The Humble Beet

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By Dr. Mercola

There’s a lot to be said for the humble beet, an easy-to-grow garden vegetable. Whether juiced raw, cooked, pickled or fermented, beets have a wide range of health benefits. The nutrients they contain fight inflammation, lower blood pressure and help you detoxify. Beets have also been shown to lower your risk for heart failure and stroke, and may even help combat cancer.

Recent research also shows beets have powerful benefits for your brain, especially when combined with exercise, courtesy of their high nitrate content. Your body transforms nitrates into nitric oxide, which enhances oxygenation and has a beneficial impact on your circulatory and immune systems.

I include about 1 to 2 ounces of raw beets in my smoothie each day, in addition to taking a fermented beet root powder supplement. However, if you have diabetes or are insulin resistant, carefully monitor how raw beet juice affects your overall health, as 36 percent of each beet is simple sugars.

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This high sugar content can also make raw beets and beet juice counterproductive during the initial transitioning phase of a ketogenic diet as you’re trying to get your body to burn fat instead of sugar as its primary fuel. I detail this process in my new book, “Fat for Fuel.” In these instances, fermented beet juice, also known as beet kvass, may be a far preferable option, as virtually all of the sugar is eliminated during the fermentation process.

Other Health Promoting Properties of Beets

The phytonutrients that give beets their deep crimson color also have powerful anti-cancer properties. Research has shown that beetroot extract reduced multi-organ tumor formations in various animal models when administered in drinking water. Beetroot extract is also being studied for use in treating human pancreatic, breast and prostate cancers.17

Raw beets also help boost immune function thanks to high vitamin C, fiber, potassium and manganese, while the betalin pigments and sulfur-containing amino acids in beets support your body’s Phase 2 detoxification process. Traditionally, beets have been valued for their ability to purify your blood and liver.

High in the B vitamin folate, beets may also lower your stroke risk and are an excellent food for pregnant women. Folate is essential for many bodily processes, and lack of folate during pregnancy raises the risk of birth defects. The blood-cleansing properties of beet kvass may also help alleviate morning sickness.

Considerations When Buying and Preparing Beets

Whether you’re juicing your beets, eating them raw or fermenting them, I strongly recommend buying organic beets, or growing your own from heirloom beet seeds. While table beets are not genetically engineered (GE), they’re frequently grown in close proximity to sugar beets, most of which are GE, so there’s the potential for contamination via cross-pollination.

Besides the beetroots, beet greens are also very nutritious, and are a great source of fiber — 17 percent of your daily requirements in just one cup. Beet greens also contain vitamins B6 and K, magnesium, potassium, iron, copper, manganese and valuable antioxidants. You can juice or sauté them, or simply add them to your salad.

Beetroots tend to have a foul-tasting skin, so you may want to peel your beets before using them. One exception is when you’re making beet kvass. In this case, it’s better to leave the peel on, as beneficial microbes benefit and thrive from it. Hence you get better fermentation if you leave the skin on.

Fermenting Your Beets Makes Them Even Healthier

Fermenting your beets gives you all the health-boosting benefits of raw beets — and then some. Not only do you get beneficial bacteria and enzymes, but the fermentation process also makes all of the nutrients in beets more bioavailable. Aside from pickled beets,18 other fermented beet products include beet-infused sauerkraut19 or kvass,20,21,22 the latter of which can be drunk straight or added to soups, sauces and vinaigrettes.

Traditionally, beet kvass has been used to boost immune function, cleanse blood, combat fatigue and treat kidney stones, chemical sensitivities, allergies and digestive problems. Recent animal research confirms the gastrointestinal benefits of lactofermented beetroot juice, showing it helps improve gut microbiota and metabolic activity.23

By supplying beneficial bacteria, beet kvass can also have a very beneficial impact on diabetes and many other health problems, particularly those rooted in gut dysfunction.

Because of its detoxifying properties, avoid drinking too much when first starting out. Doing so could result in an overload of released toxins, producing bloating, constipation and/or cold or flu-like symptoms. As a general recommendation, start out with 1 ounce per day, gradually increasing the amount to an 8-ounce glass per day. If you’re highly toxic, you may need to start out with as little as a tablespoon.

Add Some Beets to Your Diet Today

Beets truly are a great ally in your quest for good health, thanks to their ability to increase nitric oxide. Fermenting them will give you the added benefit of beneficial bacteria, and most health problems today are in one way or another related to or aggravated by poor gut health. So, go ahead and add some beets to your diet. There are many ways to enjoy them, be it raw, cooked or fermented. Here are but a few suggestions:

  • Grate or slice them raw over salads. Sample recipe: beet salad with walnuts and goat cheese
  • Add them to your fresh vegetable juice. Limit yourself to approximately 1 ounce per day to get the benefits without overdosing on sugar
  • Lightly steam or roast and eat with some salt and butter
  • Marinate them with lemon juice, herbs and olive oil
  • Make borscht soup (beet soup, a traditional Russian dish)
  • Raw, pickled and beet-infused sauerkraut also go really well with kielbasa and other hearty sausage dishes
  • Enjoy homemade beet kvass. For instructions and a simple recipe, see my previous article, “The Benefits of Fermented Beets“

Sources and References

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