Whether you love or hate the heat, one thing is certain: the more spice, the more it hurts. What exactly are hot peppers and other spicy foods doing to our bodies, and is it possible to harm yourself by eating too much? And if the heat is painful, why do we love it so much? Capsaicin is an irritant for all mammals, and it causes a burning sensation when it comes into contact with any skin or mucous membrane.
In the mouth, capsaicin bypasses your taste buds and binds to pain receptors on the tongue called TRPV1. Your tongue is like a piece of hot coal and each breath makes you feel like a human flamethrower. As a result, the body will try to cool itself down. That's why you may start panting and feel bullets of sweat rolling down your forehead when eating a super spicy meal. In addition to cooling things down, your body will also try to rid itself of the fiery substance by ramping up the production of saliva, mucus, and tears.
You may also drool and get watery eyes. Spicy food can turn anyone into a snotty, crying mess. And you may instinctively reach for water, but this can just spread the heat. Capsaicin only dissolves in fats, oils, and alcohol.
So dairy products like a cold glass of milk or spoonful of ice cream and fat-containing foods like peanut butter and avocados are much more effective for easing the pain. The good news? That mouth-on-fire feeling only lasts for a limited amount of time. Because the sensation of heat and pain is from a chemical reaction, it will eventually fade once the capsaicin molecules neutralize and stop binding to the receptors. Typically, this takes about 20 minutes, Currie said.
It may take longer depending on the person and the heat of the pepper. But rest assured, your tongue will return to normal. However, the capsaicin may keep burning or cause discomfort as it goes down. After you swallow spicy food, it can fire off more pain receptors in the membrane lining the esophagus and produce a burning sensation in the chest. This is not the same as heartburn, which is caused by acid regurgitation into the esophagus from a leaky valve to the stomach, but it may feel similar.
I suggest that when you choose your foods, especially when you eat them often, you should also understand their potentially negative effects. From this, you will be able to acquire a greater benefit from your diet. As chilli is very hot, it may bring lots of heat into the body. If you already have a hot body constitution it is better to eat less or avoid eating this hot food.
Otherwise the body may become overheated causing a yin and yang imbalance. If you are undergoing treatment for blood pressure, liver disease, diabetes, kidney or heart disease, it is best to be cautious when eating chilli. Please consult your Chinese medicine practitioner to see whether it is suitable for you. In my many years of clinical experience, I realised for the following symptoms it is best to avoid eating chilli:.
If you are unsure of your body constitution, it is best to ask your Chinese medicine practitioner. We also support this knowledge with references to published scientific research. Please keep in mind that scientific research into the health benefits of foods is still emerging and human research is limited.
Please consult with your doctor or health professional about which foods are suitable for your body or health issues. The following insights are obtained from scientific studies, systematic reviews and analysis of clinical trials investigating the efficacy of Chilli.
This systematic review and meta-analysis examined the association between spicy food chilli pepper, chilli sauce, or chilli oil consumption with cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. Of the citations identified, 4 studies from the United States, China, Italy, and Iran were included in the meta-analysis. In the present study, we found that C.
Capsaicin is known to promote negative energy balance by increasing satiety and suppressing hunger, reducing energy and fat intake, and inducing thermogenesis. Capsinoids, including capsiate and dihydrocapsiate, are also known to exert beneficial effects on energy balance. Reinbach et al. Additionally, CH sweet pepper is associated with increased oxygen consumption, diet-induced thermogenesis, and an activated sympathetic nervous system SNS. Furthermore, a meta-analysis revealed that capsiate increases energy expenditure EE , but capsaicin has no overall effect on EE; however, both capsaicin and capsiate enhance fat oxidation.
The effects of C. In a preclinical study, dose-dependent administration of a TRPV1 agonist, capsaicin, prevented adipogenesis in stimulated 3T3-L1-preadipocytes, and oral administration of capsaicin prevented obesity in males. Non-pungent capsiate is also an exogenous agonist of TRPV1 receptors and is associated with improved body metabolism including glucose homeostasis and obesity. Some herbs and their active compounds, including several piperine analogs from Piper nigrum, can also reduce weight through TRPV1-dependent mechanisms.
Effects of Capsicum annuum supplementation on the components of metabolic syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis Jang, HH. A vanilloid receptor known as VR1 which was later found to be member of the family TRP and was called TRPV1 transient receptor potential vanilloid subtype 1 is the receptor for capsaicin and is universally distributed in the brain, sensory nerves, dorsal root ganglia, bladder, gut, and blood vessels.
Capsaicin is activate and then desensitize or block VR1 and was found to be powerful drug in animal models of human disease. Capsaicin plays a potential role in cardiometabolic protection through the activation of TRPV1 in different target organs or tissues, which suggests that TRPV1 may be a promising target for the management of cardiometabolic diseases such as obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes and atherosclerosis.
However, association between the dosage of dietary capsaicin and the effect on cardiometabolic protection need to be clarified for determining the daily usage or intake of capsaicin or its derivatives. The activation of VR1 by capsaicin make it possible to be involved in various human disease states ranging from genetic pain insensitivity to chronic pain syndromes.
In addition to that VR1 has much broader clinical benefits than mere pain case. Chili pepper has preventive and therapeutic properties for many ailments such as different types of cancer, rheumatism, stiff joints, bronchitis and chest colds with cough and headache, arthritis, heart arrhythmias and used as stomachic. Chili preparations for treating ailments can be standard capsaicin, pharmaceutically prepared gels, creams and plasters, essential oils distilled from pods, powder prepared by crashing pods and extracts by soaking pods in water or ethanol.
Medicinal uses and health benefits of chili pepper Capsicum spp. Capsaicin has elicited enormous interest for several centuries due to its conspicuous culinary and clinical applications. Despite its adverse effects, capsaicin is still being used as an active principle in several pharmaceutical formulations for treating various human ailments.
Moreover, emerging studies have shown that capsaicin is implicated in a broader range of functions than previously anticipated.
Even though it is best characterized in the field of nociception and pain, several experimental and clinical studies also demonstrate its role in other important pathological states like cancer, obesity, skin disorders, cardiovascular diseases, etc. Additionally, it has also been implicated in other activities including treatment of the upper respiratory reflexes, prevention of adipogenesis, boosting metabolic rate, and regulation of innate and adaptive immune responses.
Rodent studies suggest that capsaicin may merit clinical evaluation with respect to endothelial function, progression of atherosclerosis most notably in diabetics , angina, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, cardiac hypertrophy, metabolic syndrome, hypertension, obesity and gastric ulceration.
Highlights We just love turning up the heat when we eat. Indians have a tendency to gorge on masaledar khana that uses generous amounts of spices and, of course, lots of red chilli powder. We just love turning up the heat when we eat, but did you know eating spicy foods can do more than just amp up the flavours of your dish?
While eating spicy food may have some serious health benefits, it may also mess up your system, especially your stomach. So, if you have been over-indulging in hot and spicy foods then you might want to think again. Can eating too much of the spicy stuff kill you?
To answer this question, Life's Little Mysteries turned to one of the experts: Paul Bosland, professor of horticulture at New Mexico State University and director of the Chile Pepper Institute , was responsible for finding the world's hottest chili pepper, the Bhut Jolokia. Bosland says that chili peppers or as some call them, chile peppers can indeed cause death — but most people's bodies would falter long before they reached that point.
This scenario wouldn't likely have a chance to play out.
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