Health Benefits of Chili Peppers & Powder [Research Review]

What are the health benefits of eating or cooking with chili peppers and chili powder?

Chili peppers are the fruits from the Capsicum family of plants. Increasing consumption of these peppers is believed to support healthy circulation, digestive function, pain relief and potentially weight loss.

Various cultivars of chili peppers are used in cooking from mildly hot chilis like bell peppers, to spicy varieties like the habanero. The fruit pods of chili peppers contain alkaloid plant chemicals called capsaicinoids and are rich sources of other vitamins and minerals.

The primary active compound found in hot chili peppers is capsaicin. This bioactive chemical is being researched for its potential anticancer, antidiabetic, antibacterial, pain-relieving and heart-protecting properties.

Currently, topical creams containing capsaicin extract from chili peppers are FDA-approved for alleviating joint pain. Consuming more of these peppers in your diet may also help to reduce inflammation and support joint comfort.

Capsaicin

Pepper Extract

Joints

Appetite Control

Vitality

How It Works:

• Supports healthy digestion & blood flow
• Promotes joint function & pain relief
• Promotes appetite control & weight loss

Dosage:

Between 1000 - 2000 mg per day

Safety:

Rated Possibly Safe

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Chili Peppers

All chili peppers are members of the Solanaceae botanical family. This is the same family that tomatoes and potatoes belong to; commonly called “nightshades”.

Chili peppers comprise the capsicum genus of that family. The term “capsicum” refers to chili peppers in general.

Chilis are a good source of several vitamins, antioxidants and minerals. These peppers typically contain high amounts of Vitamin C, Vitamin A, Vitamin K1, Vitamin B6, Potassium, Copper, Lutein, Ferulic Acid, Sinapic Acid and carotenois like Violaxanthin and Capsanthin.

How hot a chili pepper tastes depends on the amount of spicy capsaicinoids the pepper contains. A chili pepper’s hotness is measured on the Scoville Heat Unit (SHU) scale. The hotter the chili is, the more capsaicin it contains.

For instance, a sweet bell pepper scores close to zero to the SHU scale. A jalapeno scores about 3,500. A Red Savina habanero scores close to 500,000. A ghost pepper (Bhut Jolokia) scores around 1 million. The world’s hottest pepper, the Carolina Reaper, scores above 2 million of the Scoville scale.

Health Benefits of Chili Peppers

Chilis are typically cooked into foods or used as a spice for flavoring in the form of chili powder, which is made of dried chili peppers that have been crushed into powder.

The primary capsaicinoids in chili peppers and powders are capsaicin, capsanthin and capsorubin. These plant chemicals are being studied for the potential benefits in weight loss, fat metabolism, heart health, and blood sugar regulation.

There are various other areas of study involving capsaicinoids in chili peppers and health.

For instance, researchers are trying to understand how chili peppers might suppress appetite, increase thermogenesis, ease stomach problems and affect the function of the adrenal glands.

Dietary supplements containing this ingredient are purported to have benefits for acid reflux and heartburn.

One of the most common reasons for increasing your intake of capsicum is to help relieve muscle pain, nerve pain or osteoarthritic pain. Research shows that this plant extract depletes the neuropeptide substance P, which is involved in pain signalling to the brain.

Chili peppers may work by de-sensitizing pain receptors throughout the body. It appears to trick the brain by stimulating “the very same pain receptors that respond to actual heat” and causing these receptors to become less responsive over time.

Multiple studies have established that use of chili pepper products can temporarily improve chronic pain associated with rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, the skin condition psoriasis, shingles and diabetic neuropathy.

Weight Loss Benefits of Chili Powder

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), roughly one-third of the world’s population is overweight and/or obese. Being overweight increases the risk for developing numerous conditions and diseases.

Researchers from the University of Wyoming discovered that very small amounts of capsaicin can prevent weight gain in mice. When capsaicin accounts for as little as 0.1% of food intake, weight gain seems to plateau.

It may work by suppressing the appetite. This means that people eat less food after consuming a source of capsaicin, which can make it easier to achieve a calorie deficit.

This spice may also increase thermogenic metabolism, influence blood sugar regulation and affect lipid metabolism in the body.

Mice fed high-fat diets with capsaicin gained significantly less weight than mice fed high-fat diets without capsaicin. The weight gain-blocking effects of this isolated chili pepper extract seem to be caused by its ability to affect the TRPV1 (transient receptor potential vanilloid 1) protein pathway.

Researchers believe that capsaicin helps to increase the amount of brown fat relative to white fat in the body. Typically, when we think of body fat we are referring to white adipose tissue which stores calories to be burned for energy in the form of single large lipid droplets.

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) is also used to store lipids, but brown adipocytes stores multiple smaller lipid droplets with a higher number of mitochondria in the cells. The lipid contents of brown fat cells are typically converted into heat through fat metabolism in a process known as thermogenesis.

In general, the more brown fat you have, the more thermogenically active you are. This means that more of your stored fat is getting converted into heat, resulting in lower body fat percentages.

Because of its apparent effects on brown fat, capsaicin is believed to be able to mimic the weight gain-blocking effects of exercise. Capsaicin may be an effective key for facilitating weight loss and long-term weight management.

More research is needed to determine the anti-obesity effects of capsaicin in humans. Studies conducted so far are pre-clinical and cannot be used to determine therapeutic efficacy for human weight loss.

Benefits of Chili Powder for Blood Glucose Levels

Adding chili peppers to your diet regularly might help to reduce the amount of insulin in your blood and support healthy levels of blood sugar following a meal.

In 2006, Australian researchers showed that meals with chili peppers reduce the amount of insulin required to modulate blood glucose levels after eating. This effect is evident after one meal but benefits increase with regular consumption of pepper-containing meals.

