How to Make a Homemade Carrot Smoothie and its Benefits
Carrot is one of the vegetables that you simply have to include in your diet, as it’s rich in many beneficial nutrients. The best part about it is that you can use it to make all kinds of recipes. In this article, we’ll tell you how to make a carrot smoothie and its many benefits.
In this regard, we should note that drinking smoothies made from this or any other vegetable, is a good way to get a dose of nutrients, especially vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. Carrots turn smoothies a striking orange color and provide a sweet flavor that will be tasty to both children and adults.
Keep reading to learn more!
The benefits of eating carrots
The most remarkable aspect of carrots, from a nutritional standpoint, is that it contains vitamin A precursors. According to data from the Spanish Nutrition Foundation, a medium-sized carrot covers 89% and 112% of the recommended daily amount of vitamin A for men and women from ages 20 to 39, respectively.
Also, it contains a good amount of carbohydrates, of which a significant percentage is soluble fiber. It also contains fewer amounts of other vitamins, such as vitamin C and vitamin B6, and certain minerals such as iron, iodine, and potassium. Below, we’ll explain its benefits in detail.
This article may interest you: Purifying Beet and Carrot Smoothie for the Liver and Blood
Carrots improve eye health
Among the carotenoids with provitamin A activity, beta-carotene, alpha-carotene, and lutein stand out. Once you ingest these components, your body transforms them into vitamin A, which may improve eye health.
For this reason, experts recommend consuming carrots to prevent blindness and dry eyes and keep the retina and eye cells in good condition. In this regard, a study published in the journal JAMA Ophthalmology points out that carotenoids could reduce the risk of age-related macular degeneration (a disorder that gradually destroys sharp, central vision).
Carrots support cardiovascular health
This vegetable could prevent cardiovascular problems because it’s low in sodium. Also, it’s rich in water and dietary fiber. The latter helps reduce the intestinal absorption of cholesterol.
Also, it helps avoid excess bad cholesterol (LDL) in the blood. For this reason, including carrots in a healthy diet could help prevent strokes and heart attacks.
They help improve your digestion
This vegetable regulates both digestive and intestinal health. In fact, drinking a glass of carrot juice every day is an effective way to consume more soluble and insoluble fiber.
In particular, they help to:
- Normalize intestinal transit
- Form and increase stool size
- Prevent constipation
- Keep the intestinal and digestive systems in good condition
According to a study published in 2015 in the Medicentro scientific journal, carrot juices have an important gastroprotective and preventive effect on gastric ulcers.
Boosts the immune system
The vitamins A, C, K, and B6 and the potassium, phosphorus, and other minerals carrots contain help keep the immune system active. Consequently, this lowers the risk of various types of infections.
You should also read: 2 Delicious and Easy Carrot Cake Recipes
Classic carrot smoothie recipe
Generally speaking, a smoothie is a simple recipe that you can make with milk or water and some fruit or vegetable. You have to use water to make a carrot smoothie. Fortunately, it takes less than five minutes to make. Also, it’s an ideal option to venture into the world of vegetable juices. Take note!
Ingredients
- 2 medium carrots
- 1 cup of cold water (250 ml
- Ice (to taste)
- Liquid sweetener or in sachet
Instructions
- Firstly, wash the carrots and remove the ends. You don’t need to peel them.
- Cut them into small pieces and put them in the blender.
- Then, add cold water and blend until you get a smooth mixture.
- Serve in a glass, add sweetener if you wish, and enjoy.
This is the basic way to make a carrot smoothie. However, you can add other vegetables or fruits to it to get delicious flavors.
In addition to the ingredient combination, you’ll also be adding other nutrients to the mix. You can make it with strawberries, oranges, parsley, ginger, or any other fruit or vegetable you prefer.
Carrot, orange, and ginger smoothie
This is a variation of the classic recipe. In addition to being a refreshing option, the combination of carrot, orange, and ginger provides more vitamins A and C, as well as antioxidants. You can consider making this recipe on hot days!
Ingredients
- 3 carrots
- 4 oranges
- 1 slice of fresh ginger
- 1 glass of cold water (200 ml)
- Ice and sweetener (to taste)
Instructions
- For starters, wash the carrots, remove the ends, cut them into small pieces, and place them in the blender.
- Then, wash the oranges, remove the peels completely (including all the white parts), cut them in half, and remove the seeds. If you don’t remove all of them, the smoothie will taste bitter. Once you finish, put them in the blender along with the carrots.
- After that, wash the ginger. You don’t need to peel it, as its skin won’t change the flavor of the smoothie.
- Put it in the blender with the other ingredients.
- Next, add a glass of cold water and ice. If you don’t have a power blender, add the ice after blending.
- Now blend the ingredients for two minutes or until you get a smooth mixture.
- Try the smoothie and add some sweetener if you like. We recommend making sure that it’s a non-caloric sweetener. If you add sugar, your smoothie will pack more calories.
- Finally, serve it in a glass and enjoy!
Enjoy this delicious carrot smoothie and reap its benefits
A carrot smoothie – or a smoothie made with any raw and fresh vegetable – can provide the body with beneficial bioactive compounds. Thus, this satiating drink helps you improve the quality of your diet.
Finally, remember that, if you drink this smoothie regularly and base your diet on natural and quality products, you’ll be aiding your visual, digestive, and cardiovascular health and even preventing the development of various diseases.
Go ahead and try it out today!
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
- Caballero-Gutiérrez, L., & Gonzáles, G. F. (2016). Alimentos con efecto anti-inflamatorio. Acta Médica Peruana, 33(1), 50-64.
- FEN. Zanahoria. Carrot Daucus carota L. Disponible en: https://www.fen.org.es/MercadoAlimentosFEN/pdfs/zanahoria.pdf
- Eliassen, A. H., Hendrickson, S. J., Brinton, L. A., Buring, J. E., Campos, H., Dai, Q., … & Hallmans, G. (2012). Circulating carotenoids and risk of breast cancer: pooled analysis of eight prospective studies. Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 104(24), 1905-1916.
- SanGiovanni, J. P., Chew, E. Y., Clemons, T. E., Ferris 3rd, F. L., Gensler, G., Lindblad, A. S., … & Sperduto, R. D. (2007). The relationship of dietary carotenoid and vitamin A, E, and C intake with age-related macular degeneration in a case-control study. Arch Ophthalmol, 125(9), 1225-1232.
- Cárdenas, M. D. L. Á. B., Valido Díaz, A., Pizarro Espín, A., & Álvarez, C. S. (2015). Effects of carrot (Daucus carota), cabbage (Brassica oleracea) and potato (Solanum tuberosum) juices as gastric mucosal protections. Medicentro, 19(2), 80-87.
