Naturally sweet, carrot juice doesn’t have an overpowering taste and is easily incorporated 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. It is recommended that you do not consume 1 cup of carrot juice per day.
Per heath, you should consume no more than 4 ounces of carrot juice per day. That’s why most juicers will mix carrot juice in with other fruits and vegetables. This 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 in to juicing carrots? Here are 21 delicious carrot juice recipes to get you started!
Carrot Juice Calories
It is recommended you consume no more than ½ cup of carrot juice per day. 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 not eat too many cooked carrots? Because during the cooking process, most of the Vitamins and antioxidants are lost in the cooking process. That is the beauty of juicing!
Carrot Juice Benefits
Juicing raw carrots brings you numerous benefits that aren’t lost in a 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 wonderful things that reduce the oxidative stress that naturally occurs during the metabolic process. Oxidative stress is what damages your DNA and leaves you more susceptible to heath problems as you age.
That is the great irony. You have to have food to survive but the process of digesting food is also what slowly wears down your body.
But antioxidants reduce that damage and slow down the wear and tear on your DNA. That wear and tear is caused by something called free radicals.
What are Free Radicals?
In excess, free radicals can damage your cells, contribute to aging and lead to the progression of diseases like heart disease, cancer, type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease.
Free radicals are created by the oxidation of molecules. Free radicals harm cells by damaging the cellular membrane of healthy cells. Once damaged, cells will either die, or become inoperable in the body.
Antioxidants
Antioxidants defend against free radicals. Antioxidants can eliminate free radicals in two ways. Free radicals can be rendered harmless when an electron is provided to the rogue molecule. Additionally, some antioxidants break down the harmful free radical completely. Once the free radical is broken down, it is harmless to the other cells in the body.
2 – Carrot Juice & Cholesterol
Carrots contain no cholesterol, and in fact, may help reduce the amount of cholesterol in the blood stream. Carrots are high in soluble fiber. Soluble fiber aids in the reduction of cholesterol by not allowing it to enter the blood stream.
Antioxidant properties may reduce the effects of “bad” LDL cholesterol. It is believed that antioxidants may prevent cholesterol from forming plaque on the walls of arteries. If cholesterol is kept from sticking to veins or arteries, blood flow is not constricted.
3 – Carrot Juice & Eye Health
“A,” as in Vitamin A.
Have you heard this before: “Eat your carrots; it’s good for your eyes.”
When I was a kid, I was always told this. 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. Carrot absolutely protect your eye health. Carrots are rich is beta carotene, a provitamin A carotenoids. Many studies have found that an increase in beta carotene directly correlates with a reduction in 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 that are 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 one ages
4 – Carrot Juice May Strengthen Your Immune System
Other nutrients you can get from carrot juice include Vitamin C. Along with the aforementioned 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 to our immune syste
Additionally, this juice provides over 30% of the DV of vitamin B6 in 1 cup (240 mL). Not only is vitamin B6 necessary for an optimal immune response, but 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 the benefits it may provide to your eye health and your immune system, is also crucial in cell grown and development.
Vitamin A is also needed for reproduction.
I also want to take this moment to remind you to not drink more than half a glass of carrot juice – or 4 ounces a day. Consuming more than this means your intake of Vitamin A, or beta-carotene, will be excessive.
Excessive consumption of Vitamin A can lead to headache, dizziness, nausea, and blurred vision.
5 – Carrot Juice & Polyphenols
Polyphenols refers to a large group of more than 8,000 micronutrients. Polyphenols are naturally occurring and can be found in plants. Carrots contain 5 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 lead to decreased 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 as one of the top foods that supports cardiovascular health. The AHA asserts that the high levels of potassium and fiber can lower blood pressure and lower 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 absolutely conclusive. So, you should NOT 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 do believe that a healthy diet and exercise regime can lower your chances of developing many ailments, including cancer.
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 with wound healing.
Another study says that beta-carotene may protect your skin from UV radiation in the longer run. Note: they also said that it’s considerably lower than skin-applied sunscreens.
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
Keep in mind that though many of these benefits were discovered through clinical trials, more study is needed on some of them. Also, the FDA is not in the business of endorsing or releasing statements about things like carrot juice.
