Global InformationBeeturia information
Beeturia is the passing of red or pink urine after eating beetroots or foods colored with beetroot extract or beetroot betalain pigments.[1] The color is caused by the excretion of the betalain pigments, such as betanin.
The coloring is highly variable between individuals and between different feeding occasions, and can vary in intensity from light pink urine to strongly-colored deep red urine.[1] The condition is benign and dissipates promptly with avoidance of beet foods.[1] Beeturia occurs in about 10-14% of the public, with higher frequency and intensity occurring in people with iron deficiency, pernicious anemia or digestive diseases.[1]
The pigment is sensitive to oxidative degradation under strongly acidic conditions. Therefore, the urine coloring depends on stomach acidity and dwell time, as well as the presence in foods of betalain-protecting substances, such as oxalic acid.[2][3] Beeturia is often associated with red or pink feces.[4]
- ^ a b c d Sauder HM, Rawla P (22 May 2023). "Beeturia". StatPearls, US National Library of Medicine. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
- ^ Mitchell, S. C. (2001). "Food idiosyncrasies: beetroot and asparagus". Drug Metab. Dispos. 29 (4): 539–543. PMID 11259347.
- ^ Watts, AR; Lennard, MS; Mason, SL; Tucker, GT; Woods, HF (1993). "Beeturia and the biological fate of beetroot pigments". Pharmacogenetics. 3 (6): 302–11. doi:10.1097/00008571-199312000-00004. PMID 8148871.
- ^ Eastwood, MA; Nyhlin, H (1995). "Beeturia and colonic oxalic acid". QJM. 88 (10): 711–7. PMID 7493168.