Pepper

Peppers and Your Health

 A look at the potential health benefits that peppers may hold.

Peppers -- hot or not -- may do more than round out your omelet, spice up your salsa, and make for a colorful stir-fry. They help you get some of your daily vitamins and contain compounds that may be linked to weight loss, pain reduction, and other benefits.

Peppers, by the way, are fruits, not vegetables. They have been popular for a long time, including with the ancient Aztecs. And now they’re getting new attention from researchers eager to unlock their potential health benefits.

Phytochemicals in Peppers

Whether spicy or sweet, peppers contain many phytochemicals, which are naturally occurring compounds found in plants.

"Close to a million have been identified in nature," says David Heber, MD, PhD, professor of medicine and public health and chief and founding director of the Center for Human Nutrition at the Division of Clinical Nutrition at UCLA. He is also author of several nutrition books, including What Color Is Your Diet?

Many of peppers' phytochemicals have antioxidant abilities. This means they can help neutralize free radicals in the body, which damage cells. So they may help prevent or reduce symptoms of certain diseases. Similar to hormones, some phytochemicals also act as messengers in the body, Heber says.

Peppers come in a rainbow of colors, including green, red, yellow, orange, and even purple, brown, and black.

"Each color of pepper is associated with a different family of phytochemicals," Heber says. But there's a lot of overlap in nature. "So it's not like you need to have a certain type of chili pepper, or you're going to die." The problem occurs when you don't eat enough variety of colorful fruits and vegetables, spices, and herbs, he says.

 Peppers' Top Performers

Whether mild or fiery, peppers are nutrient-dense. They're one of the richest sources of vitamins A and C. Just a cup a day can provide more than 100% of your daily needs.

Go for a variety of colors in peppers to get the biggest bang for your buck. Red bell peppers are a good source of fiber, folate, vitamin K, and the minerals molybdenum and manganese. And, they're especially rich in nutrients and phytochemicals such as:

·         Vitamin A, which may help preserve eyesight, and fend off infections

·         Vitamin C, which may lower cancer risk and protect against cataracts

·         Vitamin B6, which is vital for essential chemical reactions throughout the body, including those involving brain and immune function

·         Lutein and zeaxanthin, which may slow the development of eye diseases, such as cataracts or macular degeneration

·         Beta-carotene, which may help protect against certain types of cancer, such asbreast cancer in women before menopause

·         Lycopene, which may decrease the risk for ovarian cancer

Additional Five health benefits of red peppers

Red peppers are the belle of the ball at any buffet table. Crisp and incredibly sweet, these ladies in red are an easy sell to anyone who is not fond of vegetables. The only limiting factor is that they can be costly during winter, but now that it’s July, we can look forward to eating more inexpensive local peppers.

Did you know that green peppers are just unripe red peppers? Because they are not fully mature, they have a bitter after taste, and half the vitamin C and 1/10th the vitamin A compared to their red or orange siblings. Vitamin A has been shown to improve sperm quality, and vitamin C helps build collagen, which ensures beautiful skin – all these combined makes peppers one of nature’s sexiest foods!

Paprika and chili peppers offer the same benefits, but with extra capsaicin, a chemical that can produce a strong burning sensation in the mouth. This stimulating heat has been shown to increase blood flow making it a popular remedy for libido and pain relief. 

Here are five more alluring facts to increase your red pepper consumption:

1.    Red peppers contain almost 300 percent of your daily vitamin C intake. Besides being a powerful antioxidant, vitamin C is also needed for the proper absorption of iron. If you are iron deficient, try combining red peppers with your iron source for maximum absorption.

2.    Red bell peppers are a great source of vitamin B6 and magnesium. This vitamin and mineral combination shows a decrease in anxiety, especially related to pre-menstrual symptoms. Vitamin B6 is also a natural diuretic, so try stocking up on red bell peppers to reduce bloating and prevent against hypertension.

