Eat “Red Hot Chili Peppers” — For a 20% Reduction in Mortality?
- © Nils Osmar 2025. Updated May 23, 2025.
- This post is not intended as, and should not be taken as, medical advice.
- See full Medical Disclaimer
Several recent studies have found an association between eating hot and spicy foods (or supplementing with spices such as cayenne pepper) and improved cardiovascular health and mortality.
One study found that consumption of hot red chili peppers was associated with a 14% reduction in the risk of death from all causes. Other studies found a 12-20% reduction in risk.
From a Harvard Press article
Emphases are mine:
People who eat spicy foods nearly every day have a 14% chance of living longer than those who consume spicy foods less than once a week…. regular spicy food eaters also are less likely to die from cancer and heart and respiratory diseases than those who eat spicy foods infrequently.
The results showed that men and women who regularly ate spicy food were less likely to have died during the study period than those who ate spicy food less frequently. They also were less likely to have died from certain diseases, including cancer and heart and respiratory diseases.
Supportive Studies
My HDL tends to run low (and has for decades, regardless of my diet), so I found this study particularly interesting. The study was small (just 35 participants) but was randomized and double-blind. From the study:
In a randomized, double-blind, controlled clinical trial, 42 eligible subjects were randomly assigned to the capsaicin (n = 21, 4 mg of capsaicin daily) or to the control group (n = 21, 0.05 mg of capsaicin daily) and consumed two capsaicin or control capsules, which contained the powder of the skin of different peppers, twice daily for three months.
Thirty-five subjects completed the trial (18 in the capsaicin group and 17 in the control group). The baseline characteristics were similar between the two groups. Compared with the control group, fasting serum HDL-C levels significantly increased to 1.00 ± 0.13 mmol/L from 0.92 ± 0.13 mmol/L in the capsaicin group (p = 0.030), while levels of triglycerides and C-reactive protein and phospholipid transfer protein activity moderately decreased (all p < 0.05)…
In conclusion, capsaicin improved risk factors of CHD in individuals with low HDL-C and may contribute to the prevention and treatment of CHD.
Population studies have come to a similar conclusion
2017 study: The Association of Hot Red Chili Pepper Consumption and Mortality: A Large Population-Based Cohort Study From the study:
During 273,877 person-years of follow-up (median 18.9 years), a total of 4,946 deaths were observed. Total mortality for participants who consumed hot red chili peppers was 21.6% compared to 33.6% for those who did not (absolute risk reduction of 12%; relative risk of 0.64) Adjusted for demographic, lifestyle, and clinical characteristics, the hazard ratio was 0.87 (P = 0.01; 95% Confidence Interval 0.77, 0.97). Consumption of hot red chili peppers was associated with a 13% reduction in the instantaneous hazard of death.
Participants: 199,293 men and 288,082 women aged 30 to 79 years at baseline after excluding participants with cancer, heart disease, and stroke at baseline.
Main outcome measures: Total and cause specific mortality.
Results: During 3,500,004 person years of follow-up between 2004 and 2013 (median 7.2 years), a total of 11,820 men and 8404 women died. Absolute mortality rates according to spicy food consumption categories were 6.1, 4.4, 4.3, and 5.8 deaths per 1000 person years for participants who ate spicy foods less than once a week, 1 or 2, 3 to 5, and 6 or 7 days a week, respectively. Spicy food consumption showed highly consistent inverse associations with total mortality among both men and women after adjustment for other known or potential risk factors…
Compared with those who ate spicy foods less than once a week, those who consumed spicy foods 6 or 7 days a week showed a 14% relative risk reduction in total mortality. The inverse association between spicy food consumption and total mortality was stronger in those who did not consume alcohol than those who did (P=0.033 for interaction). Inverse associations were also observed for deaths due to cancer, ischemic heart diseases, and respiratory diseases.
Conclusion: In this large prospective study, the habitual consumption of spicy foods was inversely associated with total and certain cause specific mortality, independent of other risk factors of death.
What I’m doing
- I was supplementing with cayenne for a while, but these days I’m routinely adding it to food. I enjoy the flavor of cayenne and jalapeño peppers, and cook with them regularly.
- I particularly adding hot peppers to meat dishes.
- Some people in the life extension community are eating vegan diets; other are omnivore or carnivore or ketogenic.
- Hot peppers can be included in all of these dietary approaches.
Not medical advice
This article is not intended as, and should not be taken as, medical advice. I’m not advising that people eat any particular diet or take any particular supplement(s), just reporting on what I’m doing. Supplements, like medications and other interventions, can have side effects; I would encourage people to research both possible benefits and side effects before starting on any supplementation regimen, and consult with a medical professional about any issues which might have a medical component. See full Medical Disclaimer
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More from Nils Osmar
- Anti-Aging Youtube channel Pathways to Longevity
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- Rekindle School classes in Seattle: Rekindl.e School
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- Exploring possible consciousness in Claude.AI and other LLMs: AI Consciousness
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