Chili pepper. Single leaves alternate, extinct stipules. The flowers are bisexual, radially symmetrical, and the corolla is closed. It belongs to the Solanaceae family and is native to South America. It is now cultivated in large areas of my country.
Chili pepper is rich in VC, carotene, protein, sugar, minerals (calcium, phosphorus, iron, selenium, cobalt), pigments (cryptoxanthin, capsanthin, trace amounts of capsorubin) ), solanine, fatty oil, resin, volatile oil, spicy ingredients (capsaicin, dihydrocapsaicin, high capsaicin, etc.). Chili peppers are spicy and hot. It has the effects of warming the stomach, strengthening the stomach, and killing insects. It is mainly used to treat cold stomach, indigestion, rheumatism and low back pain, mumps, and multiple boils. Capsaicin is also a potential anti-cancer substance and antioxidant. 3 chili peppers, 10 peppercorns, a piece of ginger, an appropriate amount of salt, boiled in water and taken to cure colds and colds; 1 chili pepper, wrapped in hot tofu skin and swallowed in the morning, can cure dysentery and watery diarrhea.
Chili peppers are spicy and hot foods. Eating too much can aggravate internal inflammation, so people with yin deficiency and inflammation are prohibited from eating chili peppers.
Not everyone is happy to enjoy the delicious taste of chili pepper. Some people cannot stand the strong stimulation; while some people find the food unpalatable without it.
Chili peppers can not only adjust the taste, but people have even developed other functions of chili peppers by taking advantage of their special taste. It is reported that the Indian Ministry of Defense has discovered a kind of chili pepper known as the "King of Chili Peppers", which is hot enough to cause burns. The authorities are planning to make bombs with it and become one of the weapons for soldiers on the battlefield. Retreat the enemy"! Scientists from the Indian Ministry of Defense said that this kind of chili pepper is extremely spicy. Its spiciness is four times that of the Mexican red chili pepper, which is known as the hottest in the world. The weight of the ball part of a pin is enough to prepare a thousand servings of food. .
When handling this kind of pepper, workers must wear gloves and safety glasses. And when it is ground up to make bombs, its power can cause severe burns and other powerful effects. If such "pepper bombs" are launched at the enemy on the battlefield, the enemy will be completely unable to fight back in an instant.
New York police are also equipped with a "pepper weapon." The new weapon, which looks like a rifle, fires plastic balls filled with chili powder and is designed to subdue emotionally unstable people. This chili launcher fires oleoresin-based chili powder that can make people choke and cough.
Why does chili pepper have such powerful effects? Recently, American scientists found out why chili peppers are so spicy. Through research, they believe that the special taste of peppers is actually a self-protection strategy.
Chili peppers contain a substance called capsaicin, which can stimulate the painful and hot areas of the skin and tongue, causing the brain to produce a spicy sensation of burning pain. Scientists studied a type of wild chili pepper growing in the desert of southern Arizona, USA, to observe what animals feed on the chili pepper. It was found that small mammals such as desert rats living nearby do not touch this spicy food at all. Eating peppers seems to be a patent of birds. Experiments have shown that pepper fruits are eaten by small mammals, and after the seeds are digested and excreted, they can hardly germinate. The digestive system of birds basically does not cause harm to pepper seeds.
Why do humans have a special liking for chili peppers? Scientists have discovered that humans are naturally fond of eating spicy food because it played an important role in the survival of prehistoric humans in harsh environments. Spicy food can be sterilized to make the food harmless. People who like to eat light food are more likely to die from poisoning.
After surveying 4,500 dishes from 36 countries, American researchers concluded that spicy eaters in ancient times gained an advantage in surviving in harsh environments and that this advantage was inherited genetically. , making future generations find spicy food more and more delicious.
This study on traditional meat dishes compared the climate of each country and the distribution of 43 spicy plant species. The most bactericidal ones are garlic, onions, allspice and oregano, which are said to kill all bacteria. Thyme, cinnamon, tarragon and cumin can kill 80% of bacteria, and red pepper and other peppers have similar bactericidal abilities. Black pepper and white pepper have weaker bactericidal abilities, killing 25% of bacteria, similar to ginger, anise, celery seed, and lemon and lime juice