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Beet juice and exercise: an optimal tandem for brain activity
Last reviewed: 02.07.2025
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A huge number of studies have shown that physical exercise improves the quality of thinking, especially in people over 40.
The latest study has led scientists to a new discovery: it turns out that a cup of freshly squeezed beetroot juice, drunk before a workout, further optimizes brain processes.
American neurologists conducted an experiment involving elderly volunteers. They were asked to regularly drink beetroot juice immediately before physical exercise. As a result, it was noted that regular consumption of the healthy drink led to increased connections between neurons and various brain areas: the group of juice-loving volunteers demonstrated physical and mental performance an order of magnitude higher than their peers who did not drink juice.
The study was led by Professor Jack Rejdesky of the Department of Health and Exercise Science at Wake Forest University in North Carolina.
As the authors of the experiment explain, the activity of the brain regions in elderly participants after physical training and drinking beetroot juice is close to that of young people. Physical activity stimulates brain activity in turn, and beetroot potentiates this property.
In our country, beets are popular only for making borscht or vinaigrette. Rarely does it occur to anyone to use this root vegetable for making sports cocktails. And completely in vain: lately, experts often remind us of the unique properties of the beet product.
For example, beetroot can stabilize blood pressure and increase the endurance of athletes. Beetroot contains a considerable amount of natural nitrate compounds, which in the body are converted into nitric oxide - a strong vasodilator that improves blood circulation not only in the limbs and organs, but also in the brain.
Physical exercise, in turn, also accelerates blood flow, simultaneously activating the processes of memorization and thinking. After training, neurons are better able to regenerate, the risk of developing senile dementia decreases.
To verify the results, Professor Regeschi conducted an additional experiment, selecting 26 volunteer participants aged 55 and over, all of whom had hypertension.
The volunteers were divided into two groups and performed moderate-intensity exercise three times a week for 50 minutes.
Participants in the first group drank plain water 60 minutes before training, while participants in the second group drank beetroot juice. None of the participants had previously exercised.
The experiment lasted for a month and a half, after which the volunteers underwent a thorough diagnosis.
According to brain imaging, those people who drank the juice showed strong structural activation of the somatomotor cortex, the area that helps you control your own body.
In addition, the juice helped to strengthen the connection between the somatomotor cortex and nearby areas of the brain, and improve the function of the insular cortex, the area responsible for thought processes, emotional state, and motor control.
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