2012年6月2日星期六

Eating hot and spicy food for healthy


Every time my friends and I went to restaurant, I must order spicy food and one small dish of chili sauce. That because eating spicy food can not only keep healthy but also make me refreshing. My friends are shocked on my enthusiasm on spicy food. So, they gave me a nickname: “pepper oil” which can reflect my favorite taste, as well as my food values.

In recent decades, more and more people start accepting and having spicy food. According to a report, “overall spice consumption in the U.S. rose by 107 percent between 1983 and 2003 to 947.9 million pounds, or 3.3 pounds per person, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture” (Karen Robinson-Jacobs). Like those people who are falling in love with spicy food, I love it for reasons. To be specifically, I found that I started to lose weight when I took more portion of spicy food in my daily meal. I did some research that showed spicy food could help metabolism, as well as losing weight. Moreover, I found many more benefits of taking spicy food according to my research, such as fighting cancer, drying dampness and cooling heart in the body.

The fat people will ask if any foods help burn off calories, my answer is to eat hot and spicy foods. I found there are so many researchers did surveys which prove that “eating hot, spicy foods such as mustard and hot peppers can speed metabolism, burning off calories” (Jean Carper). A British researcher did a test to prove that average metabolism in 12 subjects to shoot up 25 percent, burning off 45 extra calories in the next three hours if you add about three-fifths of a teaspoon of hot sauce to a meal. The result displayed the “hot sauce caused one person to burn off 76 calories – or 10 percent of the calories in a 776-calories meal” (Jean Carper). A new Australian study indicated that the hot and spicy taste in ginger may promote metabolism. The biochemists used animals to do the text which shows that the spicy included tissues to use up about 20 percent more energy than normally. Personally, my figure can be keep so nice depended on I like eating hot and spicy food I considered.

What’s more, there is a piece of dramatic news shocked me a lot because the vanilloids in the hot and spicy food could provide compound to fight cancers. The news which showed that “the compound was made by spicy food hot and generates the heat in muscle strain remedies could be the key to a new generation of cancer drugs, which kill tumours with no side effects, a leading scientist has said” (Chemical Business Newsbase). Dr Timothy Bates, a medical scientist, use part of food compounds called vanilloids, was a regular part of the diet all over the world could help people overcome the problems of anti-cancer. In my opinion, I am so happy that the scientists who did the technical study on food which is the common part of our life.

Moreover, I will talk about the spicy food in Hunan province which is in southeastern China is largely influenced by the spicy cuisine of Sichuan city because people eat a lot of hot and spicy food to keep healthy. Otherwise, Hunan or Xiang food is hotter and spicier than that of its western neighbor. “The reason for this is Hunan climate is excessively hot and humid, and eating hot peppers is recommended to dry dampness and cool heat in the body” (Tan Bee Hong). When I was first come to Hunan province, I could not adapt to the humid climate, and my joints were painful. I told my friends how I did not like here when we met in a luxury hotel at night. My friends just smiled and told me the food in the hotel could remit my pain. We sited around a big table to talk about the Hunan food which is characterised by its hot and sour flavours, fresh natural aromas and deep colors. When the waitress came with dishes, you can see the red curd and pepper in the dish first, and then the fragrance also makes you become more appetitive. It was surprised because I felt better after we ate together. My friend told me people in this area always ate the spicy food to keep healthy after finding the piquancy can dispel the dampness in people’s body. For me, I respect the humanity and culture in this area because people can live better depend on their custom.

