by Dave DeWitt The power of oleoresin capsicum is so great that it has become a popular ingredient in personal defense sprays that have virtually replaced tear gas products such as Mace. The tear gas products had proven to be virtually ineffective against many violent attackers, especially those under the influence of narcotics and alcohol. Additionally, the tear gas products …
Spicy Food Off the Hook as Ulcer Cause–But Is It a Cure?
by Dave DeWitt Are chiles a cause of ulcers or a cure for them? For centuries, there have been two schools of thought on the subject. The first holds that chiles produce excess stomach acid, which eats holes in the wall of the stomach and duodenum. This is why spicy diets have long been forbidden for ulcer sufferers. The other …
Spices Keep Food Safe
by Dave DeWitt Here’s another theory about why people eat spicy foods. The hotter the climate, the spicier the cuisine, states a report by Jennifer Billing and Paul W. Sherman of Cornell University, in Quarterly Review of Biology, March 1998. They believe the chemicals that keep spice plants safe from their natural predators are the same compounds that keep food …
Sex and the Chiles
After staring at the cover of the March/April 2004 issue of our Fiery-Foods & BBQ magazine for perhaps twenty minutes, many of you men out there are probably asking yourselves: What are they thinking? Chiles have nothing whatsoever to do with sex. A chile is just a chile–or is it? Within the human psyche, everything has something to do …
The Powerful Health Punch of the Mighty Pod
by Dave DeWitt Excerpted from The Chile Pepper Encyclopedia (1998, William Morrow & Co.). Chile peppers don’t have to be healthy to be fun to eat, but fortunately, they are. In fact, they have quite a long history as a folk remedy for all kinds of ailments, from anorexia to vertigo. Some of the more scientifically recognized medical applications of …