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Part 5: Nutritional and health aspects of chili peppers
 Nutritional
value: Red chilies are rich in vitamin C and rich in beta
carotene. Yellow and green chilies also have these nutrients. In
addition they are a good source of most B vitamins too. They are
also rich in potassium, magnesium and iron. In general hot
spices have a preservative action that delays food spoilage. The
chemical capsaicin boosts the immune system, clears the sinuses,
and reduces the stickiness of blood platelets thereby
functioning as an anticoagulant which is good for cardiovascular
health. Chili peppers promote the flow of gastric juice for
proper digestion and often bring relief from stomach upsets.
Eating chili peppers lowers appetite for sweet and fatty foods.
The intense flavor of chili peppers makes one feel more
satisfied and eat less.
The ulcer connection: If you eat chili
peppers you get ulcer, right? Well, it is a myth that got
propagated extensively. The suspicion that chilies cause ulcer
has been linked to the burning sensation they cause in the mouth
and by extension they would cause ulcer in the stomach too. The
slogan “hurry, worry and curry” causing ulcers is misleading at
least with respect to “curry”. There is no evidence to show that
eating hot chili peppers causes ulcer. In most cases ulcers are
caused by the endemic bacteria called Helicobacter pylori in the
stomach. Chili peppers may actually help prevent ulcers by
killing the bacteria which cause ulcers. Demographic analyses
indicate that chili eaters are known to develop fewer ulcers
than those who eat bland food. Stomach cancer rates are also
lower in countries where chili pepper is part of the regular
diet. Chili peppers do not cause heartburn either. Caffeine and
alcohol are gastric irritants. In addition, alcohol and fatty
foods can relax the lower esophageal sphincter (the muscle
between the esophagus and stomach) and thereby cause the acid
from the stomach to flow up into the esophagus to cause the
burning sensation that is felt in the chest area. However, if
people suffer from heartburn already it is better to avoid chili
peppers since they might aggravate the condition.
 In
cutaneous (close to the skin) nerves capsaicin (the active
chemical in chili peppers) is a powerful irritant. If one
applies a cream containing capsaicin to the skin one would feel
an irritation. However, although the stomach is innervated by
capsaicin-sensitive afferent nerves, direct application of
capsaicin to the stomach lining has not produced a conscious
perception of gastric pain nor did it cause any erosion of the
stomach lining (as evidenced by endoscopic photographs taken of
the stomach lining).
General health: If one has asthma,
emphysema, chronic bronchitis, sinusitis, or congestion from
cold or flu, eating hot peppers mitigates the misery. Chili
peppers work like expectorants. Capsaicin in the mouth, throat,
and stomach triggers a flood of fluids in the air passages,
breaking up the mucus, and washing away the irritants. A study
at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), tested the
effect of chilies on weight loss. Adding chilies to the diet
made the participants lose more weight than those who did not
consume chilies.
 Pain
relief: Capsaicin binds to vanilloid receptors (which sense
pain) and cause a burning pain. In doing so, it triggers the
release of endorphins (which are endogenous pain killers that
the brain produces) which act as analgesics and produce a sense
of well-being. The release of endorphins has a narcotic effect.
It lowers the blood pressure and mitigates the pain. Chilies are
by far the safest, easiest, and quickest way to get the feeling
of “runner’s high”. Eating chilies is like taking a “constrained
risk” in psychological parlance whereby extreme sensations like
pain and fear can be enjoyed just like a roller-coaster ride
since one knows that the final result is pain relief or thrill.
When a chemical called substance P is
released from a neuron (nerve cell), pain gets propagated.
Capsaicin reduces the amount of substance P in nerve endings and
interferes with pain signal transmission to the brain. Capsaicin
can be used in a cream or ointment form to relieve neuralgia
(pain in the nerves near the skin), and minimize the pain caused
by diabetic neuropathy, osteo-arthritis, or rheumatoid
arthritis. Capsaicin also relieves the pain caused by shingles
(blisters around one side of the waist caused by the chicken pox
virus) in adults. A Danish study confirmed the pain-relief
effect of capsaicin when applied to the wound area during/after
surgery. However one has to be careful as to not to have contact
with water at the area where the capsaicin cream was applied for
a few hours since the cutaneous pain will increase temporarily.
Part 1 |
Part 2 |
Part 3 |
Part 4
Sethuraman
Subramanian
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