Andrew Chevallier
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 Cultivated carrot root contains sugars, pectin, carotene, vitamins, minerals, and asparagine. Carrot leaves contain significant amounts of porphyrins, which stimulate the pituitary gland and lead to the release of increased levels of sex hormones. History & Folklore The origins of the familiar garden carrot are a mystery - it has been cultivated as a nutritious and cleansing food at least as long ago as ancient Greece and Rome. In the 1st century AD, the physician Dioscorides recommended the seeds to stimulate menstruation, to relieve urinary retention, and to "wake up the genital virtue. |
| Constituents Bitter orange peel contains a volatile oil with limonene (about 90%), flavonoids, coumarins, triterpenes, vitamin C, carotene, and pectin. The flavonoids have several useful properties, being antiinflammatory, antibacterial, and antifungal. The composition of the volatile oils in the leaves, flowers, and peel varies significantly. Linalyl acetate (50%) is the main constituent in oil from the leaves (petitgrain), and linalool (35%) in oil from the flowers (neroli). The unripe fruit of the bitter orange contains cirantin, which reputedly is a contraceptive. |
Christian Ratsch
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 Tanning agents (tannins: galotannic acid, gallic acid, D-catechol, phloba-tannin), mucilage, resin, carbohydrates (saccharose, galactan, mannan), proteins, saponines, carotene, minerals (calcium, phosphorus, iron), and fat (sitosterol) are also present (Raghavan and Baruah 1958,335 ffi). When betel nuts are chewed in combination with slaked lime, the alkaloid arecoline is transformed into arecaidine. |
Jean Carper
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 Nevertheless, cooking often makes more carotene available for bodily use. Truth is, it may be wise to eat both cooked and raw kale.
LEMON AND LIME
It is probable that the lemon is the most valuable of all fruit for preserving health.
—Maud Grieve: A Modern Herbal, 1931.
POSSIBLE THERAPEUTIC BENEFITS:
• Prevents and cures scurvy
¦ Contains chemicals that block cancer
FOLKLORE
In the third century A.D. |
| Some experts even find that current smokers may benefit somewhat from loading up on carrots and other carotene foods. However, lighter current smokers seem to get the most protection. It is unknown whether current heavy smokers get any benefit from eating more carrots. |
Joe Graedon and Teresa Graedon
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 Beta carotene is also reported to interact negatively with alcohol. The combination may increase liver damage well over that found with alcohol alone. The research was done in baboons who were given a substantial dose of alcohol as a proportion of their daily calories over an extended period of time.8 As a consequence, we don't have good information on how much alcohol might trigger this response in humans. |
Nontoxic, Natural and EarthwiseDebra Lynn Dadd
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| Dairies may use artificial colors or the "natural" colors annatto and carotene (which may be preserved with BHA and BHT) without listing them on the label as ingredients. It is therefore nearly impossible to tell whether any particular brand of domestic butter at any particular time contains artificial additives.
Butter is higher in pesticide residues
(including DDT) than are other milk products because the pesticides in milk get stored in the fat. Butter also contains residues of antibiotics, hotmones, and tranquilizers used in milk production. |
Mark Stengler, N.D.
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 Flax has a very nutritious profile, containing vitamin A, some of the B's, D, and E, carotene, lecithin, and many minerals. It also contains many different amino acids, the building blocks of protein. While it is not a complete protein source, it combines well with other protein foods, which means it ultimately helps you consolidate more protein in your body. |
Gary Null
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 Vitamin A needs adequate thyroxine to be properly synthesized from the carotene you eat in food.14 Since A is vital to the immune system, with an iodine deficiency you may find your resistance to infections lowered.
• Heart. Thyroxine helps your cells metabolize the fats in the bloodstream, keeping large fatty globules from building up in the circulatory system. By making sure there is enough iodine in your diet to metabolize fats properly, you are in effect taking out an insurance policy against atherosclerosis and arteriosclerosis, two killer heart diseases. |
Nicola Reavley
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 The thyroid is involved in protein manufacture, cholesterol synthesis, carbohydrate absorption and the conversion of carotene to vitamin A. Thyroxin is an important regulator of body weight.
Absorption and metabolism
Iodine is rapidly absorbed from the gut. Excesses are excreted in the urine.
Deficiency
Iodine deficiency leads to various illnesses which are known as iodine deficiency disorders and include hypothyroidism, goiter and cretinism. Intakes of less than 50 meg per day induce deficiency. |
Gary Null
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| A similar type of reduction would occur in the case of vitamins E, D, and K49 and carotene, since they are oil-soluble, too.
