When you learn the watchword carotenoid or beta carotene , you probably think of cultivated carrot . And indeed , carrots are one of the vegetable that are very high in carotenoid . But there ’s a rainbow of other biased vegetables that also make this healthy lean .
Carotenoids are a class of hundreds of naturally occur pigment that include beta - carotene , lycopene , xanthophyl and zeaxanthin . The coloured carotenoid molecules are the sources of the yellow , orangish , and red colors of many plants .
Studies have present that consumption of foods that are high in carotenoids are link up with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer , improved visual routine , effective assimilation of up to 90 pct unsafe blue UV light in the macular area and a deceleration of age concern macular degeneracy .
“ Carotenoids are found in most fruits and vegetable with the elision of some rootage vegetable . There survive over 500 different types of carotenoid in nature , but only about 30–40 are found within human sera with lutein , lycopene , and betacarotene tending to be the most abundant depending on dieting composition . Because world do not synthesize carotenoids , all carotenoids found within tissue paper must rise from the dieting ( or related sources like human milk or appurtenance ) .
The richest origin of LZ within the diet are non-white green leafy vegetable like spinach and dough that can contain 75–150 μg per g of prepared food . average source like Brassica oleracea italica , pea , lemon yellow , and lettuce can contain 10–30 μg per gram , and other source like snap beans , carrots , and oranges tend to have less than 10 μg per gram . Animal product like ball and Gallus gallus peel can contain varying but significant sum of LZ peculiarly when marigolds are added to Gallus gallus feed to better yolk or hide colour . ”Source .
High Carotenoid Fruits and Vegetables
Avocado — “ Carotenoids and chlorophylls identified in the skin , material body , and oil were xanthophyll , alpha - carotene , beta - carotene , neoxanthin , violaxanthin , zeaxanthin , antheraxanthin , chlorophylls a and vitamin B , and pheophytins a and b with the highest immersion of all pigments in the skin . ”Source .
Cantaloupe — “ investigator have late measure the carotenoid contents of six dissimilar California - grown cantaloup hybrids and light upon that their genus Beta - carotene substance can pass levels as high as 3,138 mcg ( per 100 grams of fresh weight).”Source .
carrot — “ Four major carotenoids were identified and measure by manipulation of HPLC methods . gamey β - carotene Orange River carrots were found to moderate the greatest concentration of total carotenoid . Except for the white-hot , all the carrots are a significant reservoir of bioavailable carotenoid . ”Source .
Just half a cup of raw carrots ply 184 per centum of the adult recommended daily intake of Vitamin A in the form of its precursor , genus Beta - carotene . Learnmore about carrots .
collard greens — Collard K are packed with pro - vitamin A ( in the soma of carotenoids ) , with one ounce of cooked and drained collard greens delivering a whopping 45 % of the Daily Value for pro - vitamin A.Source .
Dandelion Greens — “ Wild fleeceable vegetable contained high concentrations of lutein ( inseminate thistle > amaranth > purslane > blowball ) and - carotene ( sow in thistle > amaranth > purslane = dandelion ) . Sow thistle and amaranth contained lutein ( 15 and 13 mg/100 one thousand , respectively ) and - carotene ( 3.3 and 4.0 mg/100 GB , respectively ) at concentrations greater than that come across in the commercially usable species of chicory root and endive . ”Source .
Papaya — “ In conclusion , papaya was exhibit to provide highly bioavailable β - provitamin A , β - cryptoxanthin and lycopene and may stage a promptly usable dietary source of provitamin A for reducing the incidence of vitamin A deficiencies in many subtropic and tropic developing state . ”Source .
Pumpkin — The major carotenoid in pumpkin ( > 80 % ) is beta - carotene , with less amounts of lutein , lycopene , alpha - carotene and cis - beta - carotene . Pumpkin is a plentiful source of genus Beta - carotin and might be useful for prevent Vitamin A inadequacy . Source .
Spinach — “ Lutein , β - provitamin A , violaxanthin and 9′-(Z)-neoxanthin were the main carotenoid in process prickly-seeded spinach . The full content of carotenoid varied from 176.6 mg kg−1‘wet weight ’ as eaten in the lightest green genotype to 226.3 mg kg−1‘wet weight ’ as exhaust in the darkest green genetic constitution . The in high spirits capacity of β - provitamin A ( 83.1 mg kg−1‘wet weighting ’ as eaten ) was found in the dark fleeceable genetic constitution . ”Source .
