Beets: Seriously Good For You

“The beet is the most intense of vegetables. The radish, admittedly, is more feverish, but the fire of the radish is a cold fire, the fire of discontent not of passion. Tomatoes are lusty enough, yet there runs through tomatoes an undercurrent of frivolity. Beets are deadly serious.”

— Tom Robbins

The above quote from Jitterbug Perfume illustrates the importance in which the beet may be held. In this newsletter we will look at this delicious, nutritious red root vegetable and its health-giving benefits. Chief among beets’ medicinal properties are its support of detoxification and nitric oxide production (more about this later).

Beets (Beta vulgaris) are a member of the Goosefoot (Chenopodiaceae) family which includes quinoa, Swiss chard and spinach. The intense red-violet color comes from a pigment called betanin. The pigments are strong antioxidant compounds. Nutritionally speaking, beets are an excellent source of fiber, potassium, folate and manganese. What is especially valuable, however, is its content of dietary nitrates, which it shares with its green leafy brethren such as spinach and arugula. Dietary nitrates are metabolized into nitrites by oral bacteria which are subsequently converted to nitric oxide in the body.

What is Nitric Oxide?

Nitric oxide is a gas produced in the body whose primary function is the health of the cardiovascular, immune and nervous systems. It is produced in normal conditions from L-arginine in heart cell types. It has become recognized as being essential for the proper functioning of the cardiovascular system, especially, as decreased production of endothelial nitric oxide is related to the onset and progression of heart disease. Primarily it acts as a vasodilator, relaxing blood vessels to improve blood pressure, prevent thromboses and prevent atherosclerosis.

Nitric Oxide’s Effects

Due to its blood vessel dilation properties, the benefits of nitric oxide are many. This increase in blood flow helps to deliver oxygen and nutrients to body tissues so an overall increase in energy levels may be evident. In recent years beet-based sports pre-workout products have become popular. Studies on athletes have shown drinking beetroot juice can improve exercise performance. Increased blood flow delivers more power for muscles to perform and fuels endurance, energy and stamina. In one study, researchers found that those who supplemented with beet juice had an increase in exercise tolerance and lower “rate of perceived exertion” (subjects felt they weren’t working as hard as others for the same result) than those who did not consume beet juice.

Improved peripheral blood flow improves more than athletic performance. The pharmaceutical drug Viagra’s mechanism is only that of increasing nitric oxide production and thus relaxed blood vessels. The action beets have on nitric oxide production may achieve the same goal, resulting in improvements in erectile dysfunction.

Beets have also been shown to benefit blood flow to the brain, thereby improving brain function. A 2017 study by Wake Forest University researchers found that, when combined with exercise, a supplement of beetroot juice “facilitates brain plasticity of somatomotor brain regions as compared with exercise + placebo alone,” especially in older adults.

Detoxification

Beets may support detoxification through multiple mechanisms. Their content of nutrients such as betaine and folate supports the methylation process which is important for Phase II liver detoxification. Phase II neutralizes toxins by conjugating them with other compounds for removal from the body. As well, the phytonutrient betalains present also support Phase II detoxification and are precursors for important detox enzymes. A 2006 study in rats showed that supplementation with beet extract significantly inhibited carbon tetrachloride-induced liver damage. Elevated liver enzymes were reduced thereby demonstrating a marked hepato-protective effect of the beets.