Improves brain function. Can't remember where you put your glasses? Can't seem to remember names and phone numbers the way you used to? Massachusetts Institute of Technology researcher Dr. Richard Wurtman has suggested that you may be able to give your brain a memory boost with more choline. Why not sprinkle some lecithin on your yogurt, salads, or soups at each mealtime. |
Velma J. Keith and Monteen Gordon
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| Note: Vitamins for Babies—See Baby Chapter
INDIVIDUAL VITAMINS VITAMIN A (RETINOL, carotene)
Fat soluble. Essential for the body to manufacture visual purple, which is necessary for night vision. Vitamin A requires fats as well as minerals to be assimilated. Vitamin A is an antioxidant. Antioxidants protect other substances from uncontrolled oxidations that damage cells. They help keep pollutants in check. |
Earl Mindell
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 It manufactures enzymes, cholesterol, proteins, vitamin A (from carotene), and blood coagulation factors.
One of the prime functions of the liver is to produce bile. Bile contains salts that promote efficient digestion of fats by detergent action, emulsifying fatty materials.
Gallbladder
Even the sight of food may empty the gallbladder.
This is a saclike storage organ about three inches long. It holds bile, modifies it chemically, and concentrates it tenfold. The taste or sometimes even the sight of food may be sufficient to empty it out. |
| It occurs in two forms—preformed vitamin A, called retinol (found only in foods of animal origin), and provitamin A, known as carotene (provided by foods of both plant and animal origin).
Vitamin A is measured in USP Units (United States Pharmacopeia), IU (International Units), and RE (Retinol Equivalents). (See section 168.)
1,000 RE (or 5,000 IU) is the recommended daily dosage for adult males to prevent deficiency. For females it's 800 RE (4,000 IU). |
Gary Null
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| Serum carotene values rose from an initial 128 to 308 after one month, but did not rise above this level during the remainder of the observation period." Dr. Peterman reported these test results in the Journal of the American Medical Association.32
What the report says is that vitamin A, as it is found naturally in foods, rarely presents any cause for alarm over possible toxicity. To consume even the minimum daily requirement of 4,000 units from vegetable sources in your diet, you would need to eat a dozen carrots for example. |
Earl Mindell
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| Their requirement is much higher than that of dogs because unlike dogs they cannot manufacture vitamin A in the body from carotene.) On the other hand, too much vitamin A can result in bone deformities. Liver as a supplement (not a total diet) is recommended, as is a balanced vitamin-mineral preparation. Fish, butter, milk, and cheese are also high in vitamin A.
The B vitamins are also important for a cat's nerve stability, outer coat, and inner tissues. B6 (pyridoxine) helps prevent urinary calculi, a serious problem for altered male cats. (A diet low in ash is recommended. |
Gary Null
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| Studies show that only one-sixth of the carotene you eat may be converted to vitamin A. Beyond that, only a third of that amount may actually be digested.
How much vitamin A should you take? Since each of us is biochemically different, the suggested intake varies. A lot of it depends on factors such as how much fat and other nutrients you eat. |
Mark Stengler, N.D.
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| It also contains flavonoids, carotene, essential oil, enzymes, and phy-tosterols. Saw palmetto berry extracts with a standardized fatty-acid content are approved by both the German and French governments for the treatment of BPH.
Research has shown that saw palmetto helps the prostate in a number of ways. |
Rebecca Wood
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 Health Benefits Okra is high in carotene and contains B-complex vitamins and vitamin C. Its slippery gel effectively lubricates the intestines and thus helps to ease constipation. Okra is tridoshic, balancing to all Ayurvedic types.
Use Sliced into rounds, okra looks like fanciful little wheels. Nevertheless, some people are put off by the sticky, mucilagi-
£&*ffl nous texture of okra. AVJJs Garden fresh okra can rm~ ffW ^e hghtly steamed, / I Hd-JSh seasoned, and eaten Mp g Jwl t« like green beans; or ff /M ff) \ it can be pickled, $010 m \8i broiled, fried, or kp hffl m\ i baked. |
| BETA carotene The orange-yellow plant pigment that the body converts to vitamin A.
BILE A thick, bitter fluid stored in the gallbladder and secreted by the liver; it aids fat digestion.
BIOENGINEERED Genetic material of an animal or plant that is manipulated, altered, or added to. The industry term is Genetically Manipulated Organism (GMO). BIOFLAVONOID A plant glycoside that improves circulation and has diuretic, antispasmodic, and anti-inflammatory effects.
BITTER One of the five tastes in Chinese medicine. |
| In addition to iron, soybeans also contain carotene, vitamins B-! and B2, and niacin. The spleen-pancreas and stomach meridians are supported by soybean products, which help reduce damp conditions, support detoxification, improve circulation, and promote clear vision. Soybeans reduce pitta.
