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Does eating carrots actually enhance your ability to see in the dark?
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According to an article published in Smithsonian Magazine written by
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K. Annabelle Smith, the widely believed notion that eating carrots enhances night
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vision is largely a myth popularized by a British World War II propaganda campaign.
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Although carrots are rich in Vitamin A, which is essential for eye health, and a study from
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Johns Hopkins in 1998 indicated that vitamin A supplements could reverse poor vision in
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those with a deficiency, the vegetable's abilities have been notably exaggerated.
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During WWII, the British government spread the belief that carrots could
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help people see in the dark as a misdirection tactic.
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The Royal Air Force (RAF) had developed a new radar technology, the Airborne Interception
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Radar (AI), which allowed them to locate enemy bombers before they reached the English Channel.
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To keep this technology secret and perhaps mislead German forces, the Ministry of Information
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promulgated the idea that RAF pilots, like John Cunningham who was known for his exceptional
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night-flying abilities, were consuming large amounts of carrots to enhance their night vision.
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This idea was so widely publicized that not only did it infiltrate public belief
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during the wartime period, but it also lingered long afterward,
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developing into the common belief that carrots are a sort of superfood for eyesight.
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While it's true that a lack of Vitamin A (which carrots are rich in) can lead to impaired night
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vision, the narrative that excess consumption could provide almost superhuman abilities to see
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in the dark was a clever exaggeration utilized for strategic misdirection during the war.
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During this time, with resources like sugar and other food items becoming
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scarce due to German blockades, the British government encouraged
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citizens to be self-sustaining and to consume surplus vegetables like carrots.
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Campaigns and characters like "Dr. Carrot" and "Potato Pete" were introduced,
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advocating for the consumption of these vegetables and spreading alternative
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recipes utilizing them as sugar substitutes in a variety of dishes.
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Although this myth of carrots improving night vision is still widely believed today, it is
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essential to recognize its origin as a tool of wartime propaganda and not as a scientific fact.
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While carrots do play a role in maintaining eye health due to their Vitamin A content,
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their supposed night-vision superpowers were an exaggeration meant to protect a military secret.
