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There’s no magic pill to weight loss, but certain spices may help speed things up. Most of us focus only on the foods and nutrients we eat when trying to promote a healthy diet, yet there are so many more variables we can concern ourselves with. And one of the most powerful is spices.
Dr. Melina Jampolis, MD, a physician nutrition specialist, advises us that spices that can rapidly speed up the metabolism and curb appetite to help us lose weight. Spices are an incredible resource, because they contain virtually no calories and can be added to just about any meal or drink. Dr. Jampolis even wrote a book about the amazing benefits of spices: Spice Up, Live Long.
She tells us to look for capsaicin, which can be found in a plethora of spices including cayenne pepper, chili peppers, chili powder, curry powder, paprika and red pepper flakes.
“Capsaicin has not only been found to suppress inflammation caused by obesity, but it has the potential to decrease food intake, burn more fat, lower body fat stores, increase metabolism, and reduce appetite,” Dr. Jampolis says. “Chili peppers and Cayenne in particular can help us burn more calories by about 5%.”
And Dr. Jampolis is not alone in this advice. Registered Dietitian Trista Best speaks highly of hot spices rich in capaicin, particularly cayenne pepper.
"Studies have shown that cayenne peppers can aid in weight loss by reducing hunger and improving metabolism," Best explains. "Cayenne pepper blunts hunger by reducing ghrelin production, the hunger hormone.
"This pepper can speed up metabolism by raising the body's internal temperature even slightly. This is the result of capsaicin and is known as the thermogenic effect of food. Cayenne pepper is a versatile pepper and spice that can be used in a wide variety of recipes and even beverages. Some individuals who practice intermittent fasting will add cayenne pepper to their beverages to blunt their hunger during longer fasts."
You can easily add these metabolism-boosting spices into your diet. Sprinkle cayenne into soups, salad dressings or on eggs. You can even add red pepper flakes to smoothies, and next time you make scrambled eggs, add some paprika to the mix.
