Tag Archives: chili peppers

Like spicy food? Chili peppers can lower blood pressure

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A paper just published in the journal Cell Metabolism reports that capsaicin, the chemical in chili peppers that makes them taste hot, can lower blood pressure by promoting vascular relaxation.

“Here we report that chronic TRPV1 activation by dietary capsaicin increases the phosphorylation of protein kinase A (PKA) and eNOS and thus production of nitric oxide (NO) in endothelial cells…Long-term stimulation of TRPV1…improves vasorelaxation, and lowers blood pressure in genetically hypertensive rats. We conclude that TRPV1 activation by dietary capsaicin improves endothelial function. TRPV1-mediated increase in NO production may represent a promising target for therapeutic intervention of hypertension.”

The endothelium is the inner lining of the blood vessel; good endothelial function is necessary for cardiovascular health. (Viagra and similar medications work by inhibiting the breakdown of nitric oxide, a vasodilator.) An accompanying editorial in the same journal notes that the authors:

“…demonstrate that vascular TRPV1 mediates a beneficial effect of capsaicin in the cardiovascular system, promoting nitric oxide release and lowering blood pressure.”

An editorial in Science Signaling also recognizes this research:

The chemical in chili peppers that makes them taste hot is called capsaicin, and it activates a cation channel of the transient receptor potential family called TRPV1…Now Yang et al. provide evidence that dietary capsaicin may reduce blood pressure if made a constant part of the diet…Additionally, 6-month dietary consumption of capsaicin increased the relaxation response of isolated mouse mesenteric arteries to acetylcholine…How much of capsaicin’s effects on blood pressure are due to a direct effect on the vasculature and how much are mediated through effects on the nervous system remains to be determined, but these results suggest that targeting TRPV1 may be beneficial for the treatment of hypertension.

Can chili peppers help gastritis?

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HelicobacterFirst of all, isn’t it interesting that there is so much science being done that there is a journal called Helicobacter devoted to research on the bacteria Helicobacter pylorii? Most of you will recognize it as the pathogen associated with gastric ulcers and gastritis (stomach inflammation). A study published there investigated the effect of capsaicin (the chemical that makes chilies hot) on the stomach lining when there is inflammation due to Helicobacter infection.

“Capsaicin, the main pungent ingredient of hot red and chili pepper, has been considered as not only a cytoprotective [cell protector] but also a detrimental agent to the gastric mucosa. However, the effect and mechanism of capsaicin that modulate the induction of pro-inflammatory cytokine in Helicobacter pylori-infected epithelial cells have not been investigated previously.”

The authors exposed gastric cells with various concentrations of capsaicin. Their data showed that even a very low dose of capsaicin reduced inflammation by inhibiting H. pylori-induced IL-8 and NF-κB inflammatory pathways, leading to this conclusion:

“Nontoxic dose of capsaicin inhibited H. pylori-induced IL-8 production by gastric epithelial cells through the modulation of IκB-, NF-κB-, and IL-8 pathways. We conclude that capsaicin can be proposed as a potential anti-inflammatory drug by inhibition of the production of IL-8 in H. pylori-infected gastric epithelium.”

This doesn’t mean that you don’t need to fully get rid of the Helicobacter infection. We can diagnose it much more accurately than in the past with advanced DNA amplification technology. But a little warmth in your food might help reduce the inflammation meanwhile.