Spice up Your Health with Black Pepper

Black pepper is from the pepper plant, which is a vine that can grow up to 33 feet in humid tropical climates. Plants bear small white flowers after 3 or 4 years and develop berries which we know as peppercorns. The ground peppercorns produce the spice we call pepper.

We don’t usually put too much thought into the medicinal properties of black pepper, the most widely used spice in the world, but they are quite extensive indeed. Here are just a few of them that we uncovered.

The University of Michigan Cancer Center has done a study that shows that pepper can help keep breast cancer away. A chemical compound called piperine is found in the peppercorns and can help prevent a tumor from forming. The potential of this is heightened when combined with turmeric.

Pepper is a great exfoliant for your skin. Pepper can help clear away dead skin cells, add more oxygen to your skin and stimulate your circulation.

Pepper is a powerful decongestant. When you have a cold or stuffy nose, add a little extra pepper to your meals to help clear you up. It will break up your mucus and help ease your cold.

Pepper can help aid digestion. Pepper stimulates your taste buds which signals the stomach to make hydrochloric acid. This helps digest food and makes for a healthy gut.
The outer layer of peppercorns stimulate the breakdown of fat cells. Pepper can help keep you slim.

Pepper can help ease a toothache. Mix some clove oil with salt and pepper and use it as a mouthwash. The mixture will help ease toothaches and can even protect your teeth from cavities.

Types of pepper

  • White, black and green peppercorns are the same fruit from the same kind of plant. However, because they are picked at different times, their flavor differs.
  • White pepper: hot but has less of a smell
  • Green pepper: fresher flavor than other kinds
  • Black pepper: hot and strong smelling

black pepperOther Uses for Pepper

  • Laundry Booster – Pepper can help the colors of your clothes stay bright and clean. Sprinkle half a teaspoon of salt in with your laundry, add regular detergent and wash. The pepper will drain away with the water, leaving your clothes unfaded from the wash.
  • Keep away pets and pests – Most animals hate the smell of pepper. Put some in your indoor plants to keep ants out, sprinkle a little on your furniture to keep the dog from chewing it, and put it around your garden to help keep small pests and insects away. Spray your garden with a mixture of pepper and water to help keep deer and rabbits from eating it.
  • Make a face scrub – Take advantage of pepper’s exfoliating abilities and make a face scrub. Mix 1 cup of sugar, 1/2 a cup of massage oil, 6 drops of orange essential oil, and 1/2 a teaspoon of ground pepper. Massage into face and rinse clean.

-The Alternative Daily

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