Beetroot is a great bowel cleanser and very good for the blood. It is high in Vitamin C and Iron. Don’t be alarmed if you pee red after having it or your stools go red; this is a phenomena of beetroot. When I worked as a nurse we used to get people turning up to casualty thinking they were bleeding to death but they had just eaten beetroot. It is naturally sweet and a great natural food colouring and some use it as a hair dye!
In recent studies it has been shown to boost endurance and stamina. The nitrate in beetroot can increase the production of Nitric oxide which is:
A regulator of blood pressure
A gate keeper of blood flow to most organs
A stamina enhancer via oxygen usage efficiency
A weapon against infection, including bowel and stomach infections
A study published in June 2010 in the American heart Association journal of hypertension, found that blood pressure lowered within 24hrs of people drinking beetroot juice. The researchers confirmed that the nitrate content of the beetroot juice is the underlying cause of its blood pressure lowering benefits. I have seen peoples blood pressure go up due to constipation which can cause pressure on the heart and beetroot is one thing that helps the blood pressure and move the bowel.
Scientific research by The University of Exeter School of Sport and Health Sciences and more recently a study by Maastricht University Medical Centre prove the effect of beetroot juice on “time to exhaustion” The research demonstrates that athletes are able to exercise for 15-20% longer and perform better in time trials. It is also beneficial for those who are convalescing or have suffered exhaustion from inflammatory bowel disease or chronic digestive problems.
How to eat beetroot
Beetroot can be so delicious added to food:
Scrub it with a vegetable brush to clean.
Grate it into a salad; it goes especially well with grated carrot and walnuts.
Use a cheese slicer and slice into a stir fry near the end of cooking. It’s lovely drizzled with olive oil and fresh herbs.
Roast it in the oven with roasted pumpkin. It takes longer than other roast vegetables so either put it in the oven earlier or chop it into smaller pieces.
It can be used in cake and muffin recipes.
Use a small amount in a blender mixed with other foods to change the colour of food for kids.
It’s delicious as a fresh juice, you can mix it with other vegetables or have it on its own, or for a real kick blend it with ginger.
You can boil it, but I’m not a fan of it as it takes more nutrients out than the other methods of eating it.
Fresh beetroot tastes very different to tinned beetroot; don’t get put off by past experiences of tinned beetroot as there’s nothing like fresh beetroot.
