Red beets contain betalain pigments, such as betanin and betacyanin. That is what gives the characteristic red color.
Taken daily, betanin will thin the bile that is released from the gallbladder to emulsify fats in the diet. When the food bolus leaves the stomach and enters the small intestine it is slightly acidic (unless you take a proton pump inhibitor like Nexium). The small intestine is slightly alkaline when empty. As the food drops into the small intestine, the pH drops and temporarily becomes acidic. This signals the gallbladder to contract and expel bile.
The bile runs along the common bile duct. As it passes the pancreatic duct it triggers the release of pancreatic enzymes that digest the fats, carbohydrates, and proteins. Together, all these digestive chemicals are then dumped into the small intestine.
As we age, the bile typically thickens, becoming sluggish and the flow decreases. This is a significant impairment to digestion. The amount of bile released from the gallbladder can also decrease (decreased ejection fraction). This often leads to a gallbladder attack and subsequent surgery to remove the gallbladder.
Of course, without adequate HCl to lower the pH of the food bolus, there is no trigger for the gallbladder and subsequently no trigger for the pancreatic enzymes either. This is why proton pump inhibitors create malabsorption syndromes like vitamin B12 deficient anemia and osteoporosis.
Clinically, I recommend Betafood daily in my practice. The lowest ejection fraction I have documented is 3% and we raised it to 80% in 3 months by having the patient take one tablet of Betafood with each meal.
