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Chillis are good for you!

I know many on this site will be aware that eating spicy foods can be good for your health; however, the evidence for this has been limited to in vitro or small studies. A recent large prospective study was carried out and has given the strongest evidence to date that eating chillis could be very good for your health.
 
For more info;
 
[SIZE=12pt]Regular consumption of spicy foods linked to lower risk of death[/SIZE]
[SIZE=11pt]Data suggests most benefit from eating spices regularly throughout the week[/SIZE]
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[SIZE=11pt]Eating spicy food more frequently as part of a daily diet is associated with a lower risk of death, suggests a new study published in The BMJ this week. The association was also found for deaths from certain conditions such as cancer, and ischaemic heart and respiratory diseases. [/SIZE]
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[SIZE=11pt]This is an observational study so no definitive conclusions can be drawn about cause and effect, but the authors call for more research that may “lead to updated dietary recommendations and development of functional foods.” 

Previous research has suggested that beneficial effects of spices and their bioactive ingredient, capsaicin, include anti-obesity, antioxidant, anti-inflammation and anticancer properties. 

So an international team led by researchers at the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences examined the association between consumption of spicy foods as part of a daily diet and the total risk and causes of death.

They undertook a prospective study of 487,375 participants, aged 30-79 years, from the China Kadoorie Biobank. Participants were enrolled between 2004-2008 and followed up for morbidities and mortality. 

All participants completed a questionnaire about their general health, physical measurements, and consumption of spicy foods, and red meat, vegetable and alcohol.

Participants with a history of cancer, heart disease, and stroke were excluded from the study, and factors such as age, marital status, level of education, and physical activity were accounted for.
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[SIZE=11pt]During a median follow-up of 7.2 years, there were 20,224 deaths. [/SIZE]
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[SIZE=11pt]Compared with participants who ate spicy foods less than once a week, those who consumed spicy foods 1 or 2 days a week were at a 10% reduced risk of death (hazard ratios for death was 0.90). And those who ate spicy foods 3 to 5 and 6 or 7 days a week were at a 14% reduced risk of death (hazard ratios for death 0.86, and 0.86 respectively).*

In other words, participants who ate spicy foods almost every day had a relative 14% lower risk of death compared to those who consumed spicy foods less than once a week.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]The association was similar in both men and women, and was stronger in those who did not consume alcohol. 
 
Frequent consumption of spicy foods was also linked to a lower risk of death from cancer, and ischaemic heart and respiratory system diseases, and this was more evident in women than men.

Fresh and dried chilli peppers were the most commonly used spices in those who reported eating spicy foods weekly, and further analysis showed those who consumed fresh chilli tended to have a lower risk of death from cancer, ischaemic heart disease, and diabetes.

Some of the bioactive ingredients are likely to drive this association, the authors explain, adding that fresh chilli is richer in capsaicin, vitamin C, and other nutrients. But they caution against linking any of these with lowering the risk of death.

Should people eat spicy food to improve health? In an accompanying editorial, Nita Forouhi from the University of Cambridge says it is too early to tell, and calls for more research to test whether these associations are the direct result of spicy food intake or whether this is a marker for other dietary or lifestyle factors. [/SIZE]
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[SIZE=11pt]* A hazard ratio is a measure of how often a particular event happens in one group compared to how often it happens in another group, over time.[/SIZE]
 
[SIZE=11pt]Link to study: http://www.bmj.com/cgi/doi/10.1136/bmj.h3942[/SIZE]
 
[SIZE=11pt]Hopefully it will give a boost to the hot pepper industry :dance: [/SIZE]
 
Nice post. I would love to see the same study come from The States, for obvious reasons we tend to have worse diets and higher obesity rates. China however does not have an EPA and we all know about the toxins that paint that country toxic in some regions. I have to admit that since I have started eating more peppers (THANKS THP) I have had an over all increased feeling of well being. I would also like to see the study being performed than just observational or surveying alone. I would like to research into this more but I do so much for school now this would be something that would have to wait.
 
Student of Spice said:
Nice post. I would love to see the same study come from The States, for obvious reasons we tend to have worse diets and higher obesity rates. China however does not have an EPA and we all know about the toxins that paint that country toxic in some regions. I have to admit that since I have started eating more peppers (THANKS THP) I have had an over all increased feeling of well being. I would also like to see the study being performed than just observational or surveying alone. I would like to research into this more but I do so much for school now this would be something that would have to wait.
 
Hey, Yes it would be nice to see large sample size studies in other countries like the US. China does have a growing obesity epidemic as well, not quite at US levels but not insignificant at all. They might be exposured to higher levels of nasty chemicals than other countries but then everyone in this study will be. I know it is only an observational study but it is a cross sectional one which is a plus. Carrying out intervention studies are very expensive and would be prohibitively so to do one with a similar sample size. This evidence should stimulate more  interest and therefore more funding/studies to carry out bigger intervention studies. It can only be good, imo.
 
Personally, I have a high intake of capsaicin (relative to people that I know), I enjoy eating spicy food (obviously) and the endorphin kick is nice and if it is actually making me live longer than it's a bonus!
 
Naga Chomper said:
I had better slow down. According to that study, with my rate of consumption I'll live past 247.
Now that would only be ok if your body remained young and healthy lol.
Awesome you are 247 but are feed in a tube and defecate out one as well and have no clue of whats going on.... 
It would be interesting to view the world two hundred years from now, not that I would enjoy living in that world necessarily.
 
At the very least, this study appears to strongly suggest that at least spicy food does not lessen a life span. Even that is really good news.
 
They are also doing research into spicy food (capsaicin) working to negatively effect cancer cells development.  Maybe one day there will be "Reaper treatments" in place of Chemo.
 
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