I never liked beets as a kid. I hated them. But my mom made me eat them, and now I love eating beets. Beets are a unique vegetable with amazing properties. They have been known since ancient times, and were viewed by Hippocrates as a medicinal plant. They were used for treating blood disorders such as anemia because of their high content of iron. The iodine amount that beets contain is second only to kale. Beets provide your body with necessary nutrients and powerful antioxidants.
The beet root is the taproot portion of the beet plant, usually known in North America as the beet, also table beet, garden beet, red beet, or golden beet.
There are many reasons why you should include beets in your diet, but here are just a few.
• Beets contain polyphenols and betalains which can heal the free radical damage and oxidative stress
• They contain numerous vitamins including vitamin B
• Beets are rich in minerals like potassium and folate, which help to keep the heart healthy; magnesium, which is great for bone health; iron and phosphorus which give energy; copper, which destroys free radicals and iodine, a mineral crucial for biosynthesis of thyroid hormones
• Beets contain cobalt, which encourages vitamin B12 formation. Without it and folic acid, the red blood cells cannot be formed
• They rejuvenate our bodies with folic acid which helps in the creation of new cells
• The betalain pigments found in beets help our bodies extract toxins
• They improve digestion thanks to dietary fibers
• Beets stimulate the metabolism
• They help us digest vitamin D
• Beets help in prevention of dementia due to their high amounts of nitrates which transform to nitrites in the body. Nitrites open the blood vessels, which increases blood flow
• The pectin found in beets is in greater amounts than in carrots or apples. Pectin is responsible for the extraction of radioactive materials and heavy metals from the body, and hinders the spread of harmful intestinal bacteria as well as preventing development of various diseases
So there you have it. All you wanted to know about beets. If you’ve never enjoyed eating beets, why not try some. You just might like them now. If you are buying beets, support our local producers by buying Ontario beets. Good for you and great for our economy. Thank you for supporting our local growers.
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Think about this – When we come to Christ in our brokenness, He makes us whole.
Just some food for thought.
Here in Chatham-Kent ‘WE GROW FOR THE WORLD’. Check out our community’s agricultural website at www.wegrowfortheworld.com
Kim Cooper has been involved in the agribusiness sector for over 45 years. He can be reached at: kim.e.cooper@gmail.com
You can also follow him on Twitter at ‘theAGguy’
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