By Francisco T Rodriguez, DTR, CSUN Dietetic Intern

Imagine yourself in a Mexican restaurant waiting for the server to approach you for your meal selection.  The first thing they bring is a bowl of tortilla chips and salsa.  As you dip your chip into the mixture of diced onions, pureed fresh tomatoes, roasted chili peppers, crisp cilantro, and revitalizing freshly squeezed lime, you realize that you have just consumed what feels like piece of heaven.  But before tears of pleasure begin to fall from your eyes, a tingle begins to form at the tip of your tongue, then your lips, and then your throat.  You now realize that those tears of joy were in fact droplets of sweat stimulated by a kick of spice.  It is not your ordinary type of pain but rather a pleasurable painful sensation.  It is a pain that you enjoy and cannot get enough of, which is why you grab another piece of tortilla chip and dip again.  What is this tingly, painful sensation that we experience when consuming spicy chili peppers?

To begin, peppers contain an active ingredient known as CAPSAICIN. Capsaicin is released from the membrane of the pepper and interacts with your sensory system on your hands, around your face, and within your mouth.  A signal is sent from the sensory ends interacting with capsaicin to the brain, which in turn the brain sends a signal back throughout your body to activate responses such as sweating, tingling, and slight pain.  The more capsaicin a pepper has, the hotter the pepper will be, so be careful.  Yes, salsa is dangerously delicious, but why put up with such pain?  There have been countless studies aimed at observing the effects of this Central American spice containing capsaicin on overall human health.  Besides the fact that peppers have a rich source of Vitamin C and A, there is promising evidence that a diet rich in spicy peppers is associated with improvements in diabetes and even helps protect against cancer.

Capsaicin and Diabetes

Various studies have been conducted on animals that suggest consumption of capsaicin produces specific gastrointestinal hormones known as incretins that are associated with the reduction of blood glucose levels.[i]  Capsaicin helps by turning on Glucagon-like Peptide-1 known as GLP-1 found in the distal ilium and colon.  This study on mice indicated that dietary capsaicin increased insulin sensitivity and lowered blood glucose levels.  Another study conducted on humans compared three types of meals that either contained no chili peppers or lots of chili peppers.[ii] “Several studies demonstrated that consumption of dietary chili pepper may reduce blood glucose and attenuate postprandial hyperinsulinemia.[ii]” This means that participants had lower glucose levels after a meal with spices compared to a meal without spices.

Capsaicin and Cancer

Let me first say that capsaicin is not a cure and that you should always consult with your physician on cancer treatments that are right for you. There are many forms of cancers and tumors that unfortunately affect millions of people throughout the world.  Treatments include radiation and chemotherapy which have drastic side effects that greatly reduce quality of life.  This is why pharmaceutical companies as well as individuals affected by the disease are continuously searching for alternatives. Studies show very promising outcomes from capsaicin dosages; so much so that pharmaceutical companies continue to experiment and conduct studies using concentrated forms of capsaicin.  Two studies showed a reduction of cell proliferation and cell apoptosis of tumor cells related to the prostate, colon, pancreas, and lungs.[iii]  In general, capsaicin disrupts the transcription of mRNA molecules utilized by the proliferating tumor cells and thus prevents its cell growth.

Let’s Face the Facts

Peppers are delicious and their spicy characteristic could be altered to fit every individual’s need.  They go perfectly with almost any type of dish.  Peppers are a versatile food that have the potential to improve our health.  Be careful consuming spices if you have gastroesophageal reflux disease or any other type of gastric irritation for peppers could aggravate symptoms.  As for everyone else, be adventurous and try adding any type of peppers to your meal.

Spicy Salsa Dip

Ingredients

• 3 tomatoes (any type)
• 2 cloves garlic
• 4 tablespoons onion, chopped
• 3 serrano chili peppers
• 1 jalapeno chili pepper
• 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
• 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lime juice

Directions

1.  Roast the tomatoes and chili peppers until the outer skin is slightly charred.
2. Place all the ingredients into a blender.  Blend ingredients for ten seconds.
3. Tip:  if you want your salsa chunky, blend for 5 seconds.  If you want your salsa well blended, blend as much as you like.  Salsa is ready!

*Disclaimer: this salsa is spicy.  If you would like mild salsa, use 2 serrano chili peppers and 1 jalapeno chili pepper.

Resources

If you would like further information regarding cancer or diabetes with health tips, visit the following websites:

• American Cancer Society
• American Diabetes Association

For fresh fruits and vegetables to be able to make your own salsa, visit your local farmers market to support local farmers.  If there are no farmers markets near your home, good news.  There is a farmers market held at CSUN on Tuesdays from 10am-2pm.

References
[i] Wang, Peijian, Yan, Zhencheng, Zhong, Jian, Chen, Jing, Ni, Yinxing, Li, Li, . . . Zhu, Zhiming. (2012). Transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 activation enhances gut glucagon-like peptide-1 secretion and improves glucose homeostasis.(ORIGINAL ARTICLE)(Report). Diabetes, 61(8), 2155-65.
[ii] Kiran DK Ahuja, Iain K Robertson, Dominic P Geraghty, Madeleine J Ball; Effects of chili consumption on postprandial glucose, insulin, and energy metabolism–, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Volume 84, Issue 1, 1 June 2006, Pages 63–69, https://doi-org.libproxy.csun.edu/10.1093/ajcn/84.1.63
[iii] Siwei Cao, Huoji Chen*, Shijian Xiang, Junhui Hong, Lidong Weng, Hongxia Zhu#, Qiang Liu# (2015) Anti-Cancer Effects and Mechanisms of Capsaicin in Chili Peppers. American Journal of Plant Sciences,06,3075-3081. doi: 10.4236/ajps.2015.619300