Cooling Off in Summer Heat with Hot Peppers

Capsaicin in Hot Peppers Can Help Keep You Cool in Hot Weather

Jul 20, 2009 Diane Rutherford

Capsaicin, a chemical often used to treat pain, can also help you keep cool in the hot weather. All you have to do is eat hot peppers to lower your body temperature.

In the summer heat, people are looking for ways to cool off - and one way to do that is by actually eating hot peppers. Hot salsa sauce, chili peppers and spicy powders will definitely give you a burning sensation, but these foods make you break a sweat. The perspiration then helps you lower your body temperature.

“That evaporation of that perspiration actually cools you off,” said Cathy Moore, a registered dietitian with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County in Watertown, NY.

Why So Hot?

Peppers members of the Capsicum genus of plants. Most of them contain a chemical called capsaicin that can cause a strong burning sensation in the mouth when eaten.

“There’s actually a rating system named after a man named Wilber Scoville, who actually rated all the 400 different varieties of hot peppers in order to evaluate the hottest, like Habaneras are some of the hottest and of course bell peppers are pretty sweet and not hot at all,” said Moore.

Scoville’s rating system, developed in 1912, is known as the Scoville Organoleptic Test.

Location, Location, Location

Moore says it may be no coincidence that some of the hottest peppers in the world are found in some of the warmest nations like Mexico, India and Thailand.

“It’s an interesting way in which a lot of cultures that are in very hot countries and areas around the equator tend to have very spicy food and helps them actually regulate their body temperature,” she said. “It really seems counterintuitive, but when you think about it, we only have these recipes and these hot peppers that grow in very, very hot climates. You don’t hear about them in Sweden and Norway - food isn’t really spicy.”

Health Benefits of Peppers

There are plenty of health benefits from eating the bright red, orange, yellow and green peppers. They are low in calories and are loaded with Vitamins A, C and K.

Moore says peppers contain phytochemicals, which have been shown to help lower the risk of heart disease and cancers. Peppers can also can help alleviate asthma and clear the sinuses.

Capsaicin itself is used for medicinal purposes, usually for topical pain relief. Products include capsaicin lotion, capsaicin nasal spray and a capsaicin patch.

How to Take the Sting Out of Really Hot Peppers

If you’re brave enough to eat hot peppers, chances are you’ve tasted one so spicy that it brings tears to your eyes.

Moore says there’s a simple solution to take the sting out of your mouth. Drinking milk or eating meat with high levels of protein will help to relieve the burning sensation.

“That hot chemical sticks to the proteins on our tongue, but when it really gets bad, what you need to do is you need to get them off your tongue. So if you eat a food that has protein in it, it will lift off of your tongue and it will go onto the other food.”

Chemical Burns from Peppers

Moore says very hot varieties of peppers can cause chemical burns to your skin. She says it’s a good idea to wear plastic gloves when handling hot peppers and avoid touching them to sensitive areas like your eyes or mouth.

A Final Note: When Pepper is Not a Pepper

Black or white pepper, the kind you sprinkle on your food for seasoning, is actually not a member of the pepper family.

“That’s actually a berry that we harvest off of a bush. They’re completely separate plants,” said Moore.

The copyright of the article Cooling Off in Summer Heat with Hot Peppers in General Medicine is owned by Diane Rutherford. Permission to republish Cooling Off in Summer Heat with Hot Peppers in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Peppers