3.    Red bell peppers help support healthy night vision. Red bell peppers are high in vitamin A, which helps to support healthy eyesight, especially night vision. So when it comes to bell peppers, seeing red is a good thing!

4.    Red bell peppers are packed with antioxidants. The combined effects of vitamin A and C create a great antioxidant capacity, and with lycopene in the mix, the red bell pepper becomes a top notch superfood. Lycopene is what makes tomatoes and peppers red. Red peppers are one of the highest veggies in lycopene, which has been successfully tested in the prevention of many cancers including prostate and lung.

5.    Burn more calories with red bell peppers. Recent research has shown that sweet red peppers can activate thermogenesis and increase metabolic rate. Red bell peppers do not contain capsaicin, which is what makes peppers hot and causes us to sweat, but they do have a mild thermogenic action that increases our metabolism without increasing our heart rate and blood pressure like the hot peppers do.

Healthy benefits of hot peppers

Zesty decongestants. You know the feeling: you bite into something spicy, and your nose starts running. Call it the spicy sniffles. Capsaicin, the part of peppers that gives them their heat, is an irritant. When it hits your nose, throat, or lungs, it stimulates secretions and loosens up mucous. That's pretty hot: you can get a yummy plate of enchiladas and relief from your stuffy nose!

Pathogen protection. Because of the modern fusion of global cuisines, you can now find the vibrant, waxy-skinned peppers of the capsicum family in foods all over the world. This wasn't always the case. Native to the Caribbean and the Americas, these peppers have long been added to foods, and not just for their pungent flavour. It's now thought that the heat of the peppers protects those who eat it from foodborne pathogens and microbes, which thrive in warmer tropical climates.

Scorching source of antioxidants. You wouldn't think a kiwi fruit would have much in common with a bell pepper. But they are both fruits (peppers may not taste like fruits, but they are!), and they're both mega sources of vitamin C. In fact, raw bell peppers provide more C than pretty much any other food. As for vitamin A, bell peppers rank right up there with the darker leafy greens, like kale and spinach. Cayenne peppers, better known as the red hot chilli pepper, are bursting with these two antioxidant vitamins. Red bells also contain lutein, an antioxidant that helps to protect your eyes from macular degeneration.

Searing pain soother. When trying to get a reluctant eater to try something spicy, people often say, "Aww, try it. You'll get used to it." A four-alarm chilli may downgrade to two-alarm after a few bites. In the same way that your mouth's pain receptors can get desensitized, nerve receptors in the body can also be desensitized. This is the theory behind using capsaicin and pepper extracts as pain relievers. When applied to the skin, topical capsaicin has been shown to effectively ease symptoms of cluster headaches, shingles, and osteoarthritis.

Hot heart helpers. In cultures where people enjoy lots of food laced with spicy flavour, there is a lower incidence of heart attacks. Could capsaicin be the heart-helping ingredient? Researchers once thought that capsaicin would send blood pressure sky-high, but the opposite could be true. As mentioned above, capsaicin can be a shock to your system at first, but over time, you can get used to it. Evidence is preliminary, but there's a possibility that capsaicin could be used as a treatment to lower blood pressure and cholesterol. Eating meals with capsaicin-rich peppers may also help to regulate blood sugar levels and lower the risk of diabetes. And when you lower your diabetes risk, your blood pressure, and your cholesterol, you lower your overall heart health risks!

Peppers for your prostate. Say this five times fast: pick a peck of peppers for the protection of your prostate. Researchers found that when they applied capsaicin to prostate cancer cells, they were able to trigger cell death and slow down tumour growth. So far, this testing has only been done on mice, but you might consider adding red chilli peppers to your next shopping list.

Handle the heat with care

• If you bite off more heat than you can handle, drink milk. A protein in milk will put out the fire.
• Always thoroughly wash your hands after handling hot peppers and avoid putting your fingers anywhere near your eyes.
• Stand clear if you're cooking with peppers. Cooking can release some of the qualities into the air, which can irritate your eyes and throat, too.
• Some studies have also suggested that eating hot chilli peppers too often may increase your risk of stomach cancer.
• Symptoms of certain conditions can also be triggered by eating spicy foods, including menopause symptoms, heartburn, and migraines.

