The beetroot is the taproot portion of a plant named beet plant. It is not chiefly cultivated in India, it’s a crop of Europe but grown at small scale in some areas of India. When we consider the total sugar production in world , 35% of the sugar is produced from sugar beet and the contribution of India in its production is approximately zero because the climatic condition of India is not favorable for sugar beet, so its basically crop of European countries. Beetroot’s medicinal properties are well known. It is rich source of iron and it has great quality of healing. It was first cultivated by the Romans. In19th century it became a famous vegetable because is discovered that sugar can be extacted from it. Now a days America is at top most position in production of beet root then Russia, France, Poland and Germany comes in this chain. In European countries many of the dishes are made up by beet root t, the soup of beet is known as “Borscht”. Beet root is widely use in making menus more attractive. Apart from being delicious and attractive its medicinal value can not be ignored. Because it belongs to the same family as spinach and chard, its leaves and root can be eaten. Beet root leaves have a harsh taste but the round root is sugary taste.
Generally beet root has purple color, but also found in white and golden color. It has high sugar percentage, it is pleasant eaten raw but basically it cooked or pickled. Beetroot is of extremely dietary value; particularly the leaves are rich in calcium, iron and vitamins A and vitamin C. Beetroots are rich source of folic acid, iron and fair source of fibre, manganese and potassium. The leaves should not be thrown; they can be cooked as spinach. Beetroots are used for medicinal purposes, mainly for diseases related to liver because they helpful in stimulating the detoxification function of the liver. A pigment is found in beet root named betacynin that gives beetroot rich, purple-crimson color. It is a commanding agent, which suppress the development of some types of cancer. Beetroot is good for healing and avoidance of many disorders. Fresh and raw beets are best for squeezing into a juice. Beetroot juice is good remedy for high fever, anemia, influenza, pneumonia; it also helps in repairing of excretory system, hepatic system and bile. In treatment of different types of diseases half liter beetroot juice for adults and 250 ml for children is advised. Person suffering from diabetes should drink beet root with addition of honey which enhances its medicinal properties. Beetroot juice reduces body temperature immediately. Recently it has been reported that it is also beneficial in high blood pressure. Because potassium, drains water from the body so blood pressure reduces. Another beneficial component for human found in beet root is silicon. Our body can absorb easily the silicon present in beet root. This silicon strengthens the connective tissues basically of skin, blood vessels and bones. Silicon is helpful in removal of toxins as aluminum from organism. Silicon is considered to be one of the main elements for maintaining health and healing process. Beetroot is good source of folate and manganese and contain betaines that reduce the focus of homocysteine, a homolog of amino acid cysteine. Extremely main key element of beetroot juice is folic acid. Folic acid member of the group of vitamins B, human body normally lacks the mostly of it. Folic acid also has a vital role in metabolism.
Beetroot juice contains much amount of folic acid so cells can easily absorb it. Eating beetroot makes our dermis more elastic and promote the growth of hair and nails. So drinking its red juice decreases hair fall. Potassium is found in beetroot juice that regulates the amount of water in organism, excretes excess fluid, binds fats and thus detoxifies our body, which is essential for the preservation of health. Anti cancerous property is found in beetroot anthocyanin is found in it, which has antioxidant effect and inhibits the growth of cancer cells in our body. Two other important substances found in beetroot are betalain and polyphenol. All these substances are natural inhibitors of cancer cells growth. These all substances are also found in aloe- Vera, garlic, broccoli, Brussels, sprouts, cabbage, nuts and oil but in smaller quantities than beetroot. Beet juice is incredible remedy for anemia because it stimulates the formation of R.B.C. or red blood bodies. In addition with potassium it also cleans blood.
Fresh beetroot juice helps in chemotherapy, more precisely; it is known that it has a soothing effect on the X-rays in radiotherapy. X-rays generally kill cancer cells but can also harm healthy cells. Some ingredients in the juice of beetroot prevent destruction of healthy cells. So cancer patients should consume half a liter of fresh beetroot juice per day, dividing into two or three meals. Mixing with honey has best effect as honey also has healing properties. Further substances mentioned above, beetroot juice contains abundant amount of iron, manganese, phosphorus, copper, zinc and vitamin C and fiber. Eating beetroot increases the formation of hormones and neurotransmitters signals for ex- dopamine and nor epinephrine. These two are responsible for psychological satisfaction of human. In studies it has been seen that without folic acid is responsible for to be happy and optimistic and it is found in beet root in sufficient amount. Beetroot makes skin cleaner and youthful and also make bones active. Beet root has healing effects that are not so well known. Beetroot decreases high blood pressure, helps in dementia, helps with heart disease and cures cancer. Beetroot helps in detoxification of the liver and stomach; it improves cardiac circulation, digestion and controls thyroid function. So it is important how we are preparing and cooking beetroot. When beetroot is pulling out of the ground, we should not chop off the root as juice will start to leak. Oxidizing reactions can occur on cutting off the root and so some of the enzymes can lose their impression. So chop or grate beetroot quickly with a juicer and then squeeze the juice from it and drink it immediately, within 10 minutes. It should not be stored in the refrigerator, especially not for a long time. Its leaves can also be squeezed as juice of leaves also contain much of the substances. The leaves contain a lot of chlorophyll that is one of the most powerful antioxidants. Beets are rich source of nitrates which are curative in treat angina, chest pain and even congestive heart failure. Nitrates help in making wider our blood vessels and it also helps in proving more oxygenated blood to our heart muscle. Nitrates also give relaxation to our veins. Initially beets and its juice are not on stage of the body ecology system of health and healing because they have high sugar percentage for those who are suffering from systemic candida overgrowth. Sugar gives favorable condition for the growth of this pathogenic yeast in human body, blood stream and digestive tract.