The beneficial effects of chili peppers on insulin are more significant in individuals with higher body mass index (BMI) scores.

Overweight people who eat chili powder or peppers with their meals have lower C-peptide/insulin ratios. This indicates that insulin is being cleared from the blood by the liver more effectively.

Preliminary human studies suggest certain anti-diabetic benefits associated with capsaicin, but more research is needed to be sure.

Cardiovascular Benefits of Chili Peppers

Some human studies show that capsaicin in red chilis is helpful for reducing cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood. It also inhibits platelet aggregation and helps the body to dissolve a substance called fibrin.

Fibrin is a coagulant that is necessary for forming blood clots. This is important to prevent you from losing excess amounts of blood if you get cut. However, blood clots that form when they are not needed can cause dangerous health problems such as strokes, deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or heart attacks.

In cultures that consume high amounts of chili peppers, statistics show less risks for developing cardiovascular conditions like heart attack, stroke and pulmonary embolisms.

In one randomized human study involving 13 men and 14 women, consumption of fresh-chopped chili peppers was demonstrated to slow lipid oxidation, which can contribute to the development of arterial plaques.

With capsaicin, fatty acids in the blood, like cholesterol and triglycerides, were better able to resist oxidative damage caused by free radicals.

In this study, treatment subjects ate 30 grams of freshly-chopped chilis each day for 4 weeks. 30 grams is slightly more than one ounce. Other subjects ate a diet with no chili peppers at all.

At the study’s conclusion, both men and women in the treatment group showed significantly lower levels of fat oxidation relative to those on a control diet. This means that the level of damage to lipid molecules was less in those who consumed the chilis.

Lower levels of lipid oxidation reduce the risk for developing harmful blood clots or atherosclerosis, a primary cause of cardiovascular disease.

Men who ate the chilis also experienced increased blood delivery to the heart muscle and decreased resting heart rates on average.

More human studies are needed to know how chili powder can help to improve cardiovascular health in humans. While it appears to have pro-circulatory effects, more research is needed to evaluate therapeutic efficacy.

Prostate Cancer Benefits

There is preliminary research suggesting that capsaicin may have anti-cancer effects.

According to the Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database, “Antimutagenic and tumoricidal effects of various Capsicum fruits, as well as capsaicin and other constituents, have been indicated in vitro and in animal research, as well as in various reviews.”

A 2006 study published by the AACR (American Association for Cancer Research) concluded that capsaicin suppresses the spread of prostate cancer cells in several ways. Capsaicin induces cell suicide (apoptosis) in both primary types of prostate cancer cells.

Capsaicin also reduces the expression of PSA (prostate specific antigen); a glycoprotein enzyme produced by the prostate gland. It also stops DHT (dihydrotestosterone) from being able to activate PSA. Finally, capsaicin inhibits PSA transcription and causes PSA amounts to drop rapidly and significantly.

In animal studies, 4 weeks of capsaicin administration caused significant reductions in the size and growth of prostate tumors. The amounts used in these studies is roughly equivalent to a 200-pound person taking 400 mg three times weekly.

Significantly more research is required to determine the anticancer efficacy of chili peppers in humans. The FDA has not approved this product as a drug for the prevention or treatment of cancer.

Anti-inflammatory Benefits of Chili Powder

Capsaicin acts as an anti-inflammatory agent. Research shows that this compound inhibit a neuropeptide called substance P.

Substance P acts as a neurotransmitter and neuromodulator. It facilitates nerve signaling inside the brain and central nervous system. Substance P is also associated with certain inflammatory processes.

In mammals with induced inflammatory arthritis, capsaicin delayed the onset of symptoms, and reduced swelling in paws. A 2016 research review states that “Topical application of capsaicin is proved to alleviate pain in arthritis, postoperative neuralgia, diabetic neuropathy, psoriasis, etc.”.

Applied topically, capsaicin is a recognized option for treating pains associated with osteoarthritis. Several study reviews report that capsaicin is effective for easing pain associated with nerve damage caused by chronic diabetes mellitus.

Research continues to study the anti-inflammatory effects of chili peppers.

Conclusions

Currently, the majority of uses for chili peppers have not been validated clinically. Most of the research completed to date involves animals.

The Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database reports that capsaicin is likely effective for is pain. It is rated as possibly effective for back pain, cluster headaches, fibromyalgia, perennial rhinitis and prurigo nodularis.

Increasing consumption of chili peppers in your diet may promote certain health benefits, but it is important eat a healthy diet overall instead of focusing on increasing consumption of specific foods.

Chili peppers are considered safe when used orally in amounts typically found in foods. The Capsicum pepper has received Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) status from the FDA in the United States.

Not everyone tolerates spicy foods well. If you want to achieve the positive effects associated with capsaicin consumption but cannot tolerate hot foods, there are supplement companies that sell formulations of this ingredient designed to prevent digestive discomfort.

Chili peppers and powders also contain several other constituents that are important for health. Some of these include potassium, copper, iron, magnesium and vitamins C, A and E. They also contain known antioxidants like cryptoxanthin, lutein and beta-carotene.

Capsicum extract supplements typically only provide isolated capsaicin and may not contain significant amounts of the other beneficial phytonutrients found in this fruit.

Some of the most common side effects of capsaicin include abdominal discomfort, diarrhea, sweating and headaches. Allergic reactions are also possible. Excessive consumption for long periods of time may lead to increased risk of liver damage.

Chili peppers may interact with certain herbal supplements, drugs and health conditions. Talk to your doctor about the safety and health benefits of chili peppers for you if you have been prescribed with any conditions or are on prescription medications.

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