Nutrients in Beets

Beets are rich in folate, high in fiber, and a good source of potassium, phosphorus and Vitamin A⁽¹⁾. They’re also a good source of dietary nitrates, which we do need ^(2,3,3,4,5).

Nutrition Facts⁽¹⁾:

(1 cup cooked, sliced)

Calories 31
Protein 1.5 grams
Carbohydrate 8.5 grams
Dietary Fiber 1.5 grams
Potassium 259 mg
Phosphorus 32 mg
Folate 53.2 mcg
Vitamin A 58.5 IU

Health Benefits of Beets

What does all of the good stuff in beets do for our bodies? A lot! Research has shown that drinking beet juice (one of the most popular ways to consume beets) may help with the prevention and treatment of heart disease², may increase neuroplasticity in the aging brain³, may improve blood flow to critical brain areas known to be involved in executive functioning⁵, and may improve how our mitochondria function². Mitochondria process oxygen and convert nutrients from the foods we eat into energy. 

Beets have also been shown to be good for increasing exercise performance,^(2,3,4) but timing is apparently everything. You’ll need to drink your beet juice about three hours before you train or compete to reap the most benefits⁴.  It also seems that drinking just over 2 cups is the ideal amount for the best results⁴.

How to Prepare Beets

One of my favorite ways to eat beets is to roast them. Because they naturally contain sugar, roasting helps to bring out their sweetness and flavor. I have never had beet juice, but in reading all of the studies that focus on it for health benefits, I will definitely be trying beet smoothies soon. (I prefer smoothies over juice so that I don’t lose any of that valuable fiber.) 

Here are a couple of beet smoothie recipes that you may want to try:

• Blueberry Beet Smoothie by Well Plated
• Apple Ginger Beetroot Smoothie by The Kitchen Girl

Here are my favorite roasted beet recipes:

• Simple Roasted Beets by Spend With Pennies
• Roasted Beetroot Salad with Goat Cheese & Walnuts by The Cooks Pyjamas

Budget Benefits of Beets

As long as you buy them in-season, beets are affordable. I can buy a small- to medium beet at my local farmers’ market for about 50 cents. It takes about eight small- to medium beets for a very good-sized recipe of roasted beets, which go great with brown rice, wild rice or quinoa for the perfect side dish. The beet smoothie recipes I mentioned above each include one small beet. 

If you’re juicing beets, Gina Eykemans says in this article for @kitchnn that it takes about four red beets to produce 1 cup of juice. If you’re drinking it as the ultimate exercise enhancer as mentioned above, that’s going to be about $4 for your 2 cups of juice. Now that’s a bit on the pricey side for me, but if you’re used to buying juice at a juice bar, that may be on par or cheaper than what you’re used to or if your exercise performance is a huge deal for you, it may be well worth it. 

For me, I’ll stick with my roasted beets and beet smoothies to reap all of the health benefits I can from simply eating these beautiful veggies. 

Sources

1. University of Illinois Extension. Watch Your Garden Grow: Beets. https://web.extension.illinois.edu/veggies/beet.cfm
2. Beresewicz, Andrzej, Gajos-Draus, Anna. Enjoy Your Heart-Beets. The Role of Dietary Inorganic Nitrate in Cardiovascular Health. Kardiologia Polska (Polish Heart Journal). https://www.mp.pl/kardiologiapolska/issue/article/14433
3. Petrie M, Rejeski WJ, Basu S, et al. Beet Root Juice: An Ergogenic Aid for Exercise and the Aging Brain. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2017;72(9):1284–1289. doi:10.1093/gerona/glw219. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5861951/
4. Jones AM, Bailey SJ, Vanhatalo A. Dietary nitrate and O? consumption during exercise. Med Sport Sci. 2012;59:29–35. doi:10.1159/000342062. https://www.karger.com/Article/Abstract/342062
5. Presley TD, Morgan AR, Bechtold E, et al. Acute effect of a high nitrate diet on brain perfusion in older adults. Nitric Oxide. 2011;24(1):34–42. doi:10.1016/j.niox.2010.10.002 – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3018552/

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