Boost Your Health With Beet Root
The beet (Beta vulgaris) is a plant in the beet root family. It is best known its numerous cultivated varieties, the most well known of which is probably the red root vegetable known as the garden beet. However, other cultivated varieties include the leaf vegetables chard and spinach beet, as well as the root vegetables sugar beet, which is important in the production of table sugar, and mangelwurzel, which is a fodder crop.
Three subspecies are typically recognized. All cultivated varieties fall into the subspecies Beta vulgaris subsp. vulgaris, while Beta vulgaris subsp. maritima, commoly known as the sea beet, is the wild ancestor of these and is found throughout the Mediterranean, the Atlantic coast of Europe, the Near East, and India. A second wild subspecies, Beta vulgaris subsp. adanensis, occurs from Greece to Syria.
Many people are of the belief that Beet root is good for the blood. This is not correct. Of course beet root is good for you it is not high in iron so it will not help prevent anemia, which many believe it will do. Beet root’s main benefits are that it contains no fat, very few calories and is a great source of fiber.
Red beet root has for many years been used as a treatment for cancer in Europe. Specific anti carcinogens are bound to the red coloring matter which supposedly helps fight against cancer and beet root also increases the uptake of oxygen by as much as 400 percent. Additional studies are taking place to add support to these claims. The green leafy part of the beet root is also of nutritional value containing beta carotene and other carotenoids, (Carotenoid refers to plant pigments of which there is a family of about 600 different types. These all function as antioxidants. The yellow, orange, and many of the red pigments in fruits, vegetables, and plant materials are usually carotenoids.) This part of the beet also contains lots of folate, iron, potassium and some vitamin C. The roots and greens therefore are great for women in general and for those planning pregnancy. Try eating the leaves and stalk boiled or steam and accompany with other more flavorsome vegies like onions and garlic.
In ancient times, beets had elongated roots like carrots and the globular red beet we now eat was only hybridized about 300 years ago. Beets have the highest sugar content of all the vegetables and are becoming popularly used as a sweetening substitute. Beet juice and beet powder are used to flavor carrot, celery, and other vegetable juices, and also to color a variety of foods.
Beets, or at least the leaves of the beet, have been used since before recorded history. Charred beet roots were found among Neolithic remains at an excavation site in the Netherlands. The Sea beet, the ancestor of the modern cultivated beet, was probably domesticated somewhere along the Mediterranean. Both the roots and leaves have been used in folk medicine to treat a wide variety of ailments since the time of the Romans, who used them for fever and constipation.
Hippocrates used the leaves as a binding for wounds. In the Talmud, the rabbis recommended “eating beet root, drinking mead, and bathing in the Euphrates” as part of a prescription for a long and healthy life. During the middle ages, Platina in his De Honesta (1460) noted that beet root was good for bad breath, especially “garlic breath”. Many cultures have used beet roots for their quality as an aphrodisiac, and there were even paintings in brothels in Pompeii that had depictions of beets on them. There is some validity to this claim as beets are a rich source of the mineral boron, which plays a role in the production of testosterone and estrogen. Although the leaves were consumed for many centuries, the root itself was not widely consumed until French chefs recognized its culinary potential in the early 19th century.
Red beet root is available in capsule, tablet and bulk powder forms at your local or internet Red beet root. Look for natural beet root in name brands to ensure quality and purity of the product you purchase.
*Statements contained herein have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Beet Root is not intended to diagnose, treat and cure or prevent disease. Always consult with your professional health care provider before changing any medication or adding Vitamins to medications.
