Over the years there have been many different views on the effects that regular chillie consumption can have on the the human body. Here we try to pick through the research to what the health benefits of chillies actually are.
Chillies Effects on Blood Sugar
Researchers at the University of Tasmania have recently completed a study (published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, July 2006) that suggests the regular consumption of chillies can help your body control insulin levels after eating which could benefit the overweight or diabetics. To be more precise the chillie reduces the amount of insulin the body needs to lower blood sugar levels after a meal by up to about 60%.
During the study candidates that followed a diet high in chilli content had lower blood glucose levels than that for a bland, chilliless diet. The author of the study Kiran Ahuja said “Chilli meals possibly result in lower C-peptide and insulin secretion and higher hepatic clearance of insulin, and the effect is larger if chilli is eaten regularly.”
Although scientists are still trying to understand exactly why this effect occurs the results of the study are surely good news for the overweight and diabetes sufferers.
Boosting Metabolism and Weight Loss
One of the most well-known benefits of chillies is their ability to boost metabolism. Capsaicin, the compound that gives chillies their heat, has thermogenic properties, meaning it increases body temperature and enhances calorie burning. Studies have shown that consuming capsaicin can:
- Increase energy expenditure: By stimulating metabolism, chillies help the body burn more calories, even at rest.
- Suppress appetite: Eating spicy foods can lead to reduced calorie intake, as they help increase feelings of fullness.
- Encourage fat oxidation: Capsaicin promotes the breakdown of fat, aiding weight loss efforts.
Including chillies in a balanced diet can be an effective way to support weight management naturally.
Inflammation
Capsaicin, the substance that give chilies their heat is well known to contain a neuropeptide associated with the inflammatory process. Chilli related alterations in plasma proteins have been reported in patients with autoinflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid and arthritis.
Reduce Congestion with Hot Peppers
Now you don’t have to be a scientist to work this one out. If you eat a dish loaded with hot chillies the heat from the capsaicin causes secretions. In other words sweating and a runny nose, that help clear the nasal passage.
Prostate Cancer
A study published by Cancer Research in March 2006 concluded that capsaicin helped stop the spread of prostate cancer. The capsaicin triggered suicide in both primary types of prostate cancer cell lines. “It also dramatically slowed the development of prostate tumors formed by those human cell lines grown in mouse models” said Sren Lehmann, M.D., Ph.D., visiting scientist at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and the UCLA School of Medicine. The dosage on mice that produced these effects equated roughly to about 5 habanero peppers a week for an average man.
Do Chillies Fight Stomach Cancer?
This appears to be the major stumbling block when it come to the health effect of chillies. Opinion seems to vary greatly as to whether chillies help prevent or cause stomach cancer. Researchers at Yale University of Medicine concluded in 1994 that chili pepper consumption may cause increased risk of stomach cancer. Compared to non consumers of chili peppers, consumers had an increased risk of stomach cancer (odds ratio 5.49; 95%). Among consumers, there was a highly significant trend of increasing risk with increasing self-rated level of chili pepper consumption (high, medium, or low). That said the study said that “definite conclusion is not warranted” because there was no assessment of dose relationship.
Another recent study by Mexico National Institute of Public Health found higher rates of gastric cancer in people with high chillie intake (9-25 jalapenos a day!). However no clinical evidence was found that it was the chillies that were causing the increase in cancer.
A Berkley neurobiology study however found the opposite to be true. They concluded that capsaicin/chillie consumption to be “protective against stomach cancer”. They pointed to the fact that the gastric cancer rates in Mexico, where chilli peppers consumption is particularly high, are relatively low> they also noted the correlation between increased chillie consumption in the USA and falling rates of gastric cancer.
Pain relief from Capsaicin Cream
Capsaicin (the substance that give chilies their heat) has been found to give pain relief without and numbing effect usually associated with anesthetics. Harvard researchers said recently that capsaicin can be used to target pain receptors without affecting nerve cells.
One application being researched is for pain relief during child birth. Another potentially huge implication is the use of capsaicin to treat patients with pathological pain. This can be done without affecting mental function or alertness that currently are affected by many pain killers.
I have first hand experience that here in the UK the NHS is using chilli based products as a form of pain relief. I have a close relative that is prescribed capsaicin patches to treat severe foot pain / periheral neuropathy.
Conclusion
Perhaps rather predictably there is no clear answer to the question ‘are chillies good for you?’. Over the last 20 or so years the research is prooving that there are definite health benefits of chillies. Mainstream medicine is now using chillies derived compounds in treatments. I’m sure over the next 20 years we will see more positive research in this area.
