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Capsicum, or hot red chili peppers, have come into their own
recently, both as a culinary spice and as a hot new medical remedy. Long used as a food
spice and an aid to digestion, red chilies or cayenne peppers were once thought to
aggravate stomach ulcers. This fear has been discounted by researchers who became excited
by studies that indicated that capsicum could help prevent the formation of dangerous
blood clots. Now new research is focusing on this spices ability to act as an
anti-inflammatory agent, and aid in controlling pain.
Researchers in Thailand first noticed that people who consume
large amounts of red chili peppers experienced a lower incidence of thrombo-embolism, or
potentially dangerous blood clots. Scientists then looked at the medical records of
countries where hot spicy foods were regularly consumed, and found that people who eat a
diet high in red peppers experience a much lower incidence of blood clotting diseases.
Scientists have now concluded that capsicum does indeed possess fibrinolytic activity,
meaning that it is able to break down blood clots.
In addition to preventing the formation of blood clots,
researchers have also discovered that a topically applied cream containing capsicum could
help control some types of chronic skin pains. Now available in the form of a prescription
drug called Zostrix, capsicum ointment is applied to the skin to aid in controlling the
pain associated with herpes zoster, also known as shingles, as well as neuralgia and
postoperative amputation trauma.
The active ingredient in capsicum is a compound called
"capsaicin" that functions to deplete 'substance P', which is involved in the
transmission of pain from the skin to the spinal cord. By blocking substance P, capsaicin
acts as a dramatic and long-lasting anesthetic bringing relief to almost 75 percent of
patients tested with the cream. It can take as long as three days from first application
to begin to deplete substance P from the peripheral nerves.
Taken internally to aid digestion, red peppers should be
consumed slowly to avoid distress. Capsicum and cayenne can also be taken in capsules. Be
careful to avoid getting capsicum products in the eyes, as this can be extremely painful.
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