Studies Show That Eating Spicy Peppers Can Increase Your Lifespan
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Aging is something we all have to deal with, but there are tricks to be aware of to slow it down, such as eating spicy foods to increase your lifespan.
Studies have shown that eating spicy peppers once or twice a week can reduce the risk of death by about 10%. Meanwhile, choosing to eat foods high in spices six or seven times a week reduces the risk of death by 14%.
Spicy food lovers can rejoice that they are doing something good for their good health.
Chinese Health Study Shows Spicy Food Makes a Difference
A health study performed on the Chinese population between 2004 and 2008 showed that of 485,000 people, around 22,000 died in the period they were being studied (an average of seven years). Those who died, factoring out family history, health conditions and other factors, were less likely to eat spicy food on a daily basis.
Eating food with chilis is common in certain cultures for centuries. However, as time goes on, people in Western culture seem to have forgotten the health benefits and decided they didn’t like the taste of foods that are high in spice content.
Related: Why Spicy Foods Are Good For Your Health.
Scientists Require More Evidence To Understand Correlation
Scientists believe more case studies and further evidence may allow them to understand better, the correlation between living longer and eating spicy food.
One of the main ingredients in spicy food is capsaicin, which may have a direct effect on extending the lifespan of adults. However, that is currently not backed by sufficient evidence to conclusively give the reason. Therefore, scientists are interested in expanding the trial results to find the correlation conclusively.
It is important to note that fresh chilis, rather than chili powder or chili sauce, has the better impact. This is because the capsaicin is typically cooked out for those edible concoctions. Meanwhile, eating green chilis is also a benefit for the health.
The evidence currently available says that respiratory disease, cancers and ischemic heart diseases were all at lower rates among the survey participants who ate spicy foods, or food with capsaicin, almost every day of their lives. Therefore, the current scientific theory is that capsaicin has a signficant effect on the growth of these medical issues, preventing that and thereby extending the person’s lifespan.
People who eat spicy foods on a regular basis can simply enjoy this benefit with no change. For those who wish to benefit but are not used to pungent foods, it may pay to work up to eating them every day.
Your digestive system may not be prepared for the spices and may take time to adjust to dealing with them. So, be cautious when introducing spicy foods to your diet, and once you have established your system can handle the spices, prepare for a whole new level of food variety and benefits.
Source:
https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/08/04/spicy-food-linked-to-lower-risk-of-death/?_r=0
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