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Are canned beets good for you? How many beets should I eat a day? These are just some of the fundamental questions that people ask when it comes to consuming beets. Fortunately, we have the answers for you today as we examine the evidence and enumerate what it would mean for folks when they consume beets.
Beets are part of an exclusive list of food called superfoods. Superfoods are touted for their amazing healing properties and because they are the most nutritionally dense fruits and vegetables known in human history. Everyday food items like blueberries and Brussels sprouts are part of this list, and yes, beets rightly belong to this group, too.
Health Benefits
Beets are associated with the following health benefits:
- In some scientific studies, the consumption of at least two cups of beet juice per day has been associated with lower blood pressure overall of the respondents. Beets are rich in nitrates, and these have been touted as the cause of the lower blood pressure, as nitrates can help open up blood vessels.
- Beet juice can be consumed to help people reduce their caloric intake. One cup of raw beets is roughly just 58 calories, with only 13 grams of carbs, and is packed with micronutrients that are necessary for the normal functioning of the body. If you need more calories with less of the bulk of raw beets, feel free to consume beet juice, which has about 100 calories per US cup, and 25 grams of carbohydrates. Beet juice is a potent elixir for people who need extra energy for workouts minus the harmful ingredients found in soda and other commercial beverages.
- Consuming beets can help increase your intake of vital nutrients such as vitamin C, folic acid, and various antioxidants. Antioxidants are essential to the body because they help get rid of free radicals, which are the harmful byproducts of cellular metabolism. The more antioxidants you have in your diet, the healthier you become because your cells don’t age and die prematurely.
- In addition to having lots of antioxidants, beets also have lots of natural cancer-fighting nutrients and compounds. This makes beets a natural cancer-fighting supplement to anyone’s diet. The great reddish color of beets is betacyanin, which is touted to possess the capacity to fight cancer in the human body. Take note that when you consume beet juice or raw beets, your urine is going to be reddish, and that is just normal.
- On the cardiovascular front, beets are all about keeping your heart pumping. It has two powerful components that are directly linked to taking care of your heart and blood vessels: folate and betaine. These are trace nutrients that are also generally found in other food, but beets have exceptional levels of folate and betaine.
How does beet help take care of your heart? By reducing inflammation of your blood vessels, your risk of developing heart disease is reduced. If you consume beets regularly, your heart is going to be a happy camper, indeed. - Surprisingly, beets are also good for the eyes. This is due to the nutrient lutein, which has been linked to lower incidences of macular degeneration and damage due to cataracts. Cataracts are operable, but if you can prevent them from growing on your eyes in this lifetime, wouldn’t you take the opportunity to do so?
- The nitric acid content of beet juice appears to increase the blood flow to all of the organs, including the brain.
This means it can help reduce the incidence of dementia, which requires healthy blood flow to the front matter of the brain. If you consume beet regularly, you may be inadvertently investing in better brain health when you are in your golden years. - Are you suffering from constipation and pain when doing number two? You may want to eat more beets. Beets naturally help the digestive system move, and it also helps reduce the pain during a bowel movement. While beets are not indicated for loose stool, it’s something you can take if your bowels are not cooperating.
How Much Should I Eat?
One to two cups of beet juice or raw beets per day is the average safe consumptions of this superfood.
Beetroot Benefits for Men
- Beets are naturally rich in nitrates, which makes them very heart-friendly. It has been found in one study to boost the endurance of athletes. The athletes consumed beet juice mixed with some apple juice.
The results were nothing short of amazing. The athletes exhibited lower resting blood pressure, and they also reported that they had more energy and endurance during training. This is truly beneficial to men, especially to those who spend a lot of time in the gym.
Endurance is not something that we can develop quickly, but beet juice seems to give it out like candy when you get some. Something to think about the next time you think about what to put in your juice or shake. - There have also been reports of men consuming beet juice to help with ED or erectile dysfunction. Again, this may be since beets, in general, improve the cardiovascular system by reducing inflammation and opening up the blood vessels.
ED is mostly a condition caused by the reduced blood circulation to the male reproductive organ, so this natural therapy by adding beets to one’s diet makes sense.
Beet Poisoning Symptoms
Sometimes, symptoms appear when a person consumes too much beet juice/raw beets. Other times, the symptoms are triggered simply because a person is genetically predisposed to developing symptoms associated with beet consumption.
- Beeturia happens when the urine of the person turns red as a response to eating beets. It won’t harm your body, but some people may be uncomfortable with it.
- Beets are naturally high in oxalates, which may trigger the formation of kidney stones.
- Again, due to oxalates, beets are not recommended for people who have gouty arthritis.
