Sweet Pepper Compounds May Help to Manage Weight

Capsinoids, the non-pungent compounds found in sweet pepper, help to boost energy utilization, thus suggesting a role in weight management.  Stuart M. Phillips, from McMaster University (Canada), and colleagues studied how capsinoid ingestion affects energy expenditure, including its role in exercise.  The team recruited 12 healthy young men  (average age 24.3 years, average BMI 255.5 kg/m2), who were randomly assigned to receive a 10mg capsule of purified capsinoids or placebo (control group). The subjects then engaged in 90 minutes of moderately intense cycling.  Finding that: “The ingestion of 10 mg of capsinoids increased adrenergic activity, energy expenditure, and resulted in a shift in substrate utilization toward lipid at rest but had little effect during exercise or recovery,” the team submits that their data shows  that:  “The thermogenic and metabolic effects of capsinoids at rest and further promote its potential role as an adjunct weight loss aid, in addition to diet and exercise.”