Eating carrots every day will not turn your skin orange. While carrots are rich in beta-carotene, which gives them their orange color, consuming high amounts does not cause your skin to change hue. There are a few reasons why eating lots of carrots won’t turn you orange:
Carotenemia vs Carotenosis
There are two conditions related to increased beta-carotene intake – carotenemia and carotenosis. Carotenemia is harmless and causes a yellowish or orange tint to the skin, while carotenosis involves a deeper orange discoloration and is associated with liver dysfunction.
Carotenemia occurs when carotenoids like beta-carotene build up in the outer layers of skin. It’s reversible and temporary. Carotenosis refers to carotenoids depositing in the inner layers of skin and is related to an underlying health condition affecting the liver’s ability to metabolize carotenoids.
Consuming high amounts of carotenoids from foods like carrots can lead to carotenemia. But it generally requires eating >20 mg of beta-carotene per day for an extended period, which equates to >4 cups of raw carrots daily. Carotenosis requires even greater intakes.
So eating a normal serving of cooked carrots per day, which provides around 5 mg beta-carotene, should not cause skin color changes.
Beta-carotene Absorption and Metabolism
Most ingested beta-carotene is not absorbed and metabolized into vitamin A. Studies show only around 3-6% of carotenoids in food are taken up into blood and tissues. The absorbed carotenoids travel in the blood by lipoproteins.
In the intestines, beta-carotene can be split into two vitamin A molecules. But most is packaged into lipoproteins and remains intact. Carotenoids like beta-carotene have antioxidant functions and can be deposited in body tissues like skin.
However, when intake is extremely high for long periods, saturation of lipoproteins occurs and more beta-carotene circulates in its free form. Free beta-carotene is more likely to discolor skin temporarily.
Yet this requires very high, sustained doses – much more than the amount in the typical diet. So carotenemia from dietary carotenoids alone is uncommon.
Bioavailability of Beta-carotene in Carrots
Carrots contain beta-carotene but its bioavailability can vary substantially depending on food processing and preparation:
- Cooking increases bioavailability – Heat helps break down carotenoid crystal matrixes and plant cell walls, making them easier to absorb.
- Blending, juicing, and pureeing improves bioavailability – By thoroughly mixing carotenoids into fluid, more get incorporated into micelles for absorption.
- Adding fats enhances absorption – Dietary fats stimulate bile release and formation of micelles that carotenoids are transported in.
What this means is that well-cooked or pureed carrots served with a little fat enables more beta-carotene uptake compared to raw carrots. However, absorption is still limited and does not lead to excessive circulating levels.
Genetic Factors
Genetics can also play a role in why some people accumulate more carotenoids than others:
- SNPs in BCMO1 – This is the enzyme that cleaves beta-carotene into vitamin A. Variants may alter activity.
- Reduced BCMO1 expression – Lower levels of BCMO1 increase beta-carotene in blood.
- ABCG5 polymorphisms – This intestinal transporter influences carotenoid absorption.
So genetic differences related to carotenoid metabolism can cause some people to be “low converters” and prone to carotenemia. But again, symptoms only occur at very high intakes.
Liver Health
Since the liver is the main site of carotenoid metabolism, impaired liver function can also affect carotenoid levels. Chronic liver disease or cirrhosis limits the liver’s ability to adequately metabolize and clear beta-carotene from blood.
So poor liver health combined with an excessively high carotenoid diet raises the risk of carotenosis. But those with normal liver function will not run into problems from typical carrot intake.
Conclusions
In summary, here are key conclusions on whether eating carrots can turn skin orange:
- Consuming carrots in normal amounts will not cause carotenemia or carotenosis.
- Effects like carotenemia only occur at extremely high doses (over 20 mg beta-carotene per day).
- Cooking, juicing, and pureeing carrots increases carotenoid bioavailability but not to excessive levels.
- Carotenosis involving deeper skin discoloration points to an underlying health condition.
- Temporary skin changes reverse after reducing high carotenoid intake.
So for most people eating a balanced diet, there is no need to worry that carrots will turn you orange, even if you enjoy them everyday. A few carrots per day actually helps meet vitamin A needs and provides beneficial antioxidants.
The only scenarios where high carrot intake can potentially discolor skin are if you have certain genetic variants affecting carotenoid metabolism, a liver disorder, or consume extremely large, unrealistic amounts of carotenoids for long periods.
Overall, carrots are a healthy vegetable rich in beta-carotene. Eating normal servings as part of a varied diet poses no risk of orange skin hue changes.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many carrots would you have to eat per day to turn orange?
You would need to eat at least 20 milligrams of beta-carotene per day to trigger carotenemia, which equals over 4 cups of raw chopped carrots. Cooking and pureeing the carrots increases carotenoid absorption but it is still highly unlikely regular carrot intake leads to skin color changes.
Can babies turn orange from eating carrots?
Babies are not at higher risk of turning orange if fed carotenoid-rich foods like carrots. Their carotenoid metabolism is similar to adults. Carotenemia in infants is very rare and only occurs in cases of very high supplementation.
Do cooked carrots or raw carrots have more beta-carotene?
Cooked carrots have higher bioavailable beta-carotene than raw because heat breaks down tough cell walls that hinder absorption. But both raw and cooked carrots only provide around 5mg carotenoids per serving, which does not cause issues.
Does juicing or pureeing carrots increase carotenoids?
Yes, juicing and pureeing carrots breaks down the plant matrix and cellular structure, releasing more carotenoids for absorption. But again, a typical juiced carrot drink does not provide excessive amounts to raise health concerns.
Can taking carrot supplements or multivitamins turn your skin orange?
High dose beta-carotene supplements and multivitamins with very high vitamin A may temporarily cause skin discoloration if taken long-term. This can occur with doses over 30mg per day.
References
- Meyers KJ, Johnson EJ, Bernstein PS, Iyengar SK, Engelman CD, Karki CK, et al. Genetic determinants of serum carotenoid concentrations in children with a variety of carotenoid intakes. J Nutr. 2014 Oct;144(10):1579-87.
- Wang XD. Lycopene metabolism and its biological significance. Am J Clin Nutr. 2012 May;95(5):1214S-22S.
- EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies. Scientific Opinion on Dietary Reference Values for vitamin A. EFSA Journal 2015;13(3):4028.
- Hammond BR, Johnson EJ. Accumulation and elimination of dietary carotenoids: What we know and what we need to know about carotenoid metabolism and excretion. J Nutr Sci. 2021;10:e43.
- Mayne ST. Beta-carotene, carotenoids, and disease prevention in humans. FASEB J. 1996 Apr;10(7):690-701.
