams - 0%

Vitamins and Minerals:

• Vitamin A: 77%

• Vitamin K: 3%

Fun Facts! Did You Know…

• The carrot originated in middle Asia? The first carrot was eaten by the hill dwellers of Afghanistan.

• The early cultivated varieties were purple and pale yellow? The first orange varieties did not appear until the 1600’s in the Netherlands.

• Beta carotene gives carrots their orange color?