So I’ve been taking Cayenne Pepper capsules for almost  a month now because I had read that it could be helpful for weight loss. Now I realize it doesn’t make much sense that Cayenne pepper alone is going to magically cause the weight to fall off, but some of the claims about it made sense to me for being helpful. Here are some of the claims I read and then I will tell you what I’ve found to be true for me personally:

• Cayenne Pepper suppresses appetite.
• Cayenne Pepper boosts metabolism.
• Taking Cayenne Pepper before a meal generally causes you to burn about 10 more calories than not taking any.

So that’s basically what I got out of what I had read about the health benefits of Cayenne Pepper. Now I did read that people that are used to spicy foods like Cayenne pepper, tend to see less of the appetite suppression, or none at all, but I don’t like very spicy foods, so I figured I’d be ok. So I decided to go ahead and try it just to see.

I bought a bottle of  Spring Valley – Cayenne Fruit from Amazon.com and received it pretty quickly. I started taking it and I can tell you that it definitely has had some appetite suppression. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that I can feel the cayenne pepper in my stomach, which isn’t normally very uncomfortable unless it doesn’t make it all the way to my stomach before the capsule opens up. This is where I learned not to take other vitamins at the same time as the cayenne pepper because if I did, it would normally open up before hitting my stomach and then I’d have to chug some milk because, wow! lol  But I can live with that if it helps me to not feel like snacking or eating as much.

Cayenne Pepper for Appetite Suppression: Check

As far as metabolism, I don’t really know. I don’t think I feel more energy while taking the pepper, but I’m not quite sure. So……

Cayenne Pepper for a Metabolism Boost: Undecided

Cayenne Pepper for burning more calories: Not really any way for me to tell

Now there is one more benefit of Cayenne Pepper that I did not anticipate and I hadn’t read.  I started taking it about a week and a half before my period was supposed to start. Now normally I can feel about a week before when my period is going to start, especially ever since a few months after I stopped nursing my youngest, so probably the last 6 months I’ve consistantly been feeling cramping and extremely irritable, headaches and so on, about a week or so before mensus starts.  Well, this time, my period caught me by surprise! I didn’t even feel it coming. I knew that it was coming up, but I kind of forgot because I didn’t feel crampy or anything!  When I stopped and thought about it, I thought I remembered some time in the past maybe hearing about Cayenne pepper helping ease menstrual cramps, so I looked it up. Sure enough, I found several places that said that Cayenne pepper helps with menstrual cramps!

Now that is a huge plus for me. If that was the only health benefit of cayenne pepper, then I would still use it.

How much to take? Well, the bottle says to take 1 capsule 3 times a day, but I was only taken it 1 or 2 times during the end of my last menstrual cycle. Now I will see with my current cycle coming to a close, if it helps again. I’ve only been taking it 1 time a day the past 2 weeks, so we’ll see if only once a day will still help with the cramps .

As far as appetite suppression, it seems to work well taking it in between meals if you don’t want to feel the munchies. Or taking it right before a meal if you want to cut down on your main meals.

So try out the Cayenne Pepper, it does seem to have some great health benefits. Let me know if it works for you!