Sweet Potato — “ Orange - fleshed roots contained high full carotenoid and bacillus - carotene content than white- and cream- fleshed lines , and alltrans - b - carotene prevail for more than 80 % . Carotenoids from orange - fleshed sweetpotato are highly vitamin A alive and their uptake in Africa where vitamin A deficiency is prevalent should be encouraged . ”Source .
Sweet Red Peppers — “ Of the red , green and yellowed pepper , the red variety contained greater amounts of b - carotene ( P<0.05 ) and zeaxanthin . The yellow peppers had the lowest carotenoid capacity . The light-green color of light-green peppers is primarily due to the comportment of chlorophyl and to carotenoids typical of the chloroplast such as xanthophyll . Likewise , in the present study , the green bell variety had more xanthophyl than the chicken ( P<0.05 ) and red bell shape Piper nigrum . ”Source .
Tangerine — “ Of the total carotenoids 69 per penny . was in the peel , although the peel be only 24 per cent . by weight of the whole fruit . California Valencia orange hold back 98 and 24 mg . per kg . in Robert Peel and pulp , respectively , with 62 per cent . of the total carotenoid in the peel . The redder color of tangerines as compare with orange was due to considerably higher engrossment of cryptoxanthin and of a hydroxycanthaxanthin - like marrow in the peel and of cryptoxanthin and β - provitamin A in the pulp magazine . ”Source .
Tomatoes — “ Lycopene is the major carotenoid in tomato . tomato comprise a matrix of many bioactive component , admit vitamin C , vitamin vitamin E , other carotenoids ( a- , beta- , gamma- carotene , xanthophyll ) , and flavonoid . ”Source .
Turnip Greens — “ Turnip Green are one of the fantabulous reservoir of ß - provitamin A , xanthophyll and zea - xanthin . 100 g novel raw super acid provide 6952 µg , and 11984 µg of ß - carotene and xanthophyll - zeaxanthin levels respectively . These flavonoids have strong anti - oxidant and anti - cancer activities . genus Beta - carotene is change over into vitamin A inside the human body . ”Source .
Watermelon — “ carotenoid are responsible for the different physique colors in Citrullus vulgaris fruit , such as white , salmon yellowness , orange , pale yellow , fink yellow , red red , and ruby-red red . In red - fleshed watermelon lycopene constitutes the major pigment andb - carotene the secondary . The predominant carotenoid in yellow - flesh watermelon is neoxanthin . Lycopene content in watermelon is interrelate to genotype and ploidy degree , harvest maturity , and ontogenesis and development status . ”Source .
Winter Squash — “ The nutritionally crucial carotenoids , lutein , zeaxanthin , and β - carotin , comprised 41 % to 63 % of the total carotenoid profile in theC. maximakabocha hybrids ; whereas , the carotenoids neoxanthin and flavoxanthin comprise 37 % to 59 % . β - provitamin A and xanthophyll were the major nutritionally beneficial carotenoids place in ‘ Waltham Butternut ’ and three inbred note ofC. moschata , along with much smaller engrossment of α - provitamin A . Neoxanthin and violaxanthin comprised between 14 % and 29 % of the full carotenoid profiles among the four cultigens psychoanalyse . ”Source .
Yellow Corn — “ Carotenoid content of corn fractions ranged from a first gear of 1.77 - 6.50 mg / kg in yellow Zea mays bran ( YCB ) to 12.04 - 17.94 mg / kg in yellow Indian corn repast ( YCM ) . Lutein and zeaxanthin were major carotenoid species in Indian corn milled fraction , accounting for ~70 % of total carotenoid content . ”Source .
Learn more :
San Francisco Gate : Which Vegetables Are High in Carotenoids ?
Oregon State University Linus Pauling Institute : Carotenoids
Life Extension Magazine : Protect Eyes from Blue Light
Life Extension Magazine : Higher xanthophyll and zeaxanthin levels may help protect against cataract
