These three vegetables are rock stars for boosting your health

I have heard people say they only eat vegetables that grow above ground, not below. They are missing out on great nutrition and delicious taste.

These underground food stars are called root vegetables, and I recently feasted on a variety of them while visiting family in Houston. Root vegetables store energy for the plant and yes, they are stored in the form of starches and sugars, but that doesn’t make them bad. You just eat them in moderation as you would grains.

Here are a few of my favorites and why I try to enjoy them regularly:

Beets - This luscious root vegetable is loaded with natural nitrates that the body converts to nitric oxide. Dietary nitric oxide relaxes blood vessels, which then increases blood flow and lowers the risk for high blood pressure, stroke and heart attack.

Don’t confuse naturally occurring nitrate with the nitrates that are added to cured meats and bacon. Added nitrates are turned into nitrosamine, and this increases risk for health problems. Beets are a good source of fiber and have vital nutrients that reduce oxidative stress and inflammation.

Onions - If you want to be picky, onions are a bulb, but are cooked and stored as a root vegetable. In these days of soaring prices, onions are still a good buy. They add a lot of flavor to a dish without many calories. Onions contain quercetin, a powerful antioxidant with antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties. Red onions contain more quercetin.

They also contain prebiotics that help keep your gut bacteria happy. Onions contain organic sulfur compounds that have an anti-cancer benefit. Cooking decreases some of the sulfur content.

Sweet potatoes - One look at a sweet potato tells you that they are a rich source of beta carotene. This nutrient boosts immunity and vision. The fiber and prebiotics in the sweet potato are great for your gut. Surprisingly, the sweet potato has a low glycemic index, which means it helps manage blood sugar. I love sweet potato fries fresh out of the air fryer.

Other root vegetables are carrots, yucca, jicama, radishes, parsnips, and turnips. They’re all nutritious and delicious.

Sheah Rarback MS is a dietitian nutritionist in private practice in Miami, FL.