By: Harry Tyron
Submitted: 2009-04-24 23:03:01 | Word Count: 415
Ever tried dieting and ended up just craving for the food you used to eat? Tired of eating meals that are less tasty than those you used to indulge in but had to give up on, all for the sake of losing extra pounds? Before you give up, try eating hot pepper.
This is not to punish yourself, but believe it or not, to actually help you in curbing your appetite. And increase your metabolism as well. It’s like hitting two birds with one stone, as they say. Is there any other food or drink that can do that for you? I’m not sure if there is, but hot pepper can do both things at the same time for you.
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It’s all because of capsacin, the potent compound that is the heat source of peppers (and incidentally, is used in pepper spray). The capsacin increases the blood flow to our intestines and increases the muscular contractions of the intestinal walls. Plus, it is thought of as something that blocks sensory information going from our intestines to the brain. Capsacin prevents the intestine from sending the “I’m hungry” signal to the brain. And when the brain has no idea that the intestine is already asking for food, it will not order you to eat. Due to this, you do not feel that hungry, though some scientists say that capsacin actually makes us full. But whether it loads our stomach to its full capacity, or just makes us forget that we are hungry, it leads us to stop craving for food. And less appetite, of course, will lead to lower calorie intake.
That’s not all. Capsacin can also stimulate digestion, relieve pain, and cure common colds. Imagine having an effective diet tool with health benefits on the side. It seems that there is so much that Capsacin can do.
But before you munch on hot peppers and try going for the world record for the number of hot peppers eaten in an hour, be aware that there are side effects such as burning and upset stomach. I suggest that you start with low doses first until you have reached the ideal number for your health.
