Opinions about the benefits of spicy dishes are most often very ambiguous - there is no doubt only that their abuse can lead to the development of various complications, up to peptic ulcer disease. With a reasonable approach, food with hot spices does have certain benefits for almost the entire body.
Beneficial features
First of all, spicy food stimulates the appetite, helps to cope with a runny nose and fever, normalizes blood circulation, and also cleanses the blood and thins it. In addition, the spices prevent the formation of bad cholesterol on the walls of blood vessels, while strengthening them. Spicy foods protect against parasites, increase the secretion of gastric juice, improve blood flow to the walls of the stomach and have a slight analgesic effect due to the production of endorphins (hormones of joy).
Fans of spicy foods rarely gain weight, since such food cannot be eaten too often and in large portions.
Spicy food with garlic, mustard, pepper and ginger can significantly reduce salt intake, as well as speed up metabolism and lose weight. This is possible thanks to capsoicin, a burning substance found in hot peppers that raises body temperature and speeds up heartbeats, as a result of which fat is actively burned by the body. Also, taking spicy food before bedtime allows you to find a restful sleep, lower blood pressure, facilitate the discharge of phlegm from the bronchi and soothe shattered nerves.
Harmful properties
The harm from eating spicy foods, compared to their benefits, is not too destructive, but the consequences of eating such food is still important to know. So, regular food intake with spices can cause inflammation of the gastric mucosa, or gastritis, which develops due to constant irritation of the gastric walls and a decrease in their protective barrier properties. In addition, spicy foods can cause severe heartburn and disrupt the sensitivity of the taste buds on the tongue - and sometimes to burns on its surface.
People quickly get used to spicy food, as a result of which ordinary dishes seem tasteless and bland to them, even if they are moderately salted and peppery.
Fans of spicy dishes also face such a problem as a pungent odor from the mouth, since onion and garlic spices leave behind a “fragrant aftertaste” for a long time. It is very important to use such food with caution for people suffering from diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and prone to allergic reactions (for example, to capsaicin). If, after taking it, pain or discomfort appears, you should categorically refuse from spicy dishes so as not to provoke a deterioration in health.
