HWN Suggests

A WWII Propaganda Campaign Popularized the Myth That Carrots Help You See in the Dark

The science is pretty sound that carrots, by virtue of their heavy dose of Vitamin A (in the form of beta carotene), are good for your eye health. A 1998 Johns Hopkins study, as reported by the New York Times, even found that supplemental pills could reverse poor vision among those with a Vitamin A deficiency. But as John Stolarczyk knows all too well as curator of the World Carrot Museum, the truth has been stretched into a pervasive myth that carrots hold within a super-vegetable power: improving your night-time vision. But carrots cannot help you see better in the dark any more than eating blueberries will turn you blue.

read full article

Featured

 Are carrots good for your eyes?

Is it a myth that carrots are good for your eyes? There is some truth to the link between carrots and good eyesight. But the idea is rooted in a little myth and an established campaign attributing carrots to good eye health because they contain compounds that are good for the eyes.

 Do Carrots Really Help Your Vision?

"There's a reason why these adages become adages: in large part because they're true," says Taylor. "When you eat a carrot, you're helping your body take a light source [and interpret it]. ... That makes food pretty darn important. That's the stuff that will keep me up at night, it's so exciting."

Articles of Interest

Carrots were once a crucial tool in anti-Nazi propaganda

And they don’t actually improve your eyesight.

Debunked: Can carrots really improve your vision?

The idea that carrots improve eyesight is an age-old tactic used by parents to get their kids to eat the vegetables on their plate, but research has shown that this widely held belief may not be as true as most people think.

Fact or Fiction?: Carrots Improve Your Vision

Binging on carrots would also not improve most Americans’ eyesight. Once you have enough beta-carotene in your body it often will no longer convert to vitamin A, Chew says. The body naturally regulates against excess amounts of vitamin A to prevent accumulation of toxic levels of the substance. So how many carrots are ideal?

Monday’s medical myth: eating carrots will improve your eyesight

Getting enough vitamin A is important for healthy eyes. And carrots are a rich and natural source of this vitamin, which is basically a group of chemicals made up of retinal (the active form of vitamin A) and carotenes such as beta-carotene (which gives carrots their distinctive colour). But a diet overloaded with carrots – and vitamin A – won’t leave you with healthier eyes.

Propaganda Told Us Carrots Can Improve Eyesight—Here’s the Truth

Were you ever told as a kid to eat more carrots because it would improve your vision? Well, here's the truth: This urban myth originated from British propaganda during WWII to cover up top-secret technology. But there's a lot more to it—here's the story behind the famous propaganda campaign that started the victory garden movement and ultimately inspired people to waste less food.

The Myth About Carrots and Vision Started to Foil Nazis

British Intelligence didn't want the Germans to find out about the superior new technology helping protect the nation, so they created a rumor to afford a somewhat plausible-sounding explanation for the sudden increase in bombers being shot down. ​