Remember, the hotter the pepper, the higher the capsaicin content. So, spike your meals with fiery spice and reap the health benefits that people from the tropics have enjoyed for centuries. Chilli peppers can spice up salsas, salad dressings, and soups, add some crunch to a veggie plate, or act as a balance to bitter foods like greens.

To cool the heat, try mixing spicy chilli flavour with more cool, neutral tastes, like yoghurts, avocadoes, mango, papaya, or cilantro. Sample a variety of peppers from the capsicum family: anaheim, bell, cayenne, jalapeno, pepperoncini, poblano, serrano, habanero, and tabasco.

7 Health Benefits of Organic Peppers

You already know that peppers add great taste to your favorite dishes. You might not know what superior healing agents organic peppers can be and how much they can promote your health. I’d like to tell you just how much delicious organic hot peppers can do for you.

Plant compounds called capsaicinoids create the heat in peppers when it touches your mucous membranes.

Different peppers produce a slightly different burn, from mild to very hot. The hottest peppers of the genus capsaicin, such as cayenne and jalapeño peppers, produce a sensation of fire in your mouth.

When that fire hits, your mouth sends a signal to your brain which releases natural pain relievers and endorphins. It’s good to go for the burn, but do so in moderation.

Cayenne is a very popular hot pepper. Its long pod and biting seeds boost fiery flavor and support your immune system too. Specifically, the vitamin A, or beta-carotene, in cayenne and other organic peppers protects your digestive system and wards off infections.

Fresh or lightly cooked red peppers such as cayenne also contain vitamins E, C, and B complex vitamins.

More Health Benefits of Organic Peppers

Capsaicin rich cayenne and other hot peppers help to:

1.    Reduce Redness and Swelling: You can potentially redness and swelling from sore muscles and bones with the natural properties in organic peppers.

2.    Ease the Common Cold: Organic peppers clear out congested mucus membranes in the nose and lungs and cause sweating which is one way your body eliminates toxins.

3.    Soothe and Balance Your Stomach: Added to your diet, organic peppers help improve digestion by stimulating the flow of stomach secretions and eliminating the discomfort of excess gas.

4.    Support Blood Circulation: Hot peppers such as cayenne stimulate blood flow naturally.

5.    Promote Healthy Lipid Profiles: Acting as a thinning agent, organic peppers help dissolve fibrin, the insoluble protein that builds up in your blood vessels which might cause blood clots.

6.    Control Your Weight: By activating your digestion, organic hot peppers can reduce your appetite by making you feel full faster.

7.    Function as an Anti-oxidant: The beta-carotene in cayenne and other organic peppers works as an antioxidant that counteracts the damage caused by free radicals.

One of the hottest peppers, the small, red-hot habanero, provides exceptional health benefits, too. The oils in these peppers put fiery heat and flavor into Tex-Mex dishes while doing some amazing things for your overall health.

In addition to the benefits listed above, habanero peppers can also help:

·         Trigger endorphins

·         Lower triglycerides

·         Supports circulation

·         Promotes normal, balanced blood pressure

·         Fight potential heart disease

Green, bullet-shaped jalapeños are medium-hot peppers, and they also offer all the health giving advantages of the hotter capsaicin rich peppers, with a slightly milder flavor.

Not So Hot Peppers

Very mild and sweet organic peppers have plenty of health benefits, too. Dark green poblanos and red, green, and yellow bell peppers offer the benefits of high fiber, and they’re low in fat, calories, and sodium.

These peppers are great replacements for salt in your diet, and they offer the bonus of boosting your metabolism to burn fat.

