Healthy bell pepper - calorie content, vitamins and minerals in the composition. Amazing vegetable bell pepper: beneficial properties and valuable qualities

The history of this vegetable begins in the 15th century, when it was first mentioned in documents. Its homeland is South and Central America, where wild varieties of bell pepper can still be found.

After Columbus's expedition, Europe learned about this vegetable.

It is important to note that for a long time red pepper was considered a wild false berry, and only by the 19th century was it recognized as a significant agricultural crop.

Not only the vegetable itself has an interesting origin, but also its name. It appeared thanks to Bulgarian scientists who developed new large-fruited varieties of this pepper.

Despite the fact that this culture is thermophilic, it can be effortlessly Anyone can plant it on their own plot of land.

Useful and medicinal properties, vitamins

Bell pepper is a very common, incredibly tasty and healthy vegetable.

It is consumed as an indispensable ingredient for various soups, main courses, all kinds of preserves, and salads. He possesses excellent taste characteristics, has a pleasant smell. In addition, eating the fruits of this vegetable brings great benefit for the body.

The fruits of bell pepper contain many vitamins, thanks to which it is a very healthy vegetable.

First of all, it should be noted the huge content vitamin C specifically in red pepper. Green bell peppers are rich in it in slightly smaller quantities.

Thanks to such a rich fortified composition, sweet peppers even surpassed black currants, strawberries and even lemon.

In addition, the composition of the bell pepper fruit includes a large number of vitamins of group B, PP, vitamins A, E, as well as ascorbic acid, rutin and beta-carotene. It is also worth mentioning the content of iron, iodine, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, fluorine, copper, calcium and potassium salts in pepper.

Useful And medicinal properties:

Bell pepper is useful for those who want to have a good figure. Its fruits have a high concentration of fiber, which will also be very useful for people with diseases of the digestive system.
The alkaloid capsaicin, which is also found in pepper, improves the functioning of the stomach and pancreas. Thus, food is processed much easier and more efficiently. By the way, it is this substance that gives pepper its specific taste.
The vitamins contained in pepper have a beneficial effect on the entire body, strengthening the immune system.
Experts have proven that bell peppers can support the body of people with diabetes. With this disease, it is best to drink juice from the fruits of bell pepper.
Eating this crop can improve the condition of the circulatory system thanks to vitamin P, which strengthens the walls of blood vessels.
This vegetable will be useful for older people, as it has a positive effect on memory, lowers blood pressure, and the beta-carotene it contains even partially relieves fatigue.
Bell pepper strengthens the nervous system, it will help get rid of insomnia and irritability. Calcium, magnesium, potassium and B vitamins help restore brain neurons, thus increasing brain activity.
It will be useful for the prevention of cancer thanks to compounds that do not allow carcinogens to penetrate cells.
It is useful to consume bell pepper for people living in regions with high levels of radiation.
Bell pepper helps reduce triglyceride and cholesterol levels in the body.
The substances that bell pepper contains take part in normalizing hormonal levels, so it will be useful for women during pregnancy.
Eating pepper is also good for beauty: the substances contained in it can significantly improve the condition of the skin, strengthen nails and hair.
In cosmetology, it is used as part of various face masks.
Ointments made from its fruits are useful and can be used in the treatment of radiculitis and arthritis.
Bulgarian pepper should be included in your diet for smokers. Scientists have proven that it reduces the harmful effects of tobacco on the body.

calories

How many calories are in bell pepper? The fruits of the vegetable, which is also called sweet pepper, have a rather attractive appearance: they come in red, yellow, green colors with different shades. At its core, it is a pod made up of a skin that has grown together with the pulp, and a seed nest inside, tightly attached to the stalk.

Different types of bell pepper also differ shape: they can be round, spherical, pyramidal, conical. Depending on the number of fruits and the method of their preparation, their calorie content.

Light salads containing bell pepper are tasty and healthy. It has virtually no calories, so even diabetics and people who exercise or are on a diet can eat it.

Calorie content per 100 grams of fresh product - about 25 kcal. Pickled peppers are more caloric - up to 70 calories.

Bell peppers, eaten rolled up, are very popular. Its calorie content per 100 gr. - no more than 80 calories.

Harm to health

There is no doubt that bell peppers are one of the healthiest vegetables in the world. But it is important to know that for any product there are also a number of contraindications for use.

Bell pepper is not capable of causing significant harm to human health, but some provisions about it harm everyone should know.

Pepper seeds have a bitter taste and cause a feeling of discomfort due to a slight astringency in the mouth. In everyday life, they are used not only for growing new seedlings and crossing varieties.

Very aromatic essential oils are also produced from the seeds, which have medicinal, preventive and cosmetic properties. Any essential oil that is made from bell pepper seeds can only be harmful to the category of people suffering from allergies regarding this product.

Contraindications

Although the vegetable is rich in vitamins, under some conditions bell pepper may still be contraindicated. The decisive factor may be the presence of the following diseases:

Those suffering from coronary artery disease, hypotension, and people with heart rhythm disturbances should exclude bell pepper from their diet.
Bell pepper is harmful for people with stomach ulcers and gastritis.
For epilepsy, increased excitability of the central nervous system, and unstable mental state, bell pepper is strictly contraindicated.
It should not be used by patients with hemorrhoids, as well as people with kidney and liver diseases.

