We usually think of hot sauce as something we add to a food to make it taste better but there may be a whole lot more inside that little jar.
News 13's Medical Reporter Nancy Gay tells us how this spicy condiment may be used as a part of a weight loss program.
Dr. Spiro Antoniades is a runner, but he did not always have a runner's body. Last year he weighed 265 pounds. So, he decided to suffer for eating the wrong things. Before every meal, he downed a shot of hot sauce. He calls it the Hot Sauce Diet
"It kind of slowed me down, shocks me a little bit and it makes me drink some water and calms my normal appetite,” Dr. Antoniades said.
Dr. Antoniades is now seventy pounds lighter.
He is an orthopedic surgeon who shares his hot sauce diet with other doctors.
"While it has no real science behind it, some think it works by tricking the mind. If you have a dose of hot sauce every time you eat junk food, you'll avoid the junk food to avoid the pain."
Clifford Woolf from Harvard said, "One of the major features of pain, is to learn to avoid danger, and by taking a swig of tabasco you are switching on the avoidance mechanism."
Researchers say a chemical in hot peppers called Capsaicin causes that burning sensation.
They already know it can lower blood pressure, cholesterol, even fight some cancers. Now they have found that the burning sensation of arthritis is like the discomfort you feel after eating chili peppers.
Those similarities could help scientists zero in on what really causes arthritic pain and lead to the development of better painkillers.
Scientists are studying more hot stuff, like wasabi and hot mustard to see how those might also unravel the puzzle of pain.
That's Your Health and Fitness,
Nancy Gay Central Florida News 13