Higher intake of spicy food associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease: Study

The findings of the study were as follows:

· Of 30,325 participants, 12.9% consumed spicy foods regularly.

· After adjusting for multiple confounders, participants who consumed spicy foods for 5–7 days/week, versus none, had higher body mass index (1.18 kg/m²), waist circumference (2.80 cm), waist-to-hip ratio (0.010), systolic blood pressure (2.44 mmHg), diastolic blood pressure (1.94 mmHg), FPG (0.310 mmol/L), triglycerides (0.185 mmol/L), and lower high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (− 0.040 mmol/L).

· Similar results were found for the associations of spicy foods' strength with CVD risk factors. The results attenuated slightly but not substantially across diabetes groups.

The researchers concluded by saying, "our study showed that higher frequency and strength of spicy foods intake were associated with an unfavorable cardiovascular disease risk profile in older people," they further added that, "such associations did not vary by diabetes status."

"Whether the results were causal needs to be determined in further studies."

Reference:

Zhang, Y., Lu, Z.L., Zhang, W.S. et al. Association between spicy foods consumption and cardiovascular disease risk factors: Guangzhou Biobank Cohort Study. BMC Public Health 22, 1278 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-13697-6