Consumption of beetroot juice, which is rich in nitrates, can help reduce the risk of heart disease in postmenopausal women because it provides a healthy source of plant-derived nitrates, according to research from Penn State University in the United States.
The body converts nitrate into nitric oxide, which helps dilate blood vessels and facilitate blood flow. However, menopause means that the body has stopped producing estrogen, which helps maintain nitric oxide levels, reports Newsweek.
For the purposes of the study, the team tested how beetroot juice affects the health of blood vessels in 24 postmenopausal women in their 50s and 60s.
First, their vascular function was tested before they consumed two 70-milliliter bottles of beetroot juice as an initial dose. Then, they drank one bottle of concentrated beetroot juice every morning for a week, with each serving containing an equivalent amount of nitrates as three large beetroots.
After several weeks, they were asked to drink beetroot juice without nitrates. Their vascular function was then tested again. The results showed that daily consumption of nitrate-rich beetroot juice improves blood flow in women.
The findings are particularly important for women who have gone through menopause, as some common treatments like hormone replacement therapy can carry risks including stroke. Additionally, the research is important because most postmenopausal women live at least a third of their lives in this stage./HMS/
Ako svaki dan pijete sok od ovog povrća, smanjit ćete rizik od srčanih bolesti
Konzumacija soka od cikle bogatog nitratima može pomoći u smanjenju rizika od srčanih bolesti kod žena u postmenopauzi jer pruža zdrav izvor nitrata biljnog podrijetla, pokazalo je istraživanje s američkog Penn Statea.
Naime, tijelo pretvara nitrat u dušikov oksid, koji pomaže širenju krvnih žila i olakšava protok krvi. Međutim, menopauza znači da je tijelo prestalo proizvoditi estrogen, koji pomaže u održavanju razine dušične kiseline, prenosi Newsweek.
Za potrebe studije, tim je testirao kako sok od cikle utječe na zdravlje krvnih žila kod 24 žene u postmenopauzi u 50-im i 60-im godinama prošlog stoljeća.
Prvo im je testirana vaskularna funkcija prije nego što su konzumirali dvije boce soka od cikle 70 mililitara kao početnu dozu. Zatim su pile jednu bocu koncentriranog soka od cikle svako jutro tjedan dana, pri čemu je svaka porcija sadržavala ekvivalentnu količinu nitrata kao tri velike cikle.
Nakon nekoliko tjedana, zamoljeni su da piju sok od cikle bez nitrata. Zatim je još jednom ispitana njihova vaskularna funkcija. Rezultati su pokazali da svakodnevno ispijanje soka od cikle bogatog nitratima poboljšava protok krvi kod žena.
Nalazi su posebno važni za žene koje su prošle kroz menopauzu budući da neki uobičajeni tretmani poput hormonske nadomjesne terapije mogu nositi rizike uključujući moždani udar. Također, istraživanje j važno jer većina žena u postmenopauzi barem trećinu života./HMS/