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An expert says don’t waste your money on beetroot supplements—try this instead

Read the label on a bottle of beetroot capsules, and you might see promises of improved athletic performance, blood pressure, and function of your digestive and immune systems. But can a couple grams of the pink powder do all that? The answer is a resounding “Ehh…maybe.” If you really want to get the full health benefits of beets, “don’t waste your money on supplements or special juices. Just eat beets,” says Cydney McQueen, PharmD, a clinical professor at the University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Pharmacy and an expert on dietary supplements.

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Because SuperBeets is made from dehydrated beets, it may provide benefits similar to those of beetroot juice, which may include lower blood pressure and improved athletic performance.

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Give me a beet: Why this root vegetable should be on your plate

Meet the beet. Fans of "The Office" may know it as the mainstay of Schrute Farms. Others may have casually tossed them into conversation, remarking that someone has turned "beet red" from embarrassment. While the crimson-colored vegetable has deep roots in American culture and colloquialisms, it rarely seems to make it onto the plate where it belongs. That's because people just don't understand the beet, said Catherine Champagne, a professor of dietary assessment and nutritional counseling at Louisiana State University's Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge.

Beet supplements may not live up to the hype

Beet juice offers health benefits while powdered supplements don’t pack much power.

Beetroot juice is disgusting.. here’s why you should drink a glass every morning

Beetroot juice is absolutely disgusting. It tastes exactly as you would imagine — earthy, salty, disgusting. It really is my least favourite thing to eat or drink. I also recommend you drink a small glass every single day. Here’s why...

Beetroot juice may aid people with coronary heart disease – study

Research suggests a daily glass reduces harmful inflammation by boosting nitric oxide levels.

Beetroot juice: good science or great marketing hype?

The theory behind how beetroot juice enhances performance is a complex but interesting one. It’s been known for quite a while that nitric oxide (NO) in the blood is involved in the way that muscles produce energy. More NO in the blood during exercise appears to reduce the amount of oxygen it takes to produce energy, creating a type of “fuel efficiency” that could potentially improve exercise performance.

Dancing to the beet

Beets are a healthy addition to any diet. The juice is considered safe, even as a concentrate, in supplements, smoothies, and as a food additive. Advise patients that, though perhaps surprising, it is harmless to have pink or red urine or stools from drinking beetroot juice. Few adverse effects have been reported, but caution those with already low blood pressure to monitor carefully when drinking beet juice regularly. Patients subject to calcium oxalate kidney stones should avoid beetroot juice as beets are high in oxalate content.

Drink your beets

Carnitine, chromium, anabolic steroids: Athletes have experimented with a broad array of aids in pursuit of a performance edge. A popular — if unglamorous — one today that seems safe and backed by solid data: the juice of beets, for the nitrate it contains. But because these products are not regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration, consumers often can’t know for sure how much nitrate they contain. Last year, Coggan and an undergraduate tested 24 products, from powders to concentrates and bulk juice, and found that only five contained effective levels of nitrate.

I Drank Beetroot Juice Every Day for a Month, and It Gave Me a Major Energy Buzz

Could this be my new flat white?

I Swapped My Pre-Workout Shakes for Beet Juice, and Here’s How It Affected My Training

The reason beet juice in particular has been studied in connection to athletic performance is that it contains dietary nitrate. When the dietary nitrate interacts with the saliva in your mouth, it makes nitric oxide, explains Nicole Lund, MPH, RDN, clinical nutritionist at NYU Langone Sports Performance Center. This nitric oxide in the body is what is believed to be the mechanism that can increase athletic performance: It relaxes blood vessels, which increases blood flow and delivers more oxygen to your muscles, thereby improving endurance and strength.

Is Beet Juice Worth The Hype?

But here’s an important point, unlike many other phytochecmicals, the more you cook beets the more betalains are lost. The loss is substantial even if you steam them for 10-15 mins. This is why fresh beet juice is the way to go!

It’s hard to beat the health benefits of beets

Beets are bright red root vegetables, and they are gaining popularity in the health field. In addition to being low-calorie, they're also loaded with nutrients that benefit the heart, digestion and athletic performance.

Should I Take a Beet Supplement?

Beet, or beetroot, supplements are gaining quite a following for a number of apparent health benefits, including increased energy, improved physical performance, and reductions in blood pressure.

The Beet Juice Craze: Beat it or Join it?

So what’s the verdict? Is it a miracle elixir? On the whole, we can surmise that beet juice is for the most part pretty good for you. It’s loaded with vitamins and minerals, is rich in antioxidants and can lower blood pressure temporarily. As with all things, though, moderation is key. Eating beets is arguably a better choice. When you juice beets, you lose the nice dose of fiber they contain and you ingest more sugar than you would by eating a beet or two.

The Good & The Not-So-Good Truth About Beets...

Lastly, if you're drinking your nitrates in beetroot juice or beet juice concentrate, you might want to watch your blood sugar! Those products carry a hefty dose of sugar — do you really want to take something that saps your energy when you're trying to promote your health?

The Health Benefits of Beets—and the Most Delicious Ways to Eat Them

From a culinary perspective, beets offer a two-one punch. Their bright pink color can brighten up the simplest of dishes, while their earthy sweetness complements myriad ingredients. However, their perks don't stop there; beets are also incredibly healthy, making them one of the best vegetables you can add to your plate

The Potential Benefits of Red Beetroot Supplementation in Health and Disease

In recent years there has been a growing interest in the biological activity of red beetroot (Beta vulgaris rubra) and its potential utility as a health promoting and disease preventing functional food. As a source of nitrate, beetroot ingestion provides a natural means of increasing in vivo nitric oxide (NO) availability and has emerged as a potential strategy to prevent and manage pathologies associated with diminished NO bioavailability, notably hypertension and endothelial function.