Root Vegetables

Be good listeners. Your teacher may have you complete a Thinking Map®.

Why Eat Root Vegetables? Eating just ½ cup of most root vegetables provides an excellent source of vitamin C. Give two reasons to eat foods with vitamin C? Helps to strengthen your immune system, keeping you well and helps heal cuts and wounds and prevent infection.

More Reasons to Eat Them Root vegetables contain complex carbohydrates (starches) which are a key nutrient in root vegetables. Other sources of complex carbohydrates are: –Corn –Dry Beans –Peas –Sweet Potatoes

Complex carbohydrates provide the body with energy primarily for the brain and nervous system.

Dietary Fiber Dietary fiber is a complex carbohydrate. Dietary fiber can’t be digested by humans and therefore does not provide a source of energy. Dietary fiber does help you feel full and slow the rate of absorption of simple carbohydrates.

What is a Simple Carb? Simple carbohydrates provide energy to the body. They are more easily digested than complex carbs. Simple carbohydrates include foods such as fruits, that provide nutrients as well as quick energy.

Simple carbs continued…. Simple carbs also include candy, soda and table sugar. These foods provide calories but not nutrients. What type of simple carb would you choose for quick energy?

Did You Know…… A ½ cup of sliced root vegetables is one cupped handful. Root vegetables come in many colors and most can be eaten raw.

Did You Know……. Root vegetables are the root of the plant. Tubers, like a potato, grow underground but are different from root vegetables. A rhizome is plant stem that grows horizontally underground and sends out shoots from which new plants grow.

Roots and Tubers The following are examples of some root and tuber vegetables. Which are roots and which are tubers? CarrotBeet Sweet PotatoRadish PotatoYam Rutabaga Parsnip Jicama

Answers Carrot……………….Root Sweet Potato……….Root Potato…………….…Tuber Rutabaga……………Root Beet………………….Root Radish……………….Root Yam………………….Tuber Parsnip………………Root Jicama……………….Root

A Slice of Root Veggie History

American colonists relied heavily on root vegetables for food because they could be stored for months in the harsh New England winters.

What is it? Taro Ginger Celeriac Sunchoke

What is it? Turnip Jicama Celeriac Rutabage

What is it? Carrot Parsnip Rutabaga Daikon

What is it? Parsnip Turnip Daikon Radish

What is it? Turnip Parsnip Rutabaga Jicama

Bonus Questions Complex carbs help you stay_____longer. Full A sweet potato and yam are the same? False, a yam is a tuber and sweet potato is a root Name the five root vegetables shown on the first slide. Carrot, parsnip, turnip, jicama, rutabaga

Engaging activities Check out this website for GRRRRREAT root vegetable activities to use in the classroom. facts/root-vegetableshttp:// facts/root-vegetables

Thank you to all our sponsors. This material was produced by the California Department of Public Health’s Network for a Healthy California with funding from USDA SNAP, known in California as CalFresh (formerly Food Stamps). These institutions are equal opportunity providers and employers. CalFresh provides assistance to low-income households and can help buy nutritious foods for better health. For CalFresh information, call For important nutrition information, visit