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Reports from Australia say chilli
could one day replace aspirin for the prevention and treatment of
diabetes and cardiovascular disease, according to University of
Tasmania scientists who are looking at the way chilli affects the blood.
A research fellow at the
university's school of life sciences, Kiran Ahuja, said the two
active ingredients in chilli - capsaicin and dihydrocapsaicin - have
the potential to lower blood glucose and insulin levels, reduce the
formation of fatty deposits in artery walls and prevent blood clots.
Cardiovascular disease is one of
the leading causes of death in developed countries.
''We have tested capsaicin and
that shows an effect on platelet aggregation or the clotting of
blood,'' Dr Ahuja said. She said her research, which used chilli
paste to minimise seasonal or batch variation, had not come across
any side-effects of chilli.
In fact, some studies had
suggested chilli actually reduced damage caused by aspirin.
When it came to early-stage
diabetes, when the pancreas over-produced insulin in an attempt to
help the body absorb glucose, Dr Ahuja's research suggested consuming
chilli resulted in the body producing less insulin, while the glucose
was still used efficiently.
''It may actually delay or
prevent the onset of diabetes,'' she said.
But for those wondering just how
much chilli to add to their stir fry, Dr Ahuja said that was still to
be established. ''It depends on how hot the chilli is, as the
hotter it is, the more capsaicin it has.''
Dr Ahuja, who has been working in
the area since 2003, has received $16,400 in funding from the
University of Tasmania.
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