Recently, while speaking to someone on the phone, I mentioned I was drinking cayenne pepper to help my heart. I could literally hear the horror in her voice at the thought of downing a glass of the hot stuff.
Now for most people, hot curries, hot Mexican or hot Thai immediately conjures up trouble - because of sensitive bowel issues. However, not many people know that cayenne pepper is a wonderful superfood. And, it could be a life-saver if someone around you has a heart attack.
When we drink cayenne pepper dissolved in a glass of water like tea, it instantly dilates the blood vessels - "What did you expect? I hear you cry" - and causes blood to rush through the body. When a person has a heart attack it is normally because of a restriction in the blood flow somewhere due to a clot of some sorts. This means that parts of the heart do not get blood supply and that part of the heart "dies".
But, if the blood flow is restored as soon as possible, it gives the heart an excellent chance to recover. Indeed, some reports from America have confirmed that heart attack victims that were treated with liquid Cayenne on the scene were virtually fully recovered by the time they got to hospital.
I have started taking cayenne on a fairly regular basis. Now, some of you might think I just like the adrenaline rush, but really it is to prevent blood clots - a real threat for someone with Valvular Heart Disease. At the first sign of chest pain or "stars" in my vision, I haul out the bottle of cayenne and it works wonders.
I sprinkle it in my smoothies, I have lashings of it with houmous, and I love it over oven roasted potatoes - I celebrate the burn because I know how good it is for me.
So until my next post,
Have a red HOT time.
Salome
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