THERE is a fresh way to beet heart disease – if you can stomach it.

A new study has found that drinking two shots of beetroot juice a day could help to lower blood pressure – a leading cause of heart disease and stroke.

Researchers at the University of Exeter in England discovered that people in their 70s who added the red juice to their daily diet for two weeks saw their originally high blood pressure drop to within the healthy range.

The study also found that the beet shots, which are rich in nitrate, had a positive effect on younger people too, boosting levels of healthy bacteria in the mouth in under-30s.

According to the researchers, nitrate-rich vegetables like beetroot may help increase the levels of beneficial bacteria in the mouth and gut, which are believed to be helpful in clearing harmful cholesterol from the blood, lowering blood pressure.

“We know that a nitrate-rich diet has health benefits and older people produce less of their own nitric oxide as they age,” said study lead, Professor Anni Vanhatalo.

“Encouraging older adults to consume more nitrate-rich vegetables could have significant long-term health benefits,” she added.

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