Top 10 Foods Highest in Alpha-Carotene

Written by Daisy Whitbread, MScNPowered by USDA Nutrition Data
Top 10 Foods Highest in Alpha-Carotene

Alpha-Carotene is a precursor to creating vitamin A in the body, and while important, is far less common than beta-carotene. Like beta-carotene, alpha-carotene is fat soluble and is best consumed with some form of fat.

The recommended dietary allowance for alpha-carotene is 21600μg and is derived from how many retinol activity equivalents (RAE) alpha-carotene provides for the creation of vitamin A. For this reason, you do not actually have to worry about meeting the RDA as beta-carotene, and vitamin A both contribute to the RDA.

Foods high in alpha-carotene include orange vegetables like pumpkin, carrots, and winter squash. Other alpha-carotene food sources include tangerines, tomatoes, collards, napa cabbage, sweet potatoes, avocados, and bananas. Below are the top 10 foods highest in alpha-carotene, for more, see the nutrient ranking of foods high in alpha-carotene.

List of Foods High in Alpha Carotene

Pumpkins

#1: Pumpkin

Alpha-carotene
per Cup Cooked		Alpha-carotene
per 100g		Alpha-carotene
per 200 Calories
6652μg
(31% DV)		2715μg
(13% DV)		27150μg
(126% DV)
Nutrition Facts for Cooked Pumpkin. (Source)
Carrots

#2: Carrots

Alpha-carotene
per Cup Cooked		Alpha-carotene
per 100g		Alpha-carotene
per 200 Calories
5891μg
(27% DV)		3776μg
(17% DV)		21577μg
(100% DV)
Nutrition Facts for Cooked Carrots. (Source)
Half a Butternut Squash

#3: Butternut Squash

Alpha-carotene
per Cup Cooked		Alpha-carotene
per 100g		Alpha-carotene
per 200 Calories
2317μg
(11% DV)		1130μg
(5% DV)		5650μg
(26% DV)
Nutrition Facts for Cooked Butternut Squash. (Source)
Tangerines

#4: Tangerines

Alpha-carotene
per Cup		Alpha-carotene
per 100g		Alpha-carotene
per 200 Calories
197μg
(1% DV)		101μg
(0% DV)		381μg
(2% DV)
Nutrition Facts for Tangerines. (Source)
Tomatoes

#5: Tomatoes

Alpha-carotene
per Cup Cooked		Alpha-carotene
per 100g		Alpha-carotene
per 200 Calories
150μg
(1% DV)		101μg
(0% DV)		1122μg
(5% DV)
Nutrition Facts for Tomatoes. (Source)
Collard Green Leaves

#6: Collard Greens

Alpha-carotene
per Cup Cooked		Alpha-carotene
per 100g		Alpha-carotene
per 200 Calories
129μg
(1% DV)		68μg
(0% DV)		412μg
(2% DV)
Nutrition Facts for Cooked Collards. (Source)
Napa Cabbage

#7: Napa Cabbage

Alpha-carotene
per Cup Cooked		Alpha-carotene
per 100g		Alpha-carotene
per 200 Calories
53μg
(0% DV)		49μg
(0% DV)		817μg
(4% DV)
Nutrition Facts for Cooked Napa Cabbage. (Source)
Sweet Potato

#8: Sweet Potato

Alpha-carotene
per Cup Baked		Alpha-carotene
per 100g		Alpha-carotene
per 200 Calories
49μg
(0% DV)		43μg
(0% DV)		96μg
(0% DV)
Nutrition Facts for Cooked Sweet Potatoes. (Source)
Half an avocado

#9: Avocados

Alpha-carotene
per Avocado		Alpha-carotene
per 100g		Alpha-carotene
per 200 Calories
48μg
(0% DV)		24μg
(0% DV)		30μg
(0% DV)
Nutrition Facts for Avocados. (Source)
Bananas

#10: Bananas

Alpha-carotene
per Cup Sliced		Alpha-carotene
per 100g		Alpha-carotene
per 200 Calories
38μg
(0% DV)		25μg
(0% DV)		56μg
(0% DV)
Nutrition Facts for Bananas. (Source)

See All 200 Foods High in Alpha Carotene

View more food groups with the nutrient ranking tool, or see ratios with the nutrient ratio tool.
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Data Sources and References

  1. U.S. Agricultural Research Service Food Data Central

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