Capsicum: The Superpowered Health Vegetable
You might not be surprised to find out that chili peppers, commonly referred to as capsicum, are extremely good for you. However, did you know that capsicum can help you lose weight?
What is Capsicum?
Chili peppers (Capsicum annuum) are the fruit produced from capsicum pepper plants. Members of the nightshade family, the most common types of chili peppers are jalapenos, serranos, cayennes, poblanos, bell peppers, and chili peppers. The main bioactive ingredient in capsicum is called capsaicin and is responsible for most of the health benefits it provides.
Capsaicin is what gives peppers their spiciness. It’s popular in medicine for treating joint and muscle pain, as well as nerve pain, and strained or sprained muscle pain due to its analgesic effects [1]. That’s because capsaicin binds to pain receptors in the body, stimulating them, and reducing your sensitivity to pain.
As peppers also have large amounts of antioxidants, they can also help reduce inflammation. In addition, the decrease in free radicals can potentially lower the risk of developing heart disease, cancer, and autoimmune diseases [2].
Does Capsaicin Cause Weight Loss?
The reason capsaicin is quickly becoming a popular ingredient in supplements is due to its suspected fat-burning capabilities. Capsaicin speeds up the metabolism, which in turn causes thermogenesis and activates brown adipose tissue, causing you to sweat and burn more calories [3]. This leads to increased energy expenditure and decreased appetite, other factors that result in more calories burned.
The Best Capsicum Supplement
There are numerous capsicum supplements on the market today. One of the most effective is Capsimax, a concentrated extract of the capsaicinoids from red chili peppers [4].
References:
- E, V., N, H., R, F., A, L., DJ, D., CT, Y., & K, T. (n.d.). Capsaicin. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Retrieved March 31, 2023, from https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/integrative-medicine/herbs/capsaicin
- Pham-Huy, L. A., He, H., & Pham-Huy, C. (2008, June). Free radicals, antioxidants in disease and health. International journal of biomedical science : IJBS. Retrieved March 31, 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3614697/
- Zheng, J., Zheng, S., Feng, Q., Zhang, Q., & Xiao, X. (2017, May 11). Dietary capsaicin and its anti-obesity potency: From mechanism to clinical implications. Bioscience reports. Retrieved March 31, 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5426284/
- Capsicum extract: Weight management: Capsimax. omniactive. (2022, December 15). Retrieved March 31, 2023, from https://omniactives.com/product/capsimax/