This crunchy veggie has a rich nutritional profile. It is a good source of beta-carotene, an important provitamin. In the body, beta-carotene is converted into vitamin A.
Nevertheless, carrots can have unpleasant effects if consumed in excess. They can be severe in some cases.
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What Are The Side Effects Of Carrots?
May Cause Vitamin A Toxicity
Vitamin A toxicity is also called hypervitaminosis A. Symptoms can include loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, loss of hair, fatigue, and nose bleeding.
Toxicity occurs because vitamin A is fat-soluble. Any excess vitamin A not required by the body will be stored in the liver or fat tissue. This can lead to the accumulation of vitamin A over time and eventual toxicity.
Chronic vitamin A toxicity can affect multiple organ systems. It can inhibit bone formation, leading to weaker bones and fractures. Long-term vitamin A toxicity may also affect kidney function
Can Cause Allergies
Though carrot alone is rarely responsible for allergies, they may cause reactions when consumed as part of other foods. In a report, the ingestion of carrot contained in an ice cream caused allergic reactions. Symptoms of carrot allergy include itching or swelling of the lips and irritation of the eyes and nose. In rare situations, carrot intake may also lead to anaphylaxis.
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May Cause Flatulence
Certain individuals may find carrots difficult to digest. This can get aggravated if you have too many of them, eventually leading to flatulence (or stomach gas).
Might Be Unsafe For Infants
This has more to do with the size of the carrots. Carrot sticks carry the risk of choking infants. Hence, you may want to limit the number of carrots you are giving to your infants. More importantly, make them into a paste.
Can Cause Skin Discoloration
Eating too many carrots can cause a harmless condition called carotenemia. This is caused by too much beta-carotene in your bloodstream, which makes your skin turn orange.
Carotenemia is highly unlikely unless you are on a restricted diet in which you are required to eat too many carrots for a long time. One medium carrot contains about 4 milligrams of beta-carotene. Consuming more than 20 milligrams of beta-carotene every day for a few weeks can cause skin discoloration.
These are the side effects of carrots you need to be wary about. But as discussed, eating too many of them in a day is a problem. Otherwise, they are among the healthiest foods you can snack on.
