Bioactive Compounds and Biological Activities of Red Beetroot (Beta vulgaris L.)

Red beetroot (Beta vulgaris L.), a traditional and functional food, is enriched with numerous phytochemicals and essential nutrients. Beetroot is known for its health-promoting role due to unique bioactive compounds such as betalains, phenolics, glycosides, carotenoids, vitamins, nitrates, and minerals. Betalains exist in two forms, betaxanthin and betacyanin, and are commercially available as food dye due to their nontoxic nature. Due to their unique chemical composition, the use of beetroot allows for extracting biologically active compounds, emphasizing the food and pharmaceutical industries. Bioactive compounds of beetroot are reported to significantly exhibit antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antiproliferative, and antiviral activities. Similarly, beetroot extracts have been reported positively to modulate gut microbiota composition, thereby enhancing probiotic metabolism. This chapter aims to conduct an extensive search for biologically active compounds in beetroot, focusing on the implications of their use on public health. Besides that, this chapter comprehensively discusses the potential use of some unique phytochemicals of beetroot in the food and cosmetic industry.