Chili peppers are a common seasoning in daily life, especially popular in Sichuan and Chongqing. However, we must remind readers that nine types of people should avoid chili peppers, as excessive or improper consumption can trigger various health issues.
These 9 groups should avoid chili peppers:
People with weak digestive systems
Those suffering from chronic gastritis, gastric ulcers, or esophagitis. Regularly eating spicy foods can cause capsaicin to irritate mucous membranes, leading to congestion and swelling. It accelerates gastrointestinal motility, triggering symptoms like diarrhea and abdominal pain, and can also impair digestive function.
Individuals with kidney issues
Capsaicin is excreted through the kidneys and has a stimulating effect on them. Regular consumption of spicy foods by those with kidney problems can increase the burden on the kidneys.
Individuals with excessive stomach acid
Capsaicin increases gastric acid secretion. Elevated acid levels can trigger gallbladder contractions, causing spasm of the sphincter of Oddi and hindering bile flow. This may induce cholecystitis, biliary colic, and pancreatitis.
Individuals with heart conditions
Capsaicin in chili peppers increases circulating blood volume and accelerates heart rate, potentially inducing tachycardia. Therefore, patients with cardiovascular or cerebrovascular diseases should limit chili consumption to avoid hindering recovery.
Individuals with constipation
Capsaicin's irritating properties can exacerbate constipation symptoms. For hemorrhoid sufferers, consumption may cause venous congestion and edema in hemorrhoidal veins, worsening the condition and potentially triggering anal abscesses.
Individuals with Oral Ulcers
Chili peppers' strong irritation can not only trigger pain but also aggravate ulcerated surfaces, causing them to expand and prolong healing.
Individuals with Eye Conditions
Those with keratitis, conjunctivitis, or similar issues may experience eyelid swelling, burning eyes, or elevated intraocular pressure after consuming chili peppers.
Individuals with hyperthyroidism
Those with hyperthyroidism already have elevated heart rates. Consuming chili peppers can further accelerate heart rate, making symptoms more pronounced.
Individuals taking certain medications
Chili peppers may not only counteract the efficacy of certain medications but also potentially worsen the condition.Individuals taking the following types of medications should minimize chili consumption: heat-clearing and yin-nourishing Chinese herbal medicines (e.g., Snake Gallbladder, Fritillary Bulb, and Loquat Syrup), dermatological medications (e.g., tretinoin ointment), gastrointestinal medications (e.g., mucosal protectants), and hemorrhoid ointments (e.g., hemorrhoid suppositories, hemorrhoid ointments).
Chili peppers also possess medicinal value
1. Compendium of Materia Medica Supplement: The hot and dispersing nature of chili peppers can expel dampness and water retention. A young child who consumed cold water during summer months and slept in shaded areas developed malaria by autumn. All treatments proved ineffective until early winter, when he accidentally ate spicy sauce, finding it quite palatable. He subsequently required it with every meal and used it to cook congee. Soon after, the malaria resolved spontaneously.This was because accumulated water in the chest transformed into cold phlegm; the pungent nature dispersed it, melting it away like hot water on snow.
2. Yao Kecheng's "Food Herbal": It eliminates old food, relieves stagnant qi, stimulates appetite, wards off evil influences, and neutralizes fishy odors and various toxins.
3. Mirror of Hundred Herbs: Washes frostbite, bathes cold scabies, drains cold stagnation in the large intestine meridian.
4. Examination of Medicinal Properties: Warms the middle, dispels cold, removes wind, induces sweating, eliminates cold stagnation, moves phlegm, and expels dampness.
5. Food Compatibility and Contraindications: Warms the middle, descends qi, dispels cold and dampness, opens stagnation, removes phlegm, aids digestion, kills parasites, and neutralizes toxins.Treats vomiting and hiccups, cures dysphagia, stops diarrhea and dysentery, and alleviates beriberi.
6. : Dispels wind and promotes blood circulation, disperses cold and relieves depression, guides stagnation, stops diarrhea, and treats ringworm.