"What we know is that carrots contain the pigment beta-carotene, which the body converts into vitamin A. But carrots are not the only source. Many foods are rich in this nutrient, such as red bell peppers, rocket, eggs, fatty fish, and dairy products," says Ellen Svarverud.
She is an associate professor at the University of South-Eastern Norway.
Vitamin A plays an important role in human vision, as well as maintaining a healthy immune system, according to the NHS.
"This is a very important nutrient. A lack of vitamin A can cause poorer night vision. Most people in Norway already get enough vitamin A through their normal diet. Eating large amounts of carrots will therefore not improve night vision," Svarverud explains.
Even so, the myth lives on. And the reason it began is not rooted in nutrition or vision research, but in wartime propaganda.
Ellen Svarverud works at the University of South-Eastern Norway's Department of Optometry, Radiography and Lighting Design.(Photo: Julie Dønnem Lillevik / University of South-Eastern Norway)
Originally not orange
The carrot originally comes from Central Asia and the Middle East. Arabs brought it to Spain, and from there it spread throughout the rest of Europe.
But the orange carrot we are most familiar with today was not always the standard variety. Carrots also came in purple, yellow, and white varieties.
It was in the 17th century that Dutch farmers cultivated the popular orange carrot.
Carrots became more and more widespread, but it was during World War II that they gained the popular status they still hold today.
In this Dutch painting, dated 1655–1665, carrots are being sold at a market.(Image: Rijksmuseum, Public Domain)
A lie from the war
During World War II, Britain was subjected to nighttime bombing raids by German aircraft. This period is known as the Blitz and lasted from September 1940 to May 1941.
During the attacks, Britain went into blackout. Lights were turned off to avoid being seen by German bombers.
To defend against the attacks, the British began using a new and highly classified technology: radar that could be carried aboard aircraft.
Annonse
In 1940, John Cunningham, nicknamed Cat's Eyes, became the first British pilot to shoot down a German aircraft using the new radar system.
Following the nighttime bombings, large areas of London were left in ruins. Here, three children sit outside what had once been their home in East London, September 1940.(Photo: AP / NTB)
But the technology had to remain secret.
So British authorities came up with an alternative explanation: The pilots were so good at seeing in the dark because they ate a lot of carrots.
The story spread through newspapers and propaganda campaigns, and quickly took hold.
Bryan Legate, assistant curator at the Royal Air Force Museum in London, shared his thoughts on the propaganda with the magazine Scientific American in 2014.
"Whilst the [British] Air Ministry were happy to go along with the story, they never set out to use it to fool the Germans. The German intelligence service were well aware of our ground-based radar installation and would not be surprised by the existence of radar in aircraft," Legate told Scientific American.
Even if the Germans did not believe the lie, others certainly did.
One of several Dig for Victory posters used by British authorities during the war.(Image: Shutterstock / NTB)
Propaganda aimed at the public
The myth was very well received within Britain itself. And that was where it truly gained momentum.
During the war, there were food shortages, and British authorities tried to encourage people to eat more foods that were readily available and easy to grow at home – including carrots.
They therefore launched the Dig for Victory campaign. Posters and advertisements promoting carrots claimed that they 'help you to see in the blackout.'
The British Ministry of Food also published numerous carrot recipes. Every day, the BBC broadcast the radio programme The Kitchen Front, which shared new recipes and tips.
In 1942, an American correspondent in London wrote in The New York Times that England's Food Minister, Lord Woolton, said that “a carrot a day keeps the blackout at bay.”
At the same time, cartoon characters such as Doctor Carrot were used to make the message more appealing to the public.
A grain of truth
So eating extra carrots will not improve your night vision.
And even though the story began as propaganda, it has proved surprisingly persistent.
"I think people tend to accept something as true if it aligns with what they already believe. We know carrots are healthy, so it's easy to think that the more we eat, the greater the benefit," says Svarverud.