Some of these contraindications are due to the content of essential oils in bell peppers, which should be consumed forbidden for the above-mentioned deviations and diseases.

The healthiest way to eat bell peppers is to eat them raw. This preserves the largest amount of vitamins and nutrients contained in it.

It can be used in various salads. By the way, a lot vitamin C it is located exactly in the part that is usually thrown away after peeling the pepper - in the seed nest, so there is no need to rush to get rid of it.

For preservation, bell peppers are suitable both raw and dried. It can be stewed, boiled, baked - in any form it will remain useful and provide charitable influence on your body.

Smoking can lead to the development of hypovitaminosis A, which negatively affects the quality and duration of human life. However, the situation can change dramatically if you regularly eat red bell pepper. This conclusion was made by scientists nutritionists, after conducting a large-scale study. As a result, the enormous benefits of sweet bell peppers with a lack of important vitamins and minerals in the body have been proven. Moreover, this is not its only positive effect on human health.

Many people know about the benefits of pepper, but can this vegetable cause harm? Let's look at this issue in more detail.

Historical facts

The wild ancestors of sweet peppers were found in America, from where they were brought by Christopher Columbus to Europe at the same time as zucchini. Guatemala and Mexico are recognized as the birthplace of this plant, where the most ancient varieties that look like shrubs still grow.

Archaeological excavations confirm that sweet pepper is one of the most ancient vegetables. The first mentions of it date back to 6,000 BC. In Europe, the cultivation of this plant was carried out in Mediterranean countries with favorable climatic conditions.

Pepper came to Russia only in the 17th century and, most likely, from Bulgaria. That is why its second name is “Bulgarian”. According to historical documents, this happened in 1616.

Composition and calorie content

The beneficial properties of bell pepper lie in its low calorie content. It is 27 kcal per 100 g of product. It contains:

Vitamins

The presence of substances important for the body in red Bulgarian sweet pepper determines its benefits to humans. As you know, vitamins are most found in fresh fruits, but you can also eat heat-treated ones, since they also retain useful substances in sufficient concentration. The main vitamins are represented by the following groups:

per 100 grams of product	vitamin content mg
Vitamin A	0.94
Vitamin B	3.1
Vitamin B5	0.3
Vitamin B6	0.3
Vitamin C	128
Vitamin E	1.6

Minerals

Bell peppers also contain minerals. We are talking about the following:

The vitamins and minerals in bell pepper are beneficial for the human body, making the vegetable especially popular for health conscious people.

Benefits for the body

Red bell pepper is good for the body, especially fresh and in salads. The substance capsaicin, which is necessary for the normal functioning of the digestive system, was found in it and other varieties of sweet peppers. This substance stimulates the exocrine function of the pancreas. In addition, capsacin inhibits the growth of pathogenic fungal microflora, and it can be considered as a natural antifungal agent. Other benefits of sweet bell peppers associated with capsaicin:

Increased appetite (this is especially important for cachexia, colds, etc.)
If you are prone to obesity, you should control the amount of food you eat during the day and count its calorie content
Hypotensive action
Antiplatelet effect - reduces the tendency of blood to form thrombosis, when blood clots can disrupt blood flow
Stimulation of nail and hair growth
Anti-carcinogenic effect – protection against cancer processes.

It is worth noting that red hot pepper contains the most capsaicin. However, its consumption in food should be strictly regulated, since an excess can be harmful. On the contrary, the amount of sweet red pepper in the diet may not be limited, since it contains physiologically safe amounts of this substance.

The benefit that is unique to this vegetable is the direct burning of calories and the acceleration of metabolic processes in the body. Therefore, it is successfully used for weight loss as part of diets. In addition, “Borgarian” helps reduce cholesterol levels in the blood, the excess content of which can initiate the development of atherosclerotic disease.

Considering the beneficial properties of red bell pepper, it is especially important to eat it for people suffering from the following diseases and pathological processes:

Anemia
Increased bleeding gums
Increased fragility of blood vessels
Atrophic gastritis (the benefit of sweet bell pepper is that it stimulates gastric secretion)
Chronic bronchitis accompanied by cough (pepper has an antitussive effect)
Constipation
Arterial hypertension
Hyperhidrosis
Diabetes mellitus (a condition in which the activity of the sweat glands increases) and some other conditions.

Possible harm

Unfortunately, the vegetable can also cause harm, since unscrupulous farmers quite often add growth stimulants and pesticides to the soil. Therefore, it is advisable to consume those fruits that have been tested for pesticide content or grown in the fields of trusted farmers. Excessive pesticide content in vegetables can be harmful and extremely dangerous to health. The body gradually gets used to consuming the poison and human health is at risk.

