Chillis - A Miracle Weight Loss Ingredient

An ingredient which is derived from chilli peppers could soon be making its way into our food. Manufacturers have found that the ingredient, dihydrocapsiate (DHC), speeds up the body’s metabolism.

It's believed that this benefit could be capitalized on by putting it into virtually any type of food, including cakes. However, they don’t claim that it should be used as a weight loss tool, rather it should be included as part of a healthy diet.


DHS is currently sold in the US and Japan as diet supplement pills. The Food Standards Agency has approved the ingredient as safe, but it still awaits a decision by the European Commission as to whether it can be sold in the UK.

The idea of eating chillis to speed up metabolism isn’t entirely new though, and there have been several studies into the effects on metabolism after eating chillis, including this study in the Journal of Biological Chemistry. And dieticians say that the effects of eating an ingredient such as DHC would be minimal, equivalent to burning off an extra 50 calories a day.

Because only small amounts of the ingredient can be extracted from chilli peppers, the manufacturer, Ajinomoto, plans to make a synthetic form so it can be added to food. It will therefore be tasteless and have no smell, so your food won’t be tainted with the familiar burning sensation from natural chillis.

You can read more in this article.