They are packed with lots of healthy nutrients and has been widely used to treat various ailments since long time. They’re rich in iron and the content is only less than garlic of all plant foods; they’re also good sources of iodine, that is the second to kale.
Yes, they’re beets. You know they’re healthy, while there are many facts you may not know about this dark red food.
Health Benefits and Risks of Eating Beets
Health Benefits-
- Beets are high in fiber, which helps combat constipation and promote a better digestion.
- The greens of beets contain rich lutein, which helps boost eye health by preventing your eyes from age-related macular degeneration.
- Folate and betaine in beets help lower the blood levels of homocysteine, thus lowering the risk of heart disease. What’s more, betaine also helps your mental health, this compound is common used in some treatments of depression.
- Thanks to their anti-inflammatory properties and rich in antioxidants, beets fight some types of cancer. Besides, they contain betacyanins, which inhibits the growth of cancer cells effectively.
- Beets help improve the circulation as they’re rich in nitrates, which will convert to nitric oxide in the body, a compound that has ability to relax and dilate blood vessels, this will lower the blood pressure in a manner.
- The process of nitric oxide relaxing and dilating your blood vessels will also increase blood flow to your brain, means it will boost your brain function as well.
- As a high-antioxidant vegetable, beets are loaded with the essential nutrients that are necessary for cleaning and detoxifying your organs, such as betaine, pectin and betalains, all of which can remove toxins out of your body.
- Betalains in beets also fight against the inflammation-related chronic diseases, including heart disease and even cancer.
- Beets are low in calories, add them in your salads or smoothies if you want to lose more pounds.
Health Risk-
There are some side effects of eating too much beets, as they contain a high amount of oxalates, which may contribute to the development of kidney stones.
Also because of the high amount of oxalates, eat beets too much may result in gout.
The nutritional value of beets is kept well both raw and cooked, here are some good ways to include them into your daily diet:
- Beet salad
- Beet smoothie
- Beet quinoa
- Beet soup
Find the recipes at here.
Sources: healthiestalternative.com, seekingfit.com
Related Reading:
What To Do to Effectively Detox Each Organ
How to Eliminate Toxins and Shed Fat With Green Detox Drinks
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