Article by Brooke Shoupe, RN
Article by Stephanie Wells, RD
Naturally sweet, carrot juice doesn’t have an overpowering taste and is incorporated easily into mixed juice recipes. It contains powerful antioxidants that can knock back inflammation.
But can you overdo carrot juice? You certainly can! Read on for nutrition facts and what happens if you consume too much of a good thing.
Carrot Juice Nutrition
Nutrition per 1 cup (227 g) of Carrot Juice
| Calories (kCal) | 96 |
| Protein | 2g |
| Fat | < 1g |
| Carbs | 22g |
| Sugars | 9g |
| Fiber | 2g |
| Vitamin A (as provitamin A) | 255% Daily Value |
| Vitamin C | 23% Daily Value |
| Vitamin K | 31% Daily Value |
| Potassium | 15% Daily Value |
Limit Intake of Carrot Juice to Just 4oz Per Day
Important
The above nutrition facts are for 1 cup of carrot juice. I recommend you do not consume 1 cup of carrot juice per day.
Per health, you should consume no more than 4 ounces of carrot juice per day. That’s why most juicers mix carrot juice with other fruits and vegetables. Mixing carrot juice allows you to create a more refreshing beverage.
For example, one of my husband’s favorite juicers is orange-carrot-ginger juice.
Carrot Juice Recipes
Want to dive right into juicing carrots? Here are 21 delicious carrot juice recipes to get you started!
Carrot Juice Calories
You should consume no more than ½ cup of carrot juice daily. If you did consume ½ cup of carrot juice (4 ounces), you’d only consume about 48 calories. But those 48 calories pack a mighty punch! Keep reading…
Cooked Carrots vs Raw Carrot Juice
But if you can only consume 4 ounces of carrot juice, why doesn’t anyone warn you to eat only a few cooked carrots?
Because cooked carrots contain fiber, which slows down how quickly the body absorbs the natural sugars in carrots. Juicing removes this fiber, causing the natural sugars in carrot juice to act more like added sugars in the body since they’re absorbed into the bloodstream more quickly.
Additionally, during the cooking process, a small amount of some Vitamins and antioxidants are lost in the cooking process. Overall, juicing retains slightly more of these nutrients. That is the beauty of juicing!
Carrot Juice Benefits
Juicing raw carrots brings numerous benefits that aren’t lost in the cooking process.
1 – Antioxidants: The Enemy of Free Radicals
Carrot Juice contains the following antioxidants
- Lutein
- Zeaxanthin
- Vitamin A
- Vitamin B
- Polyphenols
- Beta Carotene
Antioxidants are those beautiful things that reduce the oxidative stress that naturally occurs during the metabolic process. Oxidative stress damages your DNA and makes you more susceptible to health problems as you age.
That is a great irony. You must have food to survive, but digesting food creates oxidative stress, slowly weakening your body.
But antioxidants reduce that damage and slow down the wear and tear on your DNA—the wear and tear releases free radicals in your body.
What are Free Radicals?
In excess, free radicals can damage your cells. They contribute to aging and lead to the progression of diseases like heart disease, cancer, type 2 diabetes, and Alzheimer’s disease.
The oxidation of molecules creates free radicals. Free radicals harm cells by damaging the cellular membrane of healthy cells. Once damaged, cells will die or lose their ability to function correctly.
Antioxidants
Antioxidants defend against free radicals. Antioxidants can eliminate free radicals in two ways. One way is for an electron to join with the free radical to render it harmless. Additionally, some antioxidants break down the harmful free radical completely. Once broken down, the free radical is harmless to the other cells. This leads many to believe a diet incorporating carrot juices can reduce the risk of heart disease and other ailments.
2 – Carrot Juice & Cholesterol
Carrots contain no cholesterol and may help reduce the amount of cholesterol in the bloodstream. Carrots are high in soluble fiber. Soluble fiber aids in the reduction of cholesterol by not allowing it to enter the bloodstream.
Antioxidant properties may reduce the effects of “bad” LDL cholesterol. Some evidence exists that antioxidants may prevent cholesterol from becoming oxidized and forming plaque on the walls of arteries. Blood flow is not constricted if cholesterol doesn’t stick to veins or arteries.
Nutritionist’s Note
Most of the fiber in carrots is removed by juicing. However, to get most of their cholesterol-lowering benefits, you may wish to choose a juicer that minimizes fiber loss.
3 – Carrot Juice & Eye Health
“A,” as in Vitamin A.
Have you heard this before: “Eat your carrots; it’s good for your eyes.”
Adults told me this when I was a kid. Yet, I never understood the reason behind it. Luckily, as an adult, I get to learn all about it.
