Healthy Info
Beetroot is a versatile vegetable and an ideal component of a healthy diet. The Food Standards Agency recommends eating five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. Just three baby beetroot equal one of the recommended five daily servings.
Eat a rainbow
The pigments in fruit and vegetables which are good for us, vary and the best way to ensure you’re eating enough of each is to eat a range of different coloured fruits and vegetables. Ttry to eat at least one serving of fruit or vegetables from each of the colour bands every day. In fact the more of these colourful foods that you can fit into your daily diet, the better.
Strawberries, raspberries, watermelon, red peppers, tomatoes, red apples, red grapes, red onions, cranberries, cherries, sweet potato...
Apricots, cantaloupe melon, carrots, sweetcorn, chillies, grapefruit, mango, oranges, papaya, peach, tangerine, pumpkin, butternut squash, cannelinni beans, papaya, yellow and orange peppers, GOLDEN BEETROOT...
Green apples, broccoli, cauliflower, chives, green beans, green cabbage, green tea, kiwi, leeks, lettuce, parsley, peas, spinach, fresh herbs, capers, flagelot beans, green tea, leeks, pears, broad beans, runner beans, celery...
Blackberries, blackcurrants, black tea, blueberries, plums, prunes, raisins, aubergine, red kidney beans, red cabbage, BEETROOT...
Beetroot is a rich source of carbohydrates, a good source of protein, and has high levels of important vitamins, minerals and micronutrients. It’s an excellent source of folic acid and is therefore recommended to women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant.
A number of different antioxidants are found in fruits and vegetables. These are important to human health because they prevent the oxidative processes that are thought to be the cause of many diseases. Betalins are a type of antioxidant found in beetroot in fairly large quantities. You don’t need to eat much beetroot to take in a beneficial amount of betalin.
Nutritional information
| 3 baby cooked & dipped beetroots (80g) provide: | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 22kcals | Carbohydrates | 4.5g |
| Fat | 0.2g | Fibre | 1.5g |
| Daily amounts | |||
| % RDA | |||
| Potassium Vitamin B6 Potassium Magnesium Copper Zinc Folate |
8% 5% 4% 4% 3% 3% 1% |
||
Beetroot is a useful source of folate, with 100g of beetroot cooked in natural juices containing 42mcg (micrograms). Three baby beets (about 80g) contain approximately 17% of the Recommended Daily Allowance. Beetroot is also a good source of potassium and magnesium.
Heart
Beetroot contains soluble fibre, which can help reduce blood cholesterol. It also contains ‘carotenoids’ and ‘flavonoids’, which help prevent LDL or ‘bad’ cholesterol from being oxidised and deposited in the arteries.
Brain, heart, bones
Cooked beetroot is a great source of folate that can protect you against high blood pressure, Alzheimer’s and dementia. It is also crucial to the development of a baby’s spinal cord during the first three months of pregnancy, so a good intake of folate is important to prevent spinal cord defects such as spina bifida.
Waistline
Beetroot is virtually fat free and low in calories. Although it has a ‘medium’ GI (Glycaemic Index) of 64, it has an extremely low GL (Glycaemic Load) of 2.9 which means it’s converted into sugars very slowly and therefore helps to keep blood sugar levels stable – which is good for the blood.