| rdfs:comment | - Beets belong to the Chenopodiacaea family, which also includes spinach and Swiss chard. The ancestor of today’s beets occurs over the Mediterranean lands, the Caucasus, Asia Minor, and the Near East. In prehistoric times, the Greeks called this plant beta, probably because it resembled the Greek letter, while the Arabs named it selg, and the Portuguese called it selga. This plant is a flowering one and it originates in the coasts of western and southern Europe, from southern Sweden and the British Isles south to the Mediterranean Sea. It is a herbaceous plant with heart-shaped leaves that have from 5 to 20 cm in length. The flowers are very small, having a 3-5 mm diameter each, being green or tinged reddish with five petals. Beetroot can be cooked and served warm with butter as a delicacy,
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| abstract | - Beets belong to the Chenopodiacaea family, which also includes spinach and Swiss chard. The ancestor of today’s beets occurs over the Mediterranean lands, the Caucasus, Asia Minor, and the Near East. In prehistoric times, the Greeks called this plant beta, probably because it resembled the Greek letter, while the Arabs named it selg, and the Portuguese called it selga. This plant is a flowering one and it originates in the coasts of western and southern Europe, from southern Sweden and the British Isles south to the Mediterranean Sea. It is a herbaceous plant with heart-shaped leaves that have from 5 to 20 cm in length. The flowers are very small, having a 3-5 mm diameter each, being green or tinged reddish with five petals. Beetroot can be cooked and served warm with butter as a delicacy, but it can also be eaten as a salad, after being peeled and shredded. Beta greens have been used for medicinal purposes since ancient times. For instance, the Romans used beetroots as a treatment for fevers, together with other ailments. Also, the beet leaves are used in healing different wounds. Beets are rich in vitamin C, vitamin A, folate, dietary fiber, potassium, phosphorus, and antioxidants.
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