What you were told about carrots when you were a kid is true. Carrots protect your eye health. Carrots are rich in beta carotene, a provitamin A carotenoids. Many studies have found that an increase in beta-carotene directly correlates with reducing many age-related vision issues.
Carrots also contain lutein and zeaxanthin, which may protect you against AMD or Age-related Macular Degeneration. Many studies have shown that patients with diets high in lutein are 25% less likely to suffer from age-related macular degeneration.
Increased lutein leads to a greater concentration of pigment in the macula. The additional pigment lowers the risk of damage to the macula as you age.
To get the most benefits from beta-carotene, consuming foods high in beta-carotene with a source of healthy fat is essential. Vitamin A (and its precursors) are fat-soluble, which is much better absorbed in the intestines when fat is present.
Drinking juice and eating a balanced meal or snack that includes some fat, such as avocado, nuts, or seeds, can help optimize your absorption of beta-carotene.
4 – Carrot Juice May Strengthen Your Immune System
Other nutrients you can get from carrot juice include Vitamin C. Along with Vitamin A, these can strengthen your immune system (according to Huang et al., 2018; Holmannová et al., 2012).
As if that’s not enough? It’s also rich in Vitamin B6, which may be an essential nutrient for our immune system.
Additionally, this juice provides over 30% of the DV of vitamin B6 in 1 cup (240 mL). Not only is vitamin B6 necessary for optimal immune response, but a deficiency in it is also linked to weakened immunity.
More About Vitamin A
We’ve talked a little about Vitamin A above. In addition to its benefits to your eye health and immune system, it is also crucial in cell growth and development.
Cell reproduction also requires Vitamin A.
I also want to take this moment to remind you not to drink more than half a glass of carrot juice – or 4 ounces a day — due to the high sugar (and low fiber) content of juiced carrots. Since juicing removes most of the fiber found in whole carrots, the natural sugars in carrot juice act like added sugars in the body.
Since it’s possible to get too much vitamin A in the diet (mainly from taking supplements), concerns also exist about getting too much beta-carotene from carrot juice. According to the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements, however, there is no upper limit for the amount of beta-carotene you should consume daily.
Most healthy people don’t need to worry about consuming too much beta-carotene from carrot juice.
5 – Carrot Juice & Polyphenols
Polyphenols refer to a large group of more than 8,000 micronutrients. Polyphenols naturally occur in plants. Carrots contain five anthocyanins, which are superior at neutralizing dangerous free radicals.
Many researchers believe that polyphenols can stimulate thermogenesis, the burning of fat. Studies have also found that diets high in polyphenols can decrease hunger and cravings.
6 – Cardiovascular Support
While bananas are usually the go-to food for potassium, they’re certainly not the only source of potassium. The best example would be carrot juice. 1/2 cup of carrot juice contains 7% of the daily value of potassium.
For context, potassium has been linked to controlling blood pressure and stroke. Here’s another source worth reading.
Apart from the potassium, other antioxidant properties of carrot juice may also improve your heart health. Carrots are the perfect backbone of a diet for those wanting to support their cardiovascular system.
Drinking carrot juice may protect the cardiovascular system by increasing total antioxidant status. Increased antioxidant levels decrease lipid peroxidation.
The American Heart Association has named carrots one of the top foods that support cardiovascular health. The AHA asserts that high levels of potassium and fiber can lower blood pressure and LDL.
7 – Anticancer?
Carrots, specifically their beta-carotene, polyacetylenes, and lutein properties, may be an excellent weapon against leukemia.
While that’s undoubtedly a good sign…
You should know that it was a test-tube study. In a nutshell, we need more data for the results to be conclusive. So, it would be best not to consider carrot juice as a cancer treatment.
In fact: We at Juicing Journal wholeheartedly do not believe that juice of any sort will cure cancer. If you have cancer, please consult a physician. That being said, we believe that a healthy diet and exercise regime can lower your chances of developing many ailments, including cancer, as supported by the American Institute for Cancer Research.
8 – Carrot juice may enhance your skin health.
Apart from the immune system advantage of Vitamin C, it may also improve your skin health.
For instance:
This study suggests Vitamin C is vital for producing collagen and balancing collagen/elastin (a.k.a elasticity and resilience) of your skin. Furthermore, several pieces of evidence show that Vitamin C helps heal wounds.
Another study says that beta-carotene may protect your skin from UV radiation in the longer run. Note: they also said it’s considerably lower than skin-applied sunscreens, so view it as an added benefit rather than a replacement for sunscreen.
9 – Carrot Juice May Fortify Your Liver
According to this paper, the carotenoid properties may prevent and treat non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).
However, you should know that there needs to be more studies to provide a definite conclusion.
The Final Analysis
While researchers discovered these benefits through clinical trials, more research is required. Also, the FDA is not in the business of endorsing or releasing statements about things like carrot juice.
