We know that green vegetables – and really any vegetable with deep coloring such as carrots, beets, sweet potatoes, etc. – are especially good for us. But usually we know this only in the vaguest way. So it’s nice to get simple, specific proofs of why this is so. For example this recent study, conducted with only a small sampling of people, gives definitive evidence that drinking a glass of beet juice will lower your blood pressure.

Beets and all green, leafy vegetables are full of nitrates, which our bodies eventually turn into nitric oxide – the stuff that relaxes our blood vessels and helps our blood flow better, thus lowering blood pressure. Apparently beet juice is available on most grocery shelves in the U.K. where the study was done, but here in the U.S. we might need to hit the health food store to find it.

The study found that in men with hypertension, the beet juice lowered their blood pressure significantly (up to 5 points) within about 3 hours of drinking. Other studies have found even greater reductions (up to 10 points). The sample of people in this study was too small to be definitive for women (they didn’t control for age and medications). But it’s reasonable to think it works the same way for females. And works the same with other green, leafy vegetables.

The most fascinating part, reported on another source, says that if your blood pressure is already okay, the same dose of beet juice will lower it just a little bit. Isn’t that interesting? As if the beet root has an internal intelligence that knows what the right level is and gauges how much help your blood pressure needs. What a magical idea, that plants might have such sensitivities.

Of course, the URL of this second source (www.willitsnews.com/marijuananews/…) could indicate the authors might be more inclined to look for the magical side of the story.