😊🏖🥕 My skin color is not due to the sun or artificial sunlight, but rather my daily consumption of carrots and carrot juice. These contain substances called carotenoids.

☘️🦐🦩🍅🥕 Carotenoids come in hundreds of different varieties, with a color palette ranging from yellow to the pinkish-red of flamingos to purple. They are produced exclusively by plants, as carotenoids are important for photosynthesis. The most well-known carotenoid is beta-carotene found in carrots. However, flamingos cannot make use of carrots and shine in vibrant colors because they absorb special carotenoids in highly concentrated forms, for example, from crabs, which in turn feed on algae. Algae from the genus Dunaliella are extremely rich in pigments. For flamingos, their appearance is necessary for survival: without the right feather color, they do not attract potential mates, and there is no offspring.

☺️🧡 Beta-carotene also offers health benefits for humans. It binds free oxygen radicals and neutralizes carcinogenic substances. When the skin contains a lot of beta-carotene, it is better protected against UV radiation. It does not redden as quickly. Furthermore, it acts as a provitamin, a precursor to vitamin A - not only important for vision but also for the immune system and the communication abilities of nerve cells. There is no need to fear an overdose of beta-carotene. Only as much beta-carotene is converted into vitamin A as the body needs. Anything beyond that is stored as a pigment in the skin and subcutaneous fat tissue.

🥕🧈 A common misconception is that carrots must always be consumed with fat. This is only partially true. While fat is necessary for the carotenoids to dissolve, it is sufficient to have consumed something fatty beforehand, as it will meet the carotenoids in the digestive tract (fat is digested slowly and often remains in the intestines for several hours).

🥳✨️ I enjoy both, the health benefits and the flavor!

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.

Mammalian Skin 🐒🌞

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.