Cayenne Pepper Weight Loss: Turning Up the Heat On Obesity

There are a wide variety of diets out there for people looking to lose weight. While some use expensive pharmaceuticals and supplements to help shed pounds, others focus on changing the way we eat. By substituting foods that help to boost one’s metabolism, theoretically the goal of weight loss should be more easily attained. Cayenne pepper weight loss is one such example.

Cayenne pepper is one ingredient long believed to help people lose weight. Often associated with “hot” foods, one naturally might assume that it helps to heat up your metabolism. In fact, it is one of the core components of the Master Cleanse diet. It is added to the cocktail to help boost the metabolism given a dramatic reduction in calories that takes place with this diet.

Modern science is starting to confirm the proposition that cayenne pepper weight loss is possible. The National Institutes of Health helped to fund a study carried out on the weight loss effects of cayenne pepper. Half a teaspoon a red cayenne pepper was given to patients prior to eating. The study found that the people taking the cayenne pepper burned on average 10 more calories due to the cayenne pepper supplementation over a four hour period.

In addition to speeding the metabolism, scientists have found the cayenne pepper actually helps to curb the appetite. This effect is particularly potent in people who were not acclimated to eating spicy foods. A study found that people who were not used to eating cayenne pepper ate 66 less calories than those accustomed to it. However, what is not clear is how long it takes for one to be acclimated to eating cayenne pepper before losing this dramatic benefit.

Cayenne pepper is believed to increase metabolism through the effects of a chemical called capsaicin, the chemical responsible for the “hot” flavor. This chemical creates a tendency to raise the body temperature. Since the body needs to maintain a constant temperature, the body will fight off this increase in temperature using normal methods to normalize the temperature, which cause the body to expend additional calories. This effect decreases over time as you become used to using cayenne pepper, requiring one to use more each time to get the same effect.

It is estimated by some that one can increase the body’s metabolism by up to 25% by taking cayenne pepper on a daily basis. It is best to take this eating natural cayenne peppers. One can also use a variety of cayenne pepper powders to add flavor to all sorts of foods. However, not everyone really cares for the taste of spicy foods. For this reason, manufacturers have produced cayenne pepper capsules which insulate your taste buds from that strong hot flavor. Once in your stomach, the capsules dissolve, giving you the full benefit of the capsaicin inside.

Cayenne pepper weight loss is a subject that many more people are becoming familiar with. By supplementing your diets with a little bit of this spicy food, you can go a long way towards reaching your weight loss goals.