Beetroot (or red beet) is a cultivated form of Beta vulgaris subsp.
vulgaris (conditiva) and describes a number of varieties of edible
taproots that are grown throughout the Americas, Europe, and
Asia. In contrast to their fellow subspecies Beta vulgaris subsp.
vulgaris (altissima), known as sugar beet, the sugar content in the
conditiva beetroot subspecies is about 2 times lower (U.S.
Department of Agriculture, 2013). Therefore, beetroot is grown
for food uses (pickles, salad, juice) rather than for sugar production.
In contrast to other fruits, the main sugar in beetroot is sucrose
with only small amounts of glucose and fructose (Bavec et al.,
2010). Because fructose reduces human exercise capacity, a low
fructose and a high sucrose content is preferable, for example, in
sports drinks (Murray et al., 1989)