Barbecues and cookouts are back in season, and so are days of munching on plates filled with calorie-stacked foods. If you want to keep your calorie intake at bay this summer while still being able to enjoy snacking with friends, try including spicy foods into your diet.
Spicy foods have long been thought to help with weight loss, and some studies suggest that it may suppress appetites as well.
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While it’s not the main reason why we gain or lose weight, our metabolism is still plays an important role in maintaining our weight. It is true that healthy eating patterns, such as eating frequent but smaller meals each day, can help keep our metabolism functioning properly, but does consuming certain foods also aid in keeping our metabolism working at its best?
It is a popular belief that eating spicy foods, such as stir-fry, some curry dishes, or foods packed with cayenne powder, spice up the metabolism by raising the temperature of the body. Additionally, spicy foods are thought to suppress appetite, but let’s find out why exactly many people believe this to be true.
An online medical care service, ZocDoc, explains that the active component of chili peppers, “capsaicin, is the primary molecule responsible for the hot, burning sensation you get when you come into contact with spicy chilies.” This sizzling ingredient can be found in any dish that includes hot peppers. While hot peppers contain capsaicin, sweet chili peppers consist of “capsinoids [which] despite their lack of heat, have also been shown to increase […] fat burning, and have been implicated as a possible aid in weight loss,” ZocDoc states.
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So, does this mean that the effects of spicy peppers and sweet peppers are the same in regard to weight loss? While both capsinoids and capsaicin have many positive health benefits, their role in weight loss is still inconclusive. Zoc Doc tells us that the “amount of capsaicinoids and capsinoids necessary to produce an effect is so large that it has been difficult to get patients to comply with the requirements.
Moreover, [a study determined] that spicy foods only affect metabolism in people who do not eat them regularly, suggesting that [the body] may desensitize to the effects over time.” In terms of weight loss, it is safe to conclude that eating spicy foods is not going to magically shed off pounds; however, spice has been proven to suppress the appetite.
According to a health and wellness website, Fit Day, “Studies have shown that a spicy meal, such as a bowl of chili, can provide a temporary rise in metabolism of about 8% greater than a person’s typical metabolic rate.” While eating spicy foods may temporarily increase metabolism rates, it is not likely to create any long-term changes to your body because you “would have to eat a lot of capsaicin to have an overall effect on your weight,” Fit Day states.
That being said. it seems that, rather than gorging on them, incorporating spicy foods into meals may discourage the desire to eat as much as you normally might. Fit Day explains a study which “found that when adult men consumed appetizers with hot sauce, they ate 200 calories less at later meals than those that did not.” This summer, it may be helpful to your waist line to add some spicy dishes along with the usual barbeque staples.
Verdict: Fact. Although more research still needs to be done on this topic, spicy foods have been determined to help suppress appetite by reducing the amount of calories consumed at a meal. In terms of weight loss, spice doesn’t play a huge role besides deterring us from eating as much as we normally would. It makes sense—when our mouths are on fire, we do tend to eat slower!
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