As we all know, Thai food is the spiciest all over the world. I went to Thailand two years ago, I found that if you are eating at a Thai restaurant, they can usually moderate or increase the spicy on request. The reason why they did this is to suit each customer’s taste and you may find yourself learning to enjoy it overtime. Many Thais believe that hot and spicy food has some healthy benefits. Certainly it can clear out the sinuses, and “chilies can also help to boost the immune system and fight off illnesses, and have been shown to improve cardiovascular health” (S.E. Smith). In Thailand, using heavy spices to keep meats and fish fresh is regular because the chilies will stave off rot. The reason why people in many hot climates have the spicy food to prevent food borne illness and travelers with minimal hygienic practices will eat spicy foods along with the locals is the chilies will prevent uncomfortable intestinal symptoms, and the chilies can kill organisms which cause food borne illness. Otherwise, the spicy food in Thailand is a part of traditional delicious culinary. You can learn how to appreciate the dishes, and increase the spices in your orders so that you can like the spicy food in the restaurant if you ask the cooks to reduce the spices. The most excited thing is that “it will also allow you to win chili pepper eating contests, a valuable skill in some nations” (S.E. Smith).

Furthermore, I am an international student in Denver, and I found that almost every restaurant would provide chili sauce. Chili sauce would be putted on the table. You even could ask the waiters to serve some if there is no hot and chili sauce on the table. I went to several cities in America. Similarly, the chili sauce is available in most restaurants too. Depend on my research, an academic resource mentioned that “Within the broad spice grouping, the fiery flavorings are red hot: Imports of dried capsicum peppers, a class that includes long red chiles and cayenne peppers, rose by 869 percent to 155 million pounds in that same period, the USDA said” (Karen Robinson-Jacobs). That means the chili became more and more important in America, and the citizens can appreciate the taste of spicy from all over the world. The data from the USDA indicated that the spicy food become more and more acceptable and popular not only in America but also in most countries.

On the other hand, I get some information which indicated that spicy foods will give people nightmares. Dr. Virgil Wooten who is a spokesman for the American Sleep Disorders Association said that “peppers and spices derived from peppers can stimulate more gastric acid and relax the valve at the top of your stomach, which can allow food to work its way up the esophagus when lying down” (Ad Hudler). The reason why people think bad dreams are created by spicy food is it can create discomfort, which leads to imperfect sleep I considered. But there is no certain evidence to prove that people eat spicy food can give people nightmares. I ate a lot spicy food for several years, and I never had a disease of my stomach. My best advice is to eat spicy food and other food regular. Do not eat and drink anything closer than three to four hours before bedtime.

Generally speaking, having spicy food would bring both negative and positive effects to human health. As the resources I mentioned above, spicy food could speed metabolism and burn calories. More importantly, the vanilloids in the hot and spicy food could provide compound to fight cancers. Otherwise, people in Hunan province eat spicy food to dispel the dampness in their body because of the pluvial period and the humid climate. Besides, I cannot forget the attractive spicy food in Thailand, which is depended on their humanity and culture. Also, as an international student in the USA, I can appreciate the spicy food from all over the world. It is amazing to have a long journey to eat all kinds of spicy food there. As I mentioned above, people cannot get any disease from eating spicy food if you eat spicy food and other food regular. So, I decided to keep this eating habit. Moreover, I would like to encourage my friends to take more spicy food for keeping healthy.

In a word, eating spicy food can keep healthy. I will encourage my friends to eat spicy food and I wish the spicy food as well as the spicy derivant polished by the scientists can give people more and more benefits.















Work sited

Karen Robinson-Jacobs. "Hot, Spicy Cuisine Sizzles." The Charleston Gazette: 1.D. Print. 2005.

Jean Carper, and Columnist. "SPICY HOT FOODS RAISE METABOLISM: FINAL Edition." Seattle Post - Intelligencer: c.1. Print. 1993.

"Spicy Food could Provide Compound to Fight Cancers." Chemical Business Newsbase (2007): 1. Print.


Tan Bee Hong. "Spicy Hunan: 2 Edition." New Straits Times: 24. Print. 2003.

S.E. Smith. “Why is Thai Food so Spicy?” 2003-2012 Conjecture Corporation. 16 May 2012

Ad Hudler. "Spicy Foods Will Give You Nightmares." Better Homes and Gardens 76.1 (1998): 60. Print.

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