Are Carrots Better Cooked or Raw?
The antioxidant value of carrots increases by about 34% when cooked. Why? Because raw carrots have tough cellular walls, the body is able to convert less than 25 percent of carrots’ beta-carotene into vitamin Cooking partially dissolves the cellulose-thickened cell walls, fleeing up nutrients. So long as the cooked carrots are served as part of a meal that provides some fat, the body can absorb more than half of the carotene. Also, carrots are usually cut into pieces before boiling or steaming. As a result, half the proteins and soluble carbohydrates are lost in the water. So it is advisable to cook carrots whole, and then slice them up. The only exception is juicing where the process breaks down the fibrous nature of the carrots. You get 4% of beta carotene from a raw carrot, 90% from the same carrot, juiced.
