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09.05.2015

Capsaicin keeps metabolic rate high during weight loss diet

You can probably speed up a weight loss diet a little by consuming a gram of chilli powder at meals. According to a human study that Dutch nutritionists published in PLoS One, a supplement containing capsaicin - the most active substance in chilli powder - prevents your metabolism from slowing down if you've reduced your calorie intake.

Capsaicin
Capsaicin [structural formula on the right] is the main substance that's responsible for the hot taste of chilli pepper. In the body capsaicin interacts with the vanilloid receptor, and this boosts the metabolic rate. This is the reason that nutritionists hope that capsaicin may be a naturally occurring substance that can help against overweight.

Study
The Dutch scientists wanted to find out whether capsaicin could boost the effect of a low-calorie diet on fat loss. They used 19 healthy subjects for their experiments, and gave them capsaicin at mealtimes. The researchers used McCormick chilli powder, which contained 2.45 mg capsaicin, 0,28 mg nordihydrocapsaicin and 1.44 mg dihydrocapsaicin per gram.

The subjects were given 1.03 g chilli powder - which contained 2.56 mg capsaicin - at each meal. Not everyone reacts well to this fairly high quantity, so the researchers selected subjects who were used to eating chilli pepper regularly.

The researchers got the subjects to spend a period of 36 hours in a respiration chamber on four occasions, so that they could measure the subjects' energy expenditure.

On one occasion the subjects consumed 100 percent of the amount of energy they expended, and took no capsaicin. On another occasion the subjects consumed the same amount of energy, but took capsaicin at each main meal.

On a third occasion the subjects consumed 75 percent of the amount of energy they expended, and took no capsaicin. And on yet another occasion the subjects consumed the same amount of energy, but took capsaicin at each main meal.

Results
The calorie restriction reduced the total amount of energy that the subjects expended, but capsaicin decreased the amount of that reduction.

When the subjects consumed 75 percent of their calorie requirements and did not take capsaicin, they did not start to burn significantly more fat according to the researchers' statistical calculations.

When the subjects took capsaicin at meals there was a statistically significant increase in fat burning.

Blood pressure
Capsaicin supplementation did not raise blood pressure.

Conclusion
"In an effectively 20.5 percent negative energy balance, consumption of 2.56 mg capsaicin per meal supports negative energy balance by counteracting the unfavorable negative energy balance effect of decrease in components of energy expenditure", the researchers summarised.

"Moreover, consumption of 2.56 mg capsaicin per meal promotes fat oxidation in negative energy balance and does not increase blood pressure significantly."

Source:
PLoS One. 2013 Jul 2;8(7):e67786.

More:
On a diet? Capsaicin keeps your testosterone level up 23.11.2012
Genistein, capsaicin and EGCG inhibit fat cells via AMPK 03.08.2011

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