Spicy food helps you live longer

The researchers excluded participants with cancer, heart disease, and stroke, which they gathered from China Kadoorie Biobank, between 2004-2008.

The study involved people aged between 35 and 79 from 10 geographically diverse areas across China.

Lv, Qi and the other researchers suggested that capsaicin, the molecule responsible for the hot sensation in spicy foods by binding to the pain receptors in the tongue and makes them feel like they are burning, may be the reason behind the link between chili peppers and longevity.

What is it about spicy foods?

Many epidemiological studies were conducted to analyze the effect of these foods on human health.

Nor did the researchers see any association between spice consumption and the risk of death due to diabetes or cerebrovascular disease in either men or women.

There are also a few risks associated with eating spicy foods.

Spicy foods can also aggravate colds or sinus infections, increasing your runny nose.

“Concurrently there is evidence for an inverse association between tea consumption and mortality”. For instance, an editorial published with the study notes how Chinese diets rely heavily on spice.

Dr Nita Forouhi, of the University of Cambridge, said: “More research is needed”.

He told that the proof after evaluating the mortality of the population and eating spicy food in one’s life was found lacking. Consuming these other spices may also result in health benefits, independent of chilies.

“The findings are highly novel”.

Bio-psychologist John E. Hayes agrees.

There’s probably no food quite as baffling as the chili pepper.

Now scientists need to figure out why this benefit is occurring.

“Should people eat spicy food?”

According a new study, adding flavors to a dish lowers the chances of early death of the consumer.

It had been widely known that spicy foods were beneficial to your health. “That spicy food could be low energy density vegetables, like kimchee”.

The authors warned against drawing definitive conclusions from the observational study and called for more research that may “lead to updated dietary recommendations and development of functional foods”.

Additionally, the antimicrobial function of spices, including chilli pepper, has long been recognised, they said.

This is the big caveat.