Beets are packed with nutrients
Beetroots are usually red to deep purple but also come in a white and golden variety.
The beet root has a high nutritional content. One cup of raw red beetroot (136g) provides 58 calories, 2.2g of protein, 13g of carbohydrates, and 0.2g of fat. Beets are an excellent source of iron, manganese, folate, potassium, vitamin C, fiber and more.
Beet greens are also highly nutritious, and in some instances more nutritious than the beetroot. The beet greens are considered a non-starchy vegetable containing very little carbohydrate. The beetroot is starchier and is higher in carbs and fiber. See below the nutrient content of raw beets, cooked beets and cooked beet greens.
Beets offer 12 significant health benefits
According to the National Institute of Health National Library of Medicine, consuming beets offers numerous health benefits. See Beetroot as a functional food with huge health benefits. Beets in some cultures has been considered natural medicine for thousands of years.
Modern social living habits, diet, living environment, and other factors, have helped cause hyperglycemia, high blood pressure, and high blood lipids to become widespread chronic diseases. Research has confirmed beetroot possesses the ability to alleviate these diseases and has the advantages of no side effects compared with synthetic drugs.
Snap Supplements offers high quality organic natural plant-based supplements, that include beetroot, to help the body produce nitric oxide, testosterone and feed the brain!
Here are 12 health benefits of eating beets.
1. Anemia Prevention. Beets helps prevent and alleviate anemia in part due to the beetroot and beet leaves are high in iron, the type of iron that is more easily metabolized into the body. Young beet leaves have a higher concentration of iron than spinach. See Natural Dietary Food Sources of Iron
2. Encourages Detoxification and Liver and Kidney Health. Beet juice benefits liver function because it helps the liver function to get rid of toxins by helping the creation of enzymes involved in the detoxification process.
3. High in Antioxidants. Since the emergence of processed foods across the modern diet, natural antioxidants are highly recommended for their possible greater safety and health‐promoting effect. Beets are rich in the high antioxidant capacity of betanin. Beetroot also contains a considerable amount of polyphenols and phenolic, a small quantity of vitamin C and vitamin E, which have all been proven with the great antioxidant ability. A diet rich in natural intoxicants helps promote long life.
4. Cancer Prevention and Treatment. Reports suggest that beetroot could act as a chemo preventive medicine with the capacity of reducing the formation of multi‐organ tumors while exhibiting less toxicity. In 1996 Govind J. Kapadia and fellow researchers studied the antitumor activity of beetroot. The results showed that the oral administration of betanin in beetroot contributed to the inhibition of skin and lung tumors in mice. In lung tumors, the tumor reduction rate was up to 60%. The study found that the betanin in beetroot significantly resisted the development of tumors caused by chemical carcinogens. Current researchers have found a correlation with the betanin found in beets with the restriction of cancer cell viability. Betanin has been found to be effective in preventing and fighting stomach and colin cancer.
5. Eye Health. Beet greens are good source of Lutein. Lutein is a type of organic pigment called a carotenoid. It is related to beta-carotene and vitamin A. Many people think of lutein as “the eye vitamin.” Lutein is one of two major carotenoids found in the human eye (macula and retina). It is thought to function as a light filter, protecting the eye tissues from sunlight damage. Carotenoids can reduce the risks of macular degeneration and cataracts.
6. Healthy Blood Pressure Management. The natural nitrate in beets seems to be the agent that lowers blood pressure, especially among people suffering from hypertension. Beets can help lowers systolic and Dia systolic blood pressure after only 24 hours.
7. Promotes Heart Health. The nutrients in beets act as vasal dilaters improving blood flow thereby reducing stress on our cardiovascular system.
8. Improves Endurance and Athletic Performance. Athletes who drink beet juice prior to their workout, exercised longer and showed increased cardiorespiratory endurance, because the nitrates in beets turn into nitric acid. That process may reduce the oxygen cost of low-intensity exercise as well as enhance the ability for high intensity exercise. The beetroot is rich in natural nitrates. Dietary nitrate decomposes into nitrite and subsequently converts to nitric oxide. See also Kidney Health, Red Blood Cell Production, Increased Blood Count and Peak Performance for Athletes
9. Lowers Bad LDL Cholesterol. Beet juice can help lower bad LDL cholesterol in people with high blood pressure.
10. Improves Digestive Health and Function. Beetroots are high in fiber. Regular dietary consumption of natural fiber helps prevent Diverticulitis, Hemorrhoids and Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease, or GERD.
11. Promotes Brain Health. Beets help protect against age related cognitive decline, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinsons. This again is attributed to the natural nitric composition found in beets. Increasing consumption of natural nitrates found in beets appears to increase blood flow to certain areas of the brain. More about Brain Foods that Protect Mental Health and Mood, Foods that Harm
12. Reduces Chronic Inflammation. As Inflammation contributes to several chronic conditions, beetroots and juice has been found to reduce oxidative stress and inflammation, thereby reducing the risk of developing chronic inflammation diseases.
More about Ralph Teller