Eat HOT, look HOT
| If you've ever burned your tongue on a jalapeno, you've learned to respect the power of the pepper. The kick comes from naturally evolved phytochemicals that protect plants from predators (imagine a curious gopher biting into a big habanero). Now researchers are discovering that the same hot pepper compounds that burn the senses may also help us torch extra calories. A recent UCLA study found that dieters burned more fat -- and twice as many calories -- when they added a hot pepper compound similar to capsaicin to meals. Similar effects were found from whole food ingredients: Dutch scientists included a gram of red peppers in a calorie-controlled meal then measured the effects on metabolism. Hot pepper eaters enjoyed a drop in ghrelin (a hunger-stimulating hormone) and a rise in GLP-1 (which suppresses appetite). Beyond weight management benefits, hot peppers are relatively nutritious -- compared to red bell peppers, gram for gram, serranos have twice the fiber while green chili peppers have double the vitamin C. |
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