Cayenne For Your Health
Monday, March 16, 2009 at 10:37AM 
Cayenne, or Capsicum Annuum, is the pungent dried fruit of a species of the nightshade family that also produces potatoes, eggplant, paprika, bell, and jalapeno peppers. Cayenne peppers are the fruit of shrubs in the Capsicum genus.
Cayenne is easy to grow, and is an ideal container plant, producing brilliantly colored, quite hot peppers that mature in 70 to 80 days. Cayenne grows best in moist, fertile soil in full sun, but I have sandy soil and the peppers do well here too, as long they get plenty of water.
One cayenne pepper contains beta-carotene and almost twice the recommended dietary allowance of vitamin C, along with iron, phosphorus and calcium.
It contain thousands of bioflavonoids and carotenoids which may be responsible for the healing properties of cayenne.
It's good to know how to eat cayenne, as some people report that it upsets their stomach or causes extreme heartburn. Most of the time, these are cases where they ate capsules and swallowed them on an empty stomach. When the capsules finally dissolve, the heat is intense and the stomach was not prepared; thus heart burn big time!
Cayenne is a food that requires pre-digestion, that is, in the mouth through the saliva. It is best to eat cayenne in its natural state, fresh, dried, or powdered, or mixed into liquid, i.e. (water, apple cider vinegar, vegetable juice, soup). In this way, the enzymes in your saliva start to work right away, and in turn, signal the stomach to get ready for digestion. At this time the stomach acids are starting to activate and by the time the cayenne reaches your stomach, there’s no problem or overload on the stomach.
The potency of cayenne is determined by the quantity of the chemicals in cayenne and its resins. The more of these chemicals that are in cayenne and the hotter it is, which indicates it is more effective in healing. 'Charleston Hot' is considered the hottest cayenne at 70,000 to 100,000 Scoville Units.
Capsaicin is the chemical in Cayenne that blocks pain impulses. Certain types of nerves in the human body actually appear to have receptor sites for capsaicin. Capsaicin is the key that fits a certain lock in the nerves. That's why ointments containing capsaicin have been clinically proven to help relieve the pain of arthritis, shingles, psoriasis, and fibromyalgia.
Capsaicin acts as a restorative digestive tonic and major circulatory stimulant, which reaches every organ and system. Capsaicin can lower your LDL (bad) cholesterol along with reducing triglyceride levels, and can help clear up congested bronchial tubes or a stuffy nose. According to medical studies, hot peppers do not cause ulcers or gallbladder problems.
Cayenne is an excellent remedy to ward off chills and is useful at the onset of a cold. It causes sweating and supports the body’s immune system (rich in Vitamin C and is antibacterial). Small quantities will stimulate the appetite. The Maya used cayenne to treat mouth sores and inflamed gums.
People with intestinal disorders like chronic ulcers or chronic bowel diseases should avoid the use of cayenne in large quantities. When eating cayenne, have some cheese, ice cream or a glass of cold milk on hand. Dairy is one of the fastest remedies for hot pepper mouth burn because casein, a protein found in milk, breaks the bond between the capsaicin and the pain receptors in your mouth.
Never eat the leaves, stems, or flowers of cayenne pepper as they can be toxic.
This information is not intended to replace professional medical care. Always seek the advice of your health care provider when in doubt.
Reader Comments (1)
What great information. I am going through each post one at a time and enjoying it like a good book.
Take care,
Judy