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Hot Peppers' Capsaicin Helps Hypertensive Rats

辣椒里的辣椒素幫助高血壓實驗鼠降低血壓

Here’s a possible blood pressure remedy. But it’s only for those who can stand the heat. It’s capsaicin, the “active ingredient” in peppers like habaneros that should probably be sold by prescription only. While lips burn and eyes water, blood vessels actually relax, thanks to increased production of the signaling molecule nitric oxide. In rodents, anyway.

有一種方法或許能治療血壓疾病，但只對能夠忍受灼熱的人有效。它就是辣椒素——一種辣椒里，如燈籠椒（朝天椒），上的活性成分，而且在藥店里購買可能還得提供醫(yī)生處方。當被辣到呲牙咧嘴、眼淚汪汪的時候，血管其實便會松弛，這是由于辣椒素增加了信號分子一氧化氮的數(shù)量。當然，這是在實驗鼠身上觀察到的結果。

For seven months, researchers in China fed a steady diet of capsaicin to rats bred to be hypertensive. Long-term consumption of the chemical substantially lowered the rats’ blood pressure. The results appear in the August issue of the journal Cell Metabolism.

中國的研究者們用7個月的時間給培育成高血壓的小鼠喂食一成不變的辣椒素食物。長期食用這種藥物使得小鼠們的血壓大幅下降。該研究的成果發(fā)表在8月份的《細胞-代謝》雜志上。

Previous research found mixed results with capsaicin, but those studies only looked at short-term effects. Human trials are needed, but there’s already a clue. Some 20 percent of people in northeastern China have high blood pressure. But the southwest—where hot peppers are a dietary staple—has a much lower incidence, half in some places.

先前的研究發(fā)現(xiàn)辣椒素的效果好壞參半，不過那些研究都只考察了短期影響。盡管人體實驗將必不可少，但現(xiàn)在已有了一線希望。中國東北約有20%的人有高血壓，但在西南高血壓發(fā)病率就低很多，有的地方僅有東北的一半，而在中國西南，辣椒人們?nèi)粘Ｊ秤玫闹饕澄铩?/div>

Human studies could also confirm whether the habanero, as legend has it, can cause hearing loss. Allegedly so that diners don’t have to listen to their own screams.

人體實驗還會證實燈籠椒（朝天椒）是否如傳說那樣能辣到讓人失聰，據(jù)說這樣食客就聽不到自己被辣到要命的尖叫聲了。

-Adam Hinterthuer

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