Do You Know Pros And Cons Of Eating Beetroot?

When it comes to healthy living, going natural is the best possible way to maintain a healthy way. There’s no short cut in achieving that natural glow that everyone is looking for. Beetroot or simply Beet is a root vegetable and it is packed with essential and healthy nutrients. It is also known as blood turnips. It helps in lowering blood pressure, boosting energy, and fighting infection. They are low in sodium and fat and are good sources of folate and therefore support mental and emotional health. Some doctors also feel that the juice of Beetroot helps your body in absorbing the nutrients in a better way.

Beets also contain vitamin K which help in the clotting of blood and calcium which is responsible for strong bones and teeth. They are also rich in fibre and including it in the diet helps in reducing weight. Also, Beet can increase levels of a chemical called nitric oxide in the body. Nitric oxide can affect blood vessels, possibly reducing blood pressure and making it easier to exercise.

Nutritional Facts of Beetroot

Beetroots are especially high in folate, manganese, and copper. Folate is crucial for DNA structure and it prevents the development of neural tube deficiencies in infants. Manganese is required for enzymatic processes in our body, as well as for improving metabolism, healing of wounds and keeping your bones healthy. And lastly, copper which keeps our immune system healthy helps in creating red blood cells and supports energy production.

Leaves of Beetroot are rich in Vitamins B2, A, C, and K. They help in lowering levels of triglycerides in the blood, lower blood pressure, improve the performance of sportspersons and reduce muscle soreness.

Red Beetroot is rich in a pigment called betalains which has antioxidant, cancer-fighting, and anti-inflammatory properties. They are low in calories, yet high in valuable vitamins and minerals. The nutrients found in a 100-gram serving of cooked Beetroot are as follows:

• Calories: 44
• Water: 88%
• Protein: 1.7 grams
• Fat: 0.2 grams
• Fibre: 2.8 grams
• Carbs: 9.6 grams
• Sugar: 6.8 grams

Also Read: Foods To Increase Blood Platelets Count Naturally

Delicious Ways of Including Beetroot in Your Diet:

You can include Beetroot in your diet in different styles such as:

• Convert Beetroot into the grated salad and make it flavorful and colourful by adding cabbage and mayonnaises.
• Beetroot Dip: Beets when blended with Greek yogurt make a delicious and healthy dip.

• Fresh Beetroot juice, when mixed with pomegranate, is the best combination to hydrate yourself in summer.
• Leaves of Beetroot can be cooked and savoured like spinach.

Surprising Health Benefits of Beetroot

Beetroots and Beetroot juice have been connected with numerous health benefits, including blood flow improvement, lower the level of blood pressure, and increased exercise performance. Let’s find out some of the surprising health benefits of consuming Beetroot:

1. Lowers the Risk of Heart Diseases

Beets, when taken along with spinach, carrots, and cabbage considered as a good source of nitrates. Beets are a good source of folate and betaine which mutually helps in lowering the blood levels of homocysteine, which can increase your risk of heart disease.

Nitrates found in Beetroot juice turns into nitric acid in the blood and help broaden, dilate and relax your blood vessels and improves the flow of blood and lowers blood pressure and inturns lower the risk of heart diseases.

2. Boost Your Stamina

Drinking Beetroot juice has considered helpful in boosting your energy levels and endurance. Some researchers have found that players who drink Beet juice mixed with a little apple juice during or before exercise they have better strength and a lower resting blood pressure than those who take Beetroot juice. This is due to the increased plasma nitrate levels in Beetroot juice which boosts physical performance.

3. Support Your Liver

Sometimes your liver gets overloaded due to a poor diet, overeating of fast foods, extreme alcohol consumption, or inactive lifestyle thus consuming Beetroot juice support your liver by the detoxifying process. As it contains various nutrients such as iron, antioxidants, betaine, and vitamin B which keep your liver healthy.

Betaine present in Beetroot helps in the detoxification process which eliminates toxins and helps in reducing fatty deposits in the liver. It also helps protect the liver from oxidative damage and inflammation. And thus it also improves your digestion system.

4. Helps in Losing Weight

As you read above in the nutritional facts of Beetroot, they are low in calories, high in the water and are high in nutritional properties which make them a good source of losing weight. Moreover, despite their low-calorie, Beetroot contains moderate amounts of protein and fibre which are important nutrients for attaining and maintaining a healthy weight.

5. It has Anti-Cancer Properties

Few health reports have shown that Beetroot extract is used in the treatment of pancreatic, breast, and prostate cancers. As Beets contain a high level of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory agents, which protect cells from free radicals and thus help in reducing the risk of cancers.

Also, high levels of a different fibre found in Beets may help in lowering the colon cancer risk this is due to the presence of betanin in Beets which has the ability to provide protection against cancer. Beetroot extract is also used in chemotherapy.

6. Boost Eye Health

Eating fruits and vegetables are good for your eyes health, particularly those which are rich in pigments. Beet greens are a good source of lutein and zeaxanthin, types of antioxidants that help protect your eyes from cataracts and leave a positive impact on vision. They also contain a wide variety of phytochemicals that may help improve the health of your eyes and nerve tissues. Consuming carotenoids present in Beetroot can prevent and slow the growth of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) -a problem related to your retina.

7. Improves Skin and Hair Health

Beetroot is rich in Vitamin A that maintains mucous membranes and improves skin health. It also supports the daily replacement of skin cells and also helps in purifying the blood which improves skin health.

Beetroot is actually one of the best home remedies to combat the flakes and an itchy scalp. You can boil some beets in water and use the concentrated liquid to massage on the scalp.

Risk Associated With Beetroot

You have read enough health benefits of Beetroots but they have a few health hazards also. Eating Beetroot is considered safe when it is take in an adequate manner but some people cannot digest it. Some of the risk factors associated with Beetroot are as follows:

1. It increases the formation of kidney stones

If you’re prone to kidney stones then you need to avoid eating greens Beetroot as they are high in oxalates, which can form small crystals and increases the formation of kidney stones. Such foods can reduce the absorption of calcium.

2. It causes gouty arthritis

Beetroots are high in oxalate, which can cause a health condition known as  gout which is a kind of arthritis that develops when too much uric acid builds up in the body

3. It may discolour your urine & stool

Beetroot is helpful but sometimes if taken in excess then notice that your urine or stool is changing from yellow to pink or red. Don’t worry its not blood and but you need to be careful and consult the doctor immediately. The discolouration of your stool and urine depends on a few factors such as how long Beets are in your digestive system, how many and what kind you ate, your stomach acidity at the time, and the presence of oxalic acid in your body from other foods.

Also Read: Strawberries – 11 Reasons Why You Must Eat Them!

By summing up we can say that Beets are a good source of nutrients like iron, manganese, copper, potassium, and magnesium – all of which have their individual benefits. Thus we recommend you include Beetroot in your diet either as a salad or consume it in the form of juice.