The sugar also makes human body more acidic and candida grows in an acidic environment very easily. Candidaisis is common in at least 70% of men; women and children have a candida overgrowth in their body which causes to chain of other symptoms including fatigue, brain fog, food indigestion and digestive disturbances. It can take some days to culture beet juice with a starter culture of friendly bacteria and yeast. Friendly microbes are generally known as probiotics. They eat the sugars in the beets, so they can be eaten without irritating candida symptoms. Beet root helps our liver function properly. Liver is primary organ in detoxification. Liver’s function is absolutely essential for throwing out body toxins on a daily basis. Beetroot is has great quantity of fibre, beneficial for bowel function, which may help in preventing constipation and help to lower cholesterol levels too. Beetroot fibre helps to increase the level of an enzyme known as glutathione peroxidase and also increase the number of white blood cells that are responsible for detecting and eliminating abnormal cells. Beets are also one of the richest sources of an amino acid named glutamine, essential for the health and maintenance of the intestinal tract. Eating fruits and vegetables is related with the increasing consumption of plant based foods like beetroot, decreases the chance of obesity, over weight and overall mortality, diabetes, cardiac problems and increases a healthy color and hair, increased energy, lowers body weight. In recent studies it has been seen that 500mls of beetroot juice in healthy reference men lower hypertension. In research it has been hypothesized it was due to the high nitrate levels in beet juice so high nitrate containing vegetables are prove to be a cheap and effective way to treat heart disease conditions and blood pressure.
In another study that was held in 2010, similar results has been seen that drinking beetroot juice decreases blood pressure basically on a dose-dependent basis. Drinking juice from beetroot can improve oxygenation to the brain, slowing the progression of dementia in older adults. In older age problem of dementia occur generally because blood flow to certain areas of the brain decrease with age and leads to a decline in cognition and possible dementia. Including beetroot juice as a high nitrate diet can improve the blood circulation and oxygen carrying capacity to these areas that are lacking. An antioxidant known as alpha-lipoic acid is found in beets that have been proved to decrease glucose levels, increase insulin sensitivity and restrict oxidative stress based changes in diabetic patient. In research on alpha-lipoic acid have also shown reduction in peripheral neuropathy in diabetics patients. Because of it contain high fiber, beetroot helps to prevent constipation and promote control a healthy digestive system. Choline is a crucial and versatile nutrient in beetroot that is associated with sleep, muscular movement, learning and memory. Choline also responsible for maintaining the structure of cell membranes helps in the transmission of nerve impulses helps in the absorption of fat and decreases chronic swelling. Supplementation of beet root juice improves muscular oxygenation during exercise; suggest that increased dietary nitrate intake has the capacity to increase exercise tolerance during long-term endurance exercise. Life acceptance of the person with heart disease, respiratory and metabolic diseases who find the activities of daily life physically difficult because of lack of oxygenation that can be cured.
We can include beet root in our diet by these tricks -
a. We can roast, steam, boil, pickle form or eat raw.
b. We can make beetroot juice by peeling beetroot and blending with a combination of fresh orange, mint and pineapple, lemon and ginger then blend and strain.
c. We can grate raw beets and add it to our favorite salad.
d. Top roasted beets with goat cheese have a perfect pairing.
e. We can add sliced pickled beets to our favorite salad and top with goat cheese.
f. We can slice raw beets and serve it with lemon juice and a sprinkle of chili powder.
There are some health risks of eating beet roots-
a. If beet root stored improperly, its nitrate-content vegetable juice may accumulate bacteria which convert nitrate to nitrite and contaminate the juice. High levels of nitrite can be potentially dangerous.
b. A high-nitrate diet may interact with certain medications such as organic nitrate used for angina, sildenafil citrate, tadalafil.
c. Drinking beetroot juice may cause red excretory material.
d. It is the total diet or overall eating pattern that is most important in disease prevention and achieving good health. It is better to eat a diet with variety than to concentrate on individual foods as the key to good health.