The benefits of sweet pepper can turn out to be harmful if consumed for certain diseases. In this case, it can lead to their exacerbation or worsen the course. Therefore, the harm and contraindications for its use are the following pathological processes in the body:

A form of coronary heart disease - angina pectoris
Arrhythmias
Ulcerative lesions of the gastrointestinal tract
Chronic gastritis, in which the acid-forming function of the stomach is increased
Kidney diseases in the acute stage or unstable remission
Liver failure
Colitis
Hemorrhoids (long-term and untreated)
Insomnia
Epilepsy
Increased psycho-emotional irritability and nervousness.

The vitamins and minerals in sweet bell peppers make them a very healthy and popular product. Its therapeutic effect on the digestive and cardiovascular systems is especially noticeable. And paprika (red bell pepper) also helps fight excess weight.

Sweet pepper is one of the most important products for every housewife. This tasty and juicy vegetable can be consumed fresh, dried, or cooked. Due to its rich color, it is used to decorate holiday dishes. And the huge content of vitamins in pepper allows it to be used to make effective medicines and cosmetics. The fruit is so rich in micronutrients that it brings tangible benefits to the body.

Although the pepper is called Bulgarian, its homeland is the American continent. A wild plant that grows in natural conditions, belongs to perennials, does not require cultivation and additional watering. Peppers of various shapes and colors lying on the shelves of grocery stores are vegetables that have undergone selection. Based on the color of the fruit, there are three varieties: red, yellow and green. Red and yellow peppers contain a lot of carotenoid pigments, these two varieties are recommended for people suffering from diseases of the heart, kidneys and bone tissue. The green vegetable is rich in steroid alcohols, phytosterols, which regulate the metabolism of fats, remove bad cholesterol from the blood vessels, preventing the development of atherosclerosis.

What is the nutritional value of bell peppers?

A big advantage of sweet pepper over many other plant foods is its low calorie content. One hundred grams of raw vegetable contains no more than 30 kilocalories. It contains the following biologically significant elements:

proteins - 1.3%;
carbohydrates – 4.9%;
fats - 0.1%;
fiber – 1.7%;
water - 92.0%.

What vitamins are contained in bell peppers?

Due to the high concentration of nutrients, Bulgarian pepper is extremely beneficial for the human body. Most vitamins are found in fresh vegetables; during heat treatment, the product loses up to 70% of important trace elements. An excellent source of nutrients is the juice squeezed from the peeled fruit. What vitamins are found in the greatest quantities in bell peppers? One hundred grams of the raw product contains substances in the following volume:

retinol (A) – 1 mg;
ascorbic acid (C) – 130 mg;
tocopherol (E) – 1.6 mg;
nicotinic acid (B 3) – 1 mg;
pantothenic acid (B 5) – 0.3 mg;
pyridoxine (B 6) – 0.3 mg.

What minerals are found in bell peppers?

Sweet pepper is rich in minerals that are extremely important for the normal functioning and development of the body. How many minerals does a fresh vegetable contain? One hundred grams of the product contains the following amount of microelements:

potassium - 210 mg;
phosphorus – 26 mg;
magnesium – 12 mg;
calcium – 8 mg;
sodium - 5 mg.

How is bell pepper good for the body?

In order for sweet pepper to bring maximum benefit to the body, it is necessary to use it without heat treatment: in salads or as an independent snack. The vegetable contains a unique alkaloid capsaicin, which has a beneficial effect on the digestive tract. This substance activates the secretion of the pancreas, improves appetite, has an antitoxic effect, removes carcinogens from the body, prevents the development of oncology, helps lower blood pressure, and prevents the appearance of blood clots in the bloodstream. Also, capsaicin is able to destroy pathogenic fungi, stimulate the growth of hair and nails. It is useful to use a vegetable for people suffering from constipation, atrophic gastritis, increased sweating, anemia, and diabetes.

Since the content of kilocalories in red pepper is negligible, it is recommended to include it in the menu for people with obesity. The Bulgarian fruit has the ability to speed up the body's metabolism, which is why it is the first vegetable on the list for dietary nutrition. Regular consumption of pepper can significantly reduce the level of bad cholesterol in the blood, which is important for the prevention of atherosclerosis. A vegetable must be in the diet of people who have bleeding gums and weak elasticity of blood vessels.

Due to the high concentration of vitamins in red pepper, it is useful for mental workers to use it to improve brain performance and relieve mental stress. The vegetable helps to maintain vigor and good concentration, normalizes the functioning of the nervous system, and eliminates the symptoms of depression. A huge amount of vitamin C, which is a strong antioxidant, makes the Bulgarian fruit an effective remedy against the deterioration of hair and nails, baldness in men and early skin aging in women. It is recommended to use a vegetable for pregnant women: it helps them maintain healthy bone tissue and blood vessels.

Can bell peppers harm the body?

Sweet pepper is a nutritious and healthy product, but with certain diseases it can harm the body. In order not to worsen your well-being, it is strictly forbidden to use a vegetable for the following pathologies:

angina pectoris, ischemia, arrhythmia;
insomnia, epilepsy, neurasthenia, mental disorders;
stomach and duodenal ulcers;
gastritis with increased stomach acