Ever wonder how your favorite foods stack up against each other in terms of nutrition?
We compared the nutritional contents of
baby carrots
versus
cooked
squash
(100g each)
below using 2020 USDA and NIH data[1].
For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in baby carrots and squash:
Baby carrots and squash contain similar amounts of calories - baby carrot has 35 calories per 100 grams and squash has 40 calories.
For macronutrient ratios, baby carrots is similar to squash for protein, carbs and fat. Baby carrots has a macronutrient ratio of 8:92:0 and for squash, 8:91:2 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories.
Macro Ratios from Calories:
Baby Carrots | Squash | |
---|---|---|
Protein | 8% | 8% |
Carbohydrates | 92% | 91% |
Fat | ~ | 2% |
Alcohol | ~ | ~ |
Baby carrots and squash contain similar amounts of carbs - baby carrot has 8.2g of total carbs per 100 grams and squash has 10.5g of carbohydrates.
Both baby carrots and squash are high in dietary fiber. Baby carrot is very similar to baby carrot for dietary fiber - baby carrot has 2.9g of dietary fiber per 100 grams and squash has 3.2g of dietary fiber.
Baby carrots and squash contain similar amounts of sugar - baby carrot has 4.8g of sugar per 100 grams and squash has 2g of sugar.
Baby carrots and squash contain similar amounts of protein - baby carrot has 0.64g of protein per 100 grams and squash has 0.9g of protein.
Both baby carrots and squash are low in saturated fat - baby carrot has 0.02g of saturated fat per 100 grams and squash has 0.02g of saturated fat.
Squash is a great source of Vitamin C and it has 481% more Vitamin C than baby carrot - baby carrot has 2.6mg of Vitamin C per 100 grams and squash has 15.1mg of Vitamin C.
Both baby carrots and squash are high in Vitamin A. Baby carrot has 24% more Vitamin A than squash - baby carrot has 690ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and squash has 558ug of Vitamin A.
Squash has more Vitamin E than baby carrot - squash has 1.3mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and baby carrot does not contain significant amounts.
Baby carrots and squash contain similar amounts of Vitamin K - baby carrot has 9.4ug of Vitamin K per 100 grams and squash has 1ug of Vitamin K.
Squash has more thiamin. Both baby carrots and squash contain significant amounts of riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid, Vitamin B6 and folate.
Baby Carrots | Squash | |
---|---|---|
Thiamin | 0.03 MG | 0.072 MG |
Riboflavin | 0.036 MG | 0.017 MG |
Niacin | 0.556 MG | 0.969 MG |
Pantothenic acid | 0.401 MG | 0.359 MG |
Vitamin B6 | 0.105 MG | 0.124 MG |
Folate | 27 UG | 19 UG |
Squash is a great source of calcium and it has 28% more calcium than baby carrot - baby carrot has 32mg of calcium per 100 grams and squash has 41mg of calcium.
Baby carrots and squash contain similar amounts of iron - baby carrot has 0.89mg of iron per 100 grams and squash has 0.6mg of iron.
Both baby carrots and squash are high in potassium. Squash has 20% more potassium than baby carrot - baby carrot has 237mg of potassium per 100 grams and squash has 284mg of potassium.
Carotenoids are micronutrients commonly found in plants and some animal products. An example is beta-carotene, the notable carotenoid which is a popular source of Vitamin A.[4][5]
For specific types of carotenoids, both baby carrots and squash contain significant amounts of beta-carotene.
Baby Carrots | Squash | |
---|---|---|
beta-carotene | 6391 UG | 4570 UG |
alpha-carotene | 3767 UG | 1130 UG |
lutein + zeaxanthin | 358 UG | ~ |
For omega-3 fatty acids, squash has more alpha linoleic acid (ALA) than baby carrot per 100 grams.
Baby Carrots | Squash | |
---|---|---|
alpha linoleic acid | 0.008 G | 0.024 G |
Total | 0.008 G | 0.024 G |
Comparing omega-6 fatty acids, baby carrot has more linoleic acid than squash per 100 grams.
Baby Carrots | Squash | |
---|---|---|
linoleic acid | 0.057 G | 0.014 G |
Total | 0.057 G | 0.014 G |
The comparison below is by common portions, e.g. cups, packages. You can also see a more concrete comparison by weight at equal weight (by grams) comparison.
Note: The specific food items compared are: Baby Carrots (Carrots, baby, raw) and Squash (Squash, winter, butternut, cooked, baked, without salt) .
Baby Carrots g
()
|
Daily Values (%) |
Cooked Squash g
()
|
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
KCAL % |
|
5% | calories | 5% |
|
KCAL % | |
G % |
|
5% | carbohydrates | 5% |
|
G % | |
G % |
|
5% | dietary fiber | 5% |
|
G % | |
G | 5% | sugar | 5% | G | |||
G % |
|
5% | total fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
G % |
|
5% | saturated fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
G | 5% | monounsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | polyunsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | trans fat | 5% | G | |||
MG | 5% | cholesterol | 5% | MG | |||
MG % |
|
5% | sodium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
5% | Vitamins and Minerals | 5% | |||||
UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin A | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin C | 5% |
|
MG % | |
IU % |
|
5% | Vitamin D | 5% |
|
IU % | |
MG % |
|
5% | calcium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | iron | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | magnesium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | potassium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | thiamin (Vit B1) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | riboflavin (Vit B2) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | niacin (Vit B3) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B6 | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | pantothenic acid (Vit B5) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | folate (Vit B9) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B12 | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin E | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin K | 5% |
|
UG % | |
G % |
|
5% | protein | 5% |
|
G % | |
UG % |
|
5% | biotin (Vit B7) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | choline | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | chlorine | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | chromium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | copper | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | fluoride | 5% |
|
UG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | iodine | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | manganese | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | molybdenum | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | phosphorus | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | selenium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | zinc | 5% |
|
MG % | |
G | 5% | Water | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | Starch | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | Alcohol | 5% | G | |||