Use In the West, soybeans are cooked whole and eaten in any number of dishes, from minestrone to bean tacos. In Asia, however, the soybean is not cooked and served whole. Why? If merely boiled, soybeans inhibit the digestive enzyme trypsin; they are a bear to digest. |
| An apricot's vibrant gold color marks it as a superior source of vitamin A and carotene. Its alpha, beta, gamma, and delta carotenoids serve as an antioxidant and protect DNA from free-radical damage. Dried apricots are a good source of iron, cobalt, and copper, and are an effective remedy for anemia. Extracts of laetrile, used in cancer therapy, are derived from the amygdalin of apricots and their kernels (see Almond). Apricots are tridoshic. If, however, they are sour, they are not recommended for pitta. |
| Alfalfa is up to 30 percent protein by dry weight and is an excellent source of chlorophyll, vitamins K and P (bioflavonoids), and carotene. Almost as good as seaweed as a food mineral source, alfalfa contains calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, manganese, phosphorus, sodium, sulfur, silicon, chlorine, cobalt, and zinc.
Use While mature alfalfa is typically fermented into silage for cattle, for human consumption it is sprouted and its pea-flavored leaves are used in salads or as a medicinal tea and herbal supplement.
See Sprouts.
Algae See Microalgae; Seaweed. |
Earl Mindell
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| Enemies:
Polyunsaturated fatty acids with carotene work against vitamin A unless there are antioxidants present. (See sections 100-117 for antioxidants, and section 293 for drugs that deplete vitamins.)
Personal Advice:
You need at least 10,000 IU vitamin A if you take more than 400 IU vitamin E daily.
If you are on the pill, your need for A is decreased.
If your weekly diet includes ample amounts of liver, carrots, spinach, sweet potatoes, or cantaloupe, it's unlikely you need an A supplement.
Vitamin A should not be taken with mineral oil. |
Nicola Reavley
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| However, in many of these studies it is not possible to tell whether the protective effect is due to vitamin C, vitamin E, or carotene, to a combined effect of these nutrients, or even due to additional substances found in food.
Results from the Western Electric Study published in 1995 suggest a link between low vitamin C levels and death from cancer. The researchers obtained information on diet and other factors from 1556 employed, middle-aged men. During the follow-up period 231 men died from cancer. |
Ruth Winter, M.S.
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 Saw Palmetto contains anti-inflammatory ingredients, carotene, tannin, and estrogenic substances. It is a strong expectorant. SCABIOSA EXTRACT • The extract of an Old World herb, Scabiosa, used to treat scabies in folk medicine. S-CARBOXY METHYL CYSTEINE • See Cysteine
SCHIZANDRA CHINENSIS EXTRACT • An herb used by Chinese women as an aphrodisiac and youth tonic. It is a mild sedative. Also believed to increase stamina. Schizandra has been shown in modern scientific laboratories to protect against the narcotic and sedative effects of alcohol and barbiturates. It is used as a tea. |
Heather Boon, BScPhm, PhD and Michael Smith, BPharm, MRPharmS, ND
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 ANTI-INFLAMMATORY EFFECTS
Calendula has been reported to have anti-inflammatory properties.811"14 Following topical application both the triterpene812and flavonoid13 fractions have been shown to possess an anti-inflammatory action in vivo. The most pronounced effect has been noted with the faridol esters extracted from the essential oil.12 In addition, it has been suggested that the anti-inflammatory action of the isorhamnetin flavonoid glycosides is due to an inhibition of lipoxygenase activity. |
Ruth Winter, M.S.
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| Among the natural colors widely used in cosmetics are alkanet, annatto, carotene, chlorophyll, cochineal, saffron, and turmeric.
Flavorings
A wide variety of spices, natural extractives, oleoresins, and essential oils are used in cosmetics. In fact, of the 3,000 additives known to be available for use in food, cosmetics, and drugs, 2,000 are flavorings that replace the flavors lost during processing. Of these flavorings, some 500 are natural—that is, they are derived from a wide variety of spices, plant extracts, and essential oils. |
Dr. Mary Dan Eades
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 Nutritional value—The leaves of the alfalfa plant are rich in calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, carotene, and all known vitamins. Because all the minerals are in a balanced form, they can be readily absorbed. Alfalfa has long been appreciated as a food for livestock, but has also come to be considered a health food with medicinal value. It contains three major phytoestrogens: cournestrol, genistein, and formonetin; and two less important ones: diadzein and biochanin A. |
Michael Lerner
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 He postulates that in the 40% of the population whose defenses are not sufficiently strong to ward off cancer, it is important to strengthen the immune system as a preventive measure through a diet containing large amounts of carotene, selenium, vitamins C and D2, magnesium, and molybdenum. In cases of existing cancer, these substances can be utilized along with others, such as bromelain—an enzyme obtained from pineapple—to combat the cancer. |
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