Beets! (answering several posts)

[Guest guest]

>Moira,

>I'm curious about the effect of beets on the liver since my 5 year old

>eats so many his urine turns bright red. We are chelating him and giving

>him milk thistle, but what could you add about beets? Thanks, Sharon in

>Virginia

Okay, everybody, I'm finally writing about beets.

Interesting to see the interest this generated. And sorry to be

slow about answering, but I needed to find stuff in books and

then type it -- and only have a bit of time each day to answer

mail -- thus the delay.

>For those that live outside the US, is Beets the same as Beetroot, as in the

>Red Ground growing Vegetable about the size of a tennis ball?

>

>Singapore

Yes. That's the one. The root itself is usually deep red. And

will color most everything red--- such as soup, bowel movements,

and my cutting board (for example). Oh-- and urine (as Virginia

says, above).

About being good for the liver--- there are likely other things

that are as good, but serendipity controls much of what I write.

In this case, I believe I had discussed beets (and their relation

to liver) with a massage therapist not too long back, and I

had been thinking about it (so it is what came to mind when I

was writing the prior note about liver support).

A little background on my interest in beets: my digestion is

often upset if I

eat beets (causes bowel urgency for one), but I just LOVE beets.

I've wondered at times if I might be allergic to them (as people

who are allergic often love to eat the things they react to.)

Anyway, my current theory is that it is just that beets are

very strong stuff-- so I try to eat sparingly.

Here is some stuff about beets from books. Actually, I was

surprised I didn't find more than this.

Heinerman's Encyclopedia of Fruits Vegetables and Herbs

(by Heinerman):

Nothing specifically about liver but there are some VERY

interesting statements about using beets for healing cancer

-- specifically breast cancer. Including this statement:

" One, however, has to be careful with the amount of beets

consumed at any given time. Certainly not because they're

harmful, but rather due to their incredibly strong ability

to quickly break up cancer in the body. A woman in her

thirties who was treated with beetroot for breast cancer

contracted a fever of 104 F due to the rapid breakdown

of the tumors. In instances such as this, beets clean

up the cancer faster than the liver is capable of processing

all of the wastes dumped into it at any one time.

Consequently, the internal administration of beetroot

needs to be staggered out somewhat... "

Heinerman's Encyclopedia of Healing Juices (by Heinerman):

More info on using beets for cancer. Also another similar

story regarding the need to limit the AMOUNT of beet juice

given, and to add water to it. Another section is about

alcoholism (as relates to beets). " [alcoholism] can lead

to liver failure, dementia, pancreatic disease, and

destruction of the heart muscle. There are only a few

juices and herbs which can help restore these various

organs to health again. Besides carrots, dandelion root,

goldenseal root, ginko biloba, tomatoes, and tumeric,

beet root juice is also very helpful. " In a section

about drug addiction (as relates to beets) there is

a similar statement. " Organs most adversely affected

are the brain, heart, lungs, liver, and kidneys.

Because beet root is basically a blood-building herb,

it detoxifies the blood and then renews it with

minerals and natural sugars. Thus resonstituted,

the blood can bring important nourishment to each

of the aforementioned organs that have been greatly

weakened by drugs. " He means Rx, OTC, and illegal

drugs, by the way. Still in the section on beets,

he says: " Beet juice is one of the very best tonic

drinks for the liver. However, raw beet juice ... can

be extremely potent and cause the body to react in an

unfavorable way when too much is taken at once. "

The Juiceman's Power of Juicing (By Jay Kordich):

In section on beets: " Their rich mineral makeup

contributes directly to the well-being of the liver

and gall bladder while building up blood corpuscles

and cells and stimulating the the activity of the

lymph glands. Beets emulsify bile and flush the

kidneys and bladder. ... They also contain manganese,

which combines with iron to feed the liver and

red corpuscles. " He also says " Beet juice is potent

stuff. Never drink it solo. "

Fresh Vegetable and Fruit Juices (by N.W. ):

" Taken alone, beet juice, in greater quantities than

a wineglass at a time, may cause a cleansing reaction

which may make one a little dizzy or nauseated. This

may be the result of its cleansing effect on the liver

and may, therefore, be uncomfortable. It has been

found from experience that it is best to take less

beet juice and more carrot juice in the beginning

until one can tolerate its beneficial cleansing effect --

then to increase the proportion of beet juice gradually. "

Juice Fasting and Detoxification (by Steve Meyerowitz):

In a section about the liver: Juices for the liver are

wheatgrass, carro, beet, dandelion, parsley, lemon,

grapefruit, apple and spinach. " He also recommends

use of herbs for the liver, and " liver and intestinal

massage " .

I must comment that all the above sources are talking

about RAW beets as far as I can tell. (The juice books

are for sure). I didn't find good references to beets

for liver in the herb books I checked. I'd like to have

more books on the specific uses of produce/foods than

I do. I think cooked beets are also liver cleansing,

but, as you see, found no information about that (and

it is NOT all the same with raw and cooked).

Raw grated beets are nice in salads (another way to eat

raw beets besides juice).

I also want to note that I have, almost exclusively,

looked for and

quoted text about beets AS RELATED TO THE LIVER, and

have SKIPPED all the other uses of beets. These books

had much more to say about beets-- several talked about

beets being great for menstural diffculties, for example.

I also have NOT looked for OTHER foods/herbs that are

especially liver-healing just now: I have been looking

for references to BEETS in particular. So, please don't

take this as meaning that other foods/herbs are not

equally wonderful, or that beets are the MAIN thing

available. Quite the contrary, I'm sure.

I hope this has been interesting.

regards,

Moria