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Beat Weight Loss With Healthy Beets

Healthy & Wealthy in Vital Vitamins & Minerals

Beets are a great way to conquer weight. They are naturally healthy, naturally low in caloric values as well as fat grams - and they are one of the most attractive vegetables in the garden of Mother Nature's Good Earth.

One thing is evident - this red beauty attracts many savvy  dieters.

Let's discover how beets can help you beat those unwanted pounds while dieting:

- Beets act as a diuretic to assist in flushing water from the body. This assists in ridding the body of harmful toxins that can build-up over time and cause harm and damage to the body as well as trigger some nasty disease.

This natural diuretic also works effectively in combating water retention - sometimes referred to as 'fluid retention' which is generally brought on via excessive sodium (table salt) consumption. It doesn't take much of certain types of foods to create sodium overload. Currently, the recommendation is 3,500 grams per day - or about 1 teaspoon of salt which we can enjoy by adding to our food at the table or that is used in preparing our foods.

Some of the biggest sodium offenders can  be found at fast food establishments as well as fine dining restaurants. Let's see how easily it is to go over our recommended daily allowance where sodium is concerned.

Long John Silver's - arrr matey, we've got ye salt covered!

Fish is absolutely excellent in the diet and can assist greatly with weight loss results. It's low in calorie values as well as fat grams while remaining strong in nutritional values. It pairs excellently with beets - whether pickled or slathered with low fat margarine.

But when we take that fish through several commercial processes (battering, frying, dipping into more sauces such as tartar) then the nutritional values are suddenly blown out of the bottom of the boat. Let's view how quickly we can experience sodium overload:

Long John Silver's battered shrimp contains 480 milligrams of sodium per shrimp. Their battered Alaskan Pollock contains 790 milligrams of sodium each. If we enjoy the snack size menu selection of their Battered Clam Strips - we'll also enjoy over 1,000 milligrams of sodium along with it (1,190 to be exact).

If we enjoy the Ultimate Alaskan Pollock Sandwich® we're also enjoying 1,500 milligrams of sodium.

As to our beet - it contains some sodium as well, but minimal in comparison to battered fish - about 64 milligrams per 2" round, raw beet. Potassium is also impressive at 266 mg's per beet.

Nutrition Tip: Most importantly, we aren't all the same size. While big Ben might be fine with the current nutrition recommendation, tiny Tina may not.

All of the nutritional recommendations in fact are just that - recommendations; nothing is set in stone, which is just one more reason why losing weight and weight maintenance is so difficult.

Beet Nutrition Information

Beets- Beets are very versatile  when it comes to preparation including these cooking methods: pickled, cooked and diced for salads, boiled and topped with no calorie butter spray, and baked.

- Beets contain folate and fight fatigue and depression.

- Beets contain magnesium, potassium, Vitamin C and iron and is a good immunity builder.

- Beets can lower cholesterol and prevent constipation.

- 1 cup of cooked beets contains about 75 calories and no cholesterol. One whole raw beet that is about two inches in diameter contains a skinny 35 calories. One cup of raw beets contains 58 calories.

One whole beet that is about two inches in diameter and cooked contains 44 calories. One half a cup of cooked beets contains about 37 calories. Fat grams are minimal.

Health Note: Beets may turn the urine red. Ask your doctor if they can fit into your healthy diet if you have kidney issues.

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