Nutritional Properties Of Carrots

Carrots are not only naturally sweet, but nutritious as well. They can be eaten raw or cooked and can be used to boost the nutritional value of a variety of dishes. They are low in calories and fat and contain no cholesterol. A serving of carrots provides a decent amount of fiber, some protein and a significant percentage of the recommended daily value of several essential vitamins and minerals.

Calories, Fat and Cholesterol

An average medium raw carrot only contains 25 calories, 0.15 g of total fat and 0.023 g of saturated fat. This is less than 1 percent of your daily value of total fat and saturated fat, based on a diet of 2,000 calories. Like most vegetables, carrots do not contain cholesterol.

Protein and Carbohydrates

A medium carrot also provides approximately 0.6 g of protein, which is about 1 percent of your daily value. The total amount of carbohydrates in a medium carrot is 23.6 g, which is approximately 2 percent of your daily value. About 1.7 g of these carbohydrates come from dietary fiber. This is about 7 percent of your daily value of fiber. About 2.9 g of the carbohydrates come from sugar.

Vitamins

Carrots are an excellent source of vitamin A. A medium raw carrot provides about 204 percent of your daily value of vitamin A. It also provides 10 percent of your daily value of vitamin K, 6 percent of your daily value of vitamin C, 4 percent of your daily value of vitamin B-6, 3 percent of your daily value of thiamin, niacin and folate and 2 percent of your daily value of vitamin E, riboflavin and pantothenic acid. Carrots do not contain any vitamin B-12.

Minerals

Carrots also contain many essential minerals. A medium raw carrot contains 6 percent of your daily value of potassium and 4 percent of your daily value of manganese. It also provides 1 to 2 percent of calcium, iron, magnesium, sodium, zinc and copper. Carrots contain less than 1 percent of selenium.

Considerations

You can do a few simple things to maximize the health benefits of eating carrots. Select carrots of the deepest orange, which typically contain more beta-carotene than their duller-colored counterparts. Cooking, chopping or grating the carrots may help your body better absorb the nutrients. Consider eating a fat with the carrots, such as butter, vegetable dip or salad dressing. Some of the nutrients in the carrots will latch on to the fat and help your body absorb more of the nutrients.