Beets are weird vegetables. Most of us know them as round red slabs swimming in their own juice at the salad bar. If you’ve ever seen a beet “in the flesh” – a raw, naked beet with its greens still attached – you know it’s not a pretty sight.

I went searching for raw beets after reading a fascinating column by registered pharmacist Suzy Cohen. As it turns out, this weird vegetable has amazing nutritional value, especially for aging baby boomers. Cohen writes that beets contain “powerful compounds that may reduce blood pressure, promote bile flow, ease digestive disorders, improve heart disease, lower cholesterol and prevent cancer.”

Wow, I thought. One root vegetable can do all that? Here are some of the details:

• Cancer fighter. A compound called betacyanin accounts for the red-purple color of beets. A couple of studies point to the cancer-fighting properties of betacyanin. In one study, beets increased the number of cancer-destroying cells in the colon. In another, animals with colon cancer that were fed beet fiber showed an increase in the activity of glutathione, which has a strong anti-oxidant effect.

• Blood pressure reducer. In a study published in the medical journal Hypertension in 2008, British scientists found that drinking two cups of beet juice a day lowered the blood pressure of human study participants for 24 hours, with no major side effects. (Meanwhile, pharmaceutical blood pressure medications are notorious for unpleasant side effects including body aches, fatigue, insomnia – even erectile dysfunction.)

• Good cholesterol effects. In animal studies, a beet fiber diet was shown to reduce total cholesterol by 30 percent and triglycerides by 40 percent while increasing HDL (“good cholesterol”) almost 30 percent.

• Anti-inflammatory. We’ve heard a lot lately about C-reactive protein (CRP) and other inflammatory chemicals in the body, and their connection to heart attack and stroke risk. Beets contain folic acid and betaine, both of which neutralize these inflammatory chemicals.

Motivated by all this good news, I found fresh organic beets at a nearby farmer’s market and headed home to cook them. But here’s the thing about beets: they’re labor-intensive and messy to prepare. They bleed crimson juice when you slice into them, which stains your cutting board, your hands, and your clothes if you’re not careful.

An easier route to this fabulous root: beet powder. Stir it into a cup of water or juice and you get all the nutritional rewards without the mess. Plus, beet powder is portable. (Can you imagine packing raw beets in your suitcase when you travel?)

Beet juice is another easy alternative. Just think: someone has figured out how to squeeze the juice from beets, and all you have to do is open the bottle.

If you do buy raw beets and cook them, my advice is to use a sharp knife (raw beets are very hard) and cover your cutting board with plastic wrap to protect the wood from juice stain. Also, be sure to save the greens growing out of the top of the beets. Sauté them in olive oil and garlic for a flavorful bonus round of calcium, iron, Vitamin A and Vitamin C.

By Paula Detwiller, All Vitamins Plus Contributor

Summer is in full swing and as we enjoy the sunny days it is vital to remember to take care of our skin by protecting it from harmful UV rays. Staying in the shade and covering up are the most effective ways of avoiding the suns’ damaging effects; however, the majority of us opt for a sunscreen as our primary line of defense.

Protection from the sun’s harmful rays is important to not only prevent the signs of aging, but also free radicals and their potentially damaging effects. Free radicals are unstable molecules that can cause oxidative damage (think of an apple turning brown) and have been linked to age spots, cancer and other diseases. The sun’s powerful UV rays release free radicals both on the skin’s surface and in the body and your skins best defense is a good sun block. Choosing a good sunscreen is just as important as applying it! There have been numerous studies indicating that certain ingredients found in sunscreens can be just as damaging as UV rays and this makes selecting a sunscreen difficult when you have virtually thousands to choose from.

One of the most controversial ingredients is retinyl palmitate. Retinyl palmitate is a storage form of vitamin A and is used in a number of cosmetic products. While vitamin A is required for a vast number of biological processes including cellular growth and vision, the effects it has when applied topically and exposed to UV rays has been the subject of numerous studies and discussions. Over a decade ago the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition selected retinyl palmitate for safety testing based on its widespread use in sun-exposed cosmetic skin products; however, after numerous studies and despite calls from various consumer rights groups, the FDA has yet to reach a conclusion. One problem lies in the inability to conduct human research. While a great majority of animal studies that utilize retinyl palmitate in combination with UV exposure have shown a wide variety of alarming effects, conducting human trials for potential carcinogenicity is unethical; therefore, companies downplay the results saying that animal studies are not applicable to humans. Even without human studies, the animal studies are very concerning. No one knows at this time what the conclusion on retinyl palmitate will be, but instead of waiting for an FDA statement or human trials, there are a number of wonderful brands of retinyl palmitate-free sunscreens available that protect your skin just as effectively and without the unknown effects- so be sure to read the ingredients carefully.

Another line of defense are antioxidants, which work to stabilize the free radical molecules to help prevent the oxidative damage that they may otherwise cause. Some examples of antioxidants are; vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene and lycopene and are found in fruits and vegetables; however, you can add some extra protection by taking a multivitamin and an antioxidant supplement to help neutralize these free radicals from the inside out.

Enjoy the summer, but keep your skin healthy by wearing sunscreen and consuming antioxidants to help combat the potentially damaging effects that come with all that wonderful sunshine!

Always consult your healthcare professional before beginning any supplement regime.

By: Julia Gullotti – All Vitamins Plus Staff Contributor