Note: Eating hot peppers in excess may irritate your intestinal tract, from top to bottom, so practice restraint. Also, handle the hotter peppers carefully because the heat can transfer from your fingers to your nose and eyes, causing discomfort.

Bell pepper nutrition facts

Bell pepper, or sweet pepper, is the most popular of the chili peppers in the Capsicum annuum family. It is a fruit pod of small perennial shrub in the nightshade or Solanaceae family, in the genus, capsicum. Scientific name: Capsicum annuum L.

Unlike their fellow capsicum members, sweet peppers have characteristic bell shape with crunchy, thick fleshy texture. Additionally, on comparison with other members, bell (sweet) peppers feature characteristically less pungency that ranges from zero to very minimal hotness. For the same reasons, they generally treated like any other common vegetables instead of spice.

Peppers are native to Mexico and other Central American region from where they spread to the rest of the world by Spanish and Portuguese explorers during 16th and 17th centuries. Today, they grown widely in many parts of the world as an important commercial crop. As in other chili pepper varieties, bell peppers also have several cultivar types. However, the plant type and fruit pod (with 3-5 lobes) are a common features in almost all cultivars.

In structure, sweet pepper features blocky, cube like outer flesh enclosing numerous tiny, white, or cream colored, circular and flat seeds. The seeds are actually clinging on to the central core (placenta). To harvest, peppers are handpicked at different stages of maturity depending upon the local preferences. All varieties of unripe peppers feature green color pods, irrespective of their final destined color. As the fruit matures, it gradually acquires its true genetic color; orange, red, purple, yellow, etc.

The hotness of peppers is measured in “Scoville heat units” (SHU). On the Scoville scale, a sweet bell pepper scores 0, while a jalapeno pepper around 2,500-4,000 and a Mexican habaneros 200,000 to 500,000 units.

Health benefits of bell pepper

• Bell pepper contains an impressive list of plant nutrients that are found to have disease preventing and health promoting properties. Unlike in other fellow chili peppers, it has very less calories and fats. 100 g provides just 31 calories.
• Sweet (bell) pepper contains small levels of health benefiting an alkaloid compound capsaicin. Early laboratory studies on experimental mammals suggest that capsaicin has anti-bacterial, anti-carcinogenic, analgesic and anti-diabetic properties. When used judiciously, it also found to reduce triglycerides and LDL cholesterol levels in obese individuals.
• Fresh bell peppers, red or green, are rich source of vitamin-C. This vitamin is especially concentrated in red peppers at the highest levels. 100 g red pepper provides about 127.7 µg or about 213% of RDA of vitamin C. Vitamin-C is a potent water soluble antioxidant. Inside the human body, it is required for the collagen synthesis. Collagen is the main structural protein in the body required for maintaining the integrity of blood vessels, skin, organs, and bones. Regular consumption of foods rich in this vitamin helps the human body protect from scurvy; develop resistance against infectious agents (boosts immunity) and scavenge harmful, pro-inflammatory free radicals from the body.
• It also contains good levels of vitamin-A. 100 g of sweet pepper has 3131 IU or 101% of vitamin A. In addition, it contains anti-oxidant flavonoids such as α and β carotenes, lutein, zea-xanthin, and cryptoxanthin. Together, these antioxidant substances in sweet peppers help to protect the body from injurious effects of free radicals generated during stress and disease conditions.
• Bell pepper has adequate levels of essential minerals. Some of the main minerals in it are iron, copper, zinc, potassium, manganese, magnesium, and selenium. Manganese is used by the body as a co-factor for the antioxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase. Selenium is an anti-oxidant micro-mineral that acts as a co-factor for enzyme, superoxide dismutase.
• Further, capsicum (sweet pepper) is also good in B-complex group of vitamins such as niacin, pyridoxine (vitamin B-6), riboflavin, and thiamin (vitamin B-1). These vitamins are essential in the sense that body requires them from external sources to replenish. B-complex vitamins facilitate cellular metabolism through various enzymatic functions.