Capsicum annuum
Part Used: Dried mature fruit ("pepper")
Cayenne (Capsicum annuum) is a shrub that originated in Central and South America and now grows in subtropical and tropical climates. Its hollow fruit grows into long pods that turn red, orange, or yellow when they ripen. The fruit is eaten raw or cooked, or is dried and powdered into the spice that has been used for centuries in meals and medicines. Capsaicin is the most active ingredient in Cayenne, but other important ingredients include vitamins A and C, and flavonoids and carotenoids (plant pigments with antioxidant properties). Today Cayenne is used worldwide to treat a variety of health conditions, including poor circulation, weak digestion, heart disease, chronic pain, sore throats, headaches and toothache.
Cayenne has also been used in traditional Indian Ayurvedic, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean medicines as an oral remedy for digestive problems, poor appetite, and circulatory problems. It has also been used as a topical remedy for arthritis and muscle pain. Today, topical preparations of capsaicin are used in the United States and Europe primarily to relieve pain associated with conditions such as arthritis and shingles (Herpes zoster). Capsaicin has very powerful pain-relieving properties when applied to the surface of the skin. Capsaicin cream can reduce itching and inflammation associated with psoriasis (a chronic skin disease that generally appears as patches of raised red skin covered by a flaky white buildup).
Cayenne is a good general tonic, specific for the circulatory and digestive system. It regulates blood flow and strengthens the heart, arteries, capillaries and nerves. It improves arterial blood supply to the tissues and toxin removal. It is a strong circulatory stimulant, appearing to reinforce the action of certain prostaglandins, thereby increasing the flow of blood through all the tissues of the body and producing a diaphoretic effect. It is also used in digestive debility and flatulent dyspepsia in the absence of inflammation. The addition of Capsicum to a prescription will ensure that the other ingredients quickly reach all tissues even where there is poor circulation. Applied externally it stimulates increased circulation within the subdermal tissues, reducing the need for the body to invoke the inflammatory response. It is therefore of benefit as a rubefacient for neuralgia and rheumatic pains. The ointment also helps to heal unbroken chilblains.
References:
University of Maryland Medical Center. http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/cayenne-000230.htm
Purple Sage Botanicals. http://www.purplesage.org.uk/profiles/cayenne.htm
