Who wouldn’t want a younger brain; to be sharp even at advanced age? A new study by researchers at Wake Forest University in North Carolina and at Queen Mary University in London found that drinking beet juice before exercise strengthens the brain and may even prevent dementia.
The study involved 26 people aged 55 and over who had high blood pressure. The participants were divided into two groups, one of which was asked to drink the beet juice about an hour before a 50-minute walk on the treadmill, while the other group walked without drinking the beet juice. The participants exercised three times a week for six weeks with far-reaching results.
Those who drank the juice were much healthier cognitively and emotionally, and one can also understand why: “Beet contains nitrate – a substance that helps the blood flow better in the brain,” explains lead researcher Dr. Jack Rejeski.
In the body, nitrate is converted into nitrogen oxide, which, according to Prof. Rejeski, does remarkable things, especially to the brain. “Nitrogen oxide is a really powerful molecule that goes to areas of the body that consume alot of oxygen, and the brain is a heavy consumer of oxygen. Drinking the beet juice before the physical exercise helped the brain get the vitality it needed, similar to what you see in younger people. This beet juice together with exercise strengthens certain areas of the brain cognitively, and can even prevent dementia in the future, “he says.
In a similar study conducted at Queen Mary University in London, researchers found that daily consumption of a glass of beet juice significantly reduces high blood pressure and improves brain function.