Is chili pepper good for weight loss and appetite? Traditional Chinese Medicine: Low-calorie foods are recommended

In the hot summer, eating chili peppers has the magical effect of losing weight and sweating. Chinese medicine practitioners point out that chili peppers can stimulate the sympathetic nerves, especially the capsaicin in chili peppers, which can accelerate the synthesis of heat energy and activate the enzymes in the liver that break down fat, making it a very good weight-loss food. However, chili peppers must be eaten with low-calorie foods, which can not only stimulate the appetite and lose weight, but also will not cause irritation or harm to the stomach and intestines.

Traditional Chinese medicine believes that chili peppers are hot and spicy in nature, and have the effects of dispelling evil and cold, warming the middle and stimulating appetite. (Photo/taken from this site’s archive photo)

Chinese medicine practitioner Wu Mingzhu pointed out that chili peppers are spicy and stimulating. No matter what dish it is, as long as it is served with chili peppers, it will taste especially delicious. In folk culture, chili peppers are also known as "appetizers" and "dishes that go well with rice". The summer heat is unbearable and most people have no appetite and don't want to eat. Eating some chili can promote appetite, stimulate the appetite and aid digestion.

Eating too much chili pepper can cause constipation and hemorrhoids

In summer, people often eat watermelon, cucumber, bitter melon, winter melon, loofah and other fruits and vegetables that can reduce heat. They are all cold foods. Eating too much of them can easily damage the spleen and stomach. If you add a little chili to the meal, it can balance the cold and heat, such as stir-fried bitter melon, stir-fried cabbage, and cold cucumber salad. It should be noted that chili peppers are hot in nature. If you have a hot constitution and eat too much chili peppers in the summer, it is like adding fuel to the fire, which can easily lead to constipation and hemorrhoids.

In fact, many people in China like to eat chili peppers, mostly because there is a lot of rain in summer and the climate is humid, and chili peppers have the effect of dehumidification and can expel excess moisture from the body. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that chili peppers are hot and spicy in nature, and have the effects of dispelling evil and cold, warming the middle and stimulating appetite. They can be used for cold pain in the chest and abdomen, diarrhea and other symptoms. Eating a moderate amount of chili peppers regularly can promote fat metabolism and help lose weight and detoxify.

Excessive intake of chili peppers can easily cause stomach damage and diarrhea

In addition to capsaicin, peppers are also high in vitamin C. Every 100 grams of green peppers contains 62 mg, and every 100 grams of red peppers contains 144 mg, which exceeds many vegetables and fruits. In addition, it also contains a variety of minerals, such as potassium, sodium, calcium, magnesium, iron, etc. Among the pigments, paprika red is one of the famous natural food pigments and is widely used in the food industry.

The only drawback is that eating too much chili pepper can be harmful to human health. Because capsaicin is absorbed into the blood from the small intestine, it can be transported to the liver for storage and become a beneficial anti-cancer substance. However, capsaicin can also damage cells in the liver. Too much capsaicin can irritate the mucous membranes of the mouth, throat, esophagus, gastrointestinal tract, anus, etc., causing congestion and edema, accelerating gastrointestinal motility, and even causing local spasms, leading to stomach pain, abdominal pain, or diarrhea.

Weight loss is more obvious with low-calorie food

Chili peppers cannot be eaten as a meal, so how can we eat them to really lose weight? Chinese medicine practitioners recommend that chili peppers must be eaten with low-calorie foods. For example, adding chili peppers to sugar-free plain yogurt, or using it as a seasoning for konjac noodles, can stimulate the appetite and help lose weight. As long as calories are properly controlled, the results can be seen in one month.

However, capsaicin can burn fat, but it can also stimulate appetite. If you add it to braised pork rice, it will taste better and better, but it will increase the burden on your body. And people with hot constitution or stomach ulcers should eat less spicy food, so as to avoid losing weight and end up in the hospital.

【Tip from Chinese Medicine Practitioners】

Spicy foods such as chili peppers are not suitable for everyone. Spicy foods are very irritating. Excessive consumption can cause gastrointestinal irritation and discomfort. Patients with chronic diseases should be especially careful. People with heart disease, for example, are not suitable for eating chili peppers. Chili peppers can increase blood circulation, accelerate heartbeat, and cause tachycardia. Taking large amounts in a short period of time can lead to acute heart failure and even sudden death. In addition, people with poor liver function or gastrointestinal diseases should not consume too much to avoid causing greater gastrointestinal irritation.