Table of contents:
- What are the benefits of spicy food for your body's health?
- 1. Increase metabolism
- 2. Good for heart health
- 3. Helping cancer treatment
- However, don't overeat spicy foods
- What to do if you are spicy?
The Indonesian tongue mostly likes spicy food. It is not surprising that this habit of eating spicy foods is very difficult to break. But you need to know, even though it provides health benefits, spicy food that is consumed in excess will certainly have a bad impact on the body.
So, what are the benefits of spicy food for the body and what harm can it do to you if there is too much spicy food?
What are the benefits of spicy food for your body's health?
Apart from increasing the taste of food and one's appetite, spicy food is often said to make your body healthy. The spicy taste and hot sensation produced by chilies are actually caused by an active chemical compound in chilies called capsaicin.
Not only arouse your appetite, spicy food also has benefits for your body. What are the health benefits of spicy food?
1. Increase metabolism
A study revealed that the sensation of heat from capsaicin boosts the body's metabolic performance by up to five percent. Increasing the work of the body's metabolism will result in burning fat by up to 16 percent. Other studies have also shown that capsaicin has a thermogenic effect that can make the body burn extra calories for twenty minutes after eating.
2. Good for heart health
Spicy food can improve heart health. This is because the capsaicin in chilies is effective at reducing levels of bad cholesterol (LDL) and increasing levels of good cholesterol (HDL) in the body.
Vitamins A and C contained in chilies can strengthen the walls of the heart muscle, the warm sensation of capsaicin can increase blood circulation in the body. Capsaicin can also help prevent blood clots.
One study showed that people who ate spicy food almost every day had a 14 percent lower risk of death. Those who ate spicy food only twice a week lowered their risk of death by 10 percent, compared to people who ate spicy food only once a week. This is associated with lower mortality from cancer, heart disease and respiratory problems.
3. Helping cancer treatment
According to the American Association for Cancer Research, capsaicin compounds are alleged to have the ability to slow down some types of cancer. Researchers also found that capsaicin was able to kill 80 percent of prostate cancers. Capsaicin is also said to be useful in helping treat breast, pancreatic, and bladder cancers.
However, don't overeat spicy foods
Have you ever accidentally got splashed on the spicy meatball or soup sauce? If so, surely you understand how painful your eyes are. This can also happen when you consume too much spicy food.
As reported by Womens Health, spicy food can irritate your skin, especially on the lips. If you eat too much spicy food, the skin on your lips will feel sore. It is also important that you wash your hands after you make or eat spicy food.
Not only that, eating spicy food just before bedtime can cause indigestion that makes it almost certainly difficult for you to sleep well. Even if you are among those who can eat spicy food without having to feel chili and spicy food is associated with long awake at night and takes longer to sleep soundly, this is because capsaicin affects sleep patterns by changing your body temperature.
What to do if you are spicy?
To get rid of that spiciness, a study at the New Mexico State University Chile Pepper Institute, as reported by the Medical Daily, found a quick way to do that is by drinking milk. In their study, researchers found that the protein in milk can replace the chemical compounds that make chilies hot and cause a burning sensation.
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