Beets, also called beetroot, are underground growing tubers that can be very tasty both cooked and raw. Beets are very healthy. The beetroot works very well in a raw vegetable or salad. Raw vegetables are usually much healthier than cooked vegetables. You can also eat the leaves of beets. These are called Swiss chard. The leaves can be eaten as a salad. You can also use them to blend and make a vegetable juice. NB! This article is written from the personal view of the author and may contain information that is not scientifically substantiated and/or in line with the general view.

Contents:

• Beetroot variations
• Beetroot against high blood pressure
• Vitamins in beetroot
• Minerals in beets
• Phytonutrients in beets
• Beets against cancer
• Beets are good for the blood
• Growing old with beets
• Fiber in beets
• beetroot Soup
• Beetroot juice
• Eating tips cold beets
• Eating tips for warm beets

Beetroot variations

Kroot is a word that is used in Rotterdam and the surrounding area instead of beetroot. The beet is a root vegetable. In addition to Swiss chard and the beet root, you can also eat germinated beet seeds. These are often used as a garnish; they look nice red. It is simply a tasty and healthy vegetable. A serving tip is to cook a diced beetroot together with rice. You will then get pink rice. For children it makes it extra special to eat rice.

Beetroot against high blood pressure

Beets are known for a number of medicinal uses. Since the Middle Ages, beets have mainly been prescribed for diseases related to the blood and diseases related to the intestines and digestion. A study was published in an American journal of the American Heart Association showing that beetroot helps against hypertension or high blood pressure. Drinking half a liter of beetroot juice helped against high blood pressure and the effects remained measurable 24 hours after drinking. You can make beetroot juice yourself using a blender, but beetroot juice is often also available in the (organic) store.

Vitamins in beetroot

Crochet roots are an excellent source of vitamins. Most of the beetroot contains folic acid, also known as vitamin B11. 100 grams of beetroot provide no less than 27% of the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of folic acid. Vitamin C is represented in the beetroot at 8% of the RDA. Pyridoxine or vitamin B6 accounts for 5% of the RDA. For riboflavin or B2, 4% of the RDI is in the beetroot. Pantothenic acid (vitamin B5) contains 3% of the RDA.

Minerals in beets

Red beets contain a number of healthy minerals. There is 14% of the RDA of manganese in an ounce of beets. For iron, 10% of the RDI is in the beetroot. Copper has a percentage of 8% of the RDA. Potassium is a mineral that is found in red beets at 7% of the RDA. Magnesium is found in beets and an ounce provides 6% of the RDA. For sodium, beets contain 5% of the RDI. Finally, it contains zinc; 3% of the RDA.

Phytonutrients in beets

There are many more phytonutrients than vitamins and minerals; the number is in the thousands and new ones are being found all the time. In some cases, these phytonutrients have stronger medicinal properties than vitamins and minerals; That’s why it’s so good to eat fresh fruit and vegetables and not blindly rely on supplements. Beets mainly contain betalains. Betanine and vulgaxanthin in particular are very healthy betalains. These substances support anti-inflammatory mechanisms in the body, fight free radicals and help the body to detoxify. As a result, they help prevent diseases in general. Betalains are removed from the vegetable by cooking. The longer you cook them, the less of it there is. There is an optimal amount in them when they are raw. After an hour of cooking, almost all betalains have disappeared.

Beets against cancer

In scientific research, betanin has been tested on cancer cells. Betanin added to a tumor ensures that the tumor grows less quickly. Betanin has been tested on tumors in the nerve tract, prostate, breast, testes, intestines, lungs and stomach. In itself this is not proof that beets work against cancer, but it is an incentive for scientists to conduct further research into it.

Beets are good for the blood

Beets are good for everything that has to do with the blood. Atherosclerosis or arteriosclerosis is prevented by eating beets. This is because the homocysteine levels in the blood are regulated by beets. Choline, an amino acid plays a key role in neutralizing unwanted homocysteine. Betaine is a variation of choline; it is choline with 3 types of methyl groups attached to it. In addition, betaine is good as an anti-inflammatory agent. It prevents inflammation in all kinds of body parts. That is one of the reasons why it reduces the risk of arteriosclerosis.

Growing old with beets

In Russia, a lot of borscht, the traditional Russian beet soup, is eaten. There are regions in Russia where there are relatively many people who live to be over 100 years old. Some scientists suggest that the extensive consumption of beets is responsible for old age. There are three reasons for this;

• Beets promote phase two of the detox by converting toxins into water-soluble substances that can be quickly removed from the body.
• Beets provide protection for the heart,
• Beets prevent cancer.

Fiber in beets

Like many natural foods, beets contain fiber. These are very healthy because they ensure that all the nutrients in the food can be better absorbed. Fibers can be divided into several types. Fibers from roots and root vegetables such as beets are extra special because they can prevent colon cancer.

beetroot Soup

You can make a delicious soup from beets. You can mix beetroot soup with two carrots to make it a little sweeter and a potato for firmness. First you boil the beets, carrots and potatoes for about 25-30 minutes. They must be nicely cooked. You fry an onion with garlic in the frying pan. You add this just before you start blending. After blending all the vegetables you can serve the soup. It is delicious to serve it with cream. This soup tastes delicious in combination with organic brown bread.

Beetroot juice

You can buy beetroot juice in a bottle, but it is also possible to make beetroot juice yourself. The recipes are easy to execute. Take an apple, a carrot and a beet. Put it in a blender and press the on button. After a few tens of seconds you have a super healthy beetroot smoothie. To add some extra flavor you can blend a piece of fresh ginger. Another recipe is to blend cucumber, carrot and beets into a smoothie. You can add some rosemary or dill if desired.

Eating tips cold beets

Slice the beets with a cheese grater. This is how you get raw beet carpaccio. Beets are great for using in a salad. Raw it has a somewhat earthy taste. When you cook them that disappears. For variation, you can roast vegetables and then process them into a salad. Roast carrots, beets, peppers and zucchini and make a dressing of mustard and red peppers. Add everything together and you have a delicious beet salad.

Eating tips for warm beets

Beets are also delicious as a main vegetable together with potatoes. You can also stir-fry small pieces of beetroot to make a vegetable mix to go with the rice. Vegetables with which you can fill this vegetable mix are: leek, carrot, onion, white cabbage and garlic. When you have almost finished stir-frying, you can add a handful of kale and bean sprouts. Of course there are plenty of other vegetables to vary. Combine and make your own unique vegetable mix.

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