Carrots help you see better. Really? For most people, the answer is no. The idea that eating carrots improving a person’s night vision originated in World War II British propaganda, although the purpose and intended target of the propaganda is not entirely clear.
To make it harder for German bombers to hit cities during night raids, the British would implement citywide blackouts, meaning the Royal Air Force would be fighting in the dark. So how were the RAF planes able to find and shoot down the German planes? The Ministry of Information told the newspapers that the British pilots’ success could be attributed to improved night vision from eating carrots. They ran a whole campaign of posters promoting carrots’ ability to improve pilots’ night vision.
It was claimed the carrot propaganda was intended to confuse the Germans, so they wouldn’t figure out the improved technology of the RAF. The real reason the RAF pilots were able to locate and shoot down the German planes was an improvement in radar technology. There is little evidence to suggest that they fell for it.
The British people however did believe it, and carrot production and consumption soared during the war years in Britain. The British may have been the intended target all along due to food supplies being blockaded by the Germans and many staples like sugar being rationed. The government needed to convince people to eat differently and carrots were not a popular vegetable, but they did grow very well in the British climate. The British Ministry of Food had cartoons featuring “Dr. Carrot.” The government also put out recipes like carrot pudding, carrot cake and carrot flan using carrots in place of sugar
While the belief may have been popularized by propaganda, there is some truth to carrots improving eye sight. Carrots are rich in beta-carotene which the body converts to vitamin A. Individuals who are experiencing vision problems related to a vitamin A deficiency could benefit from a diet with more carrots or better yet a vitamin A supplement. Individuals with a relatively healthy diet will not see vision improvement from eating more carrots. Though, if they eat enough of them they might notice their skin turning orange.
Crystal Kelly is a feature writer for Bizarre Bytes with those unusual facts that you only need to know for Trivial Pursuit or Jeopardy or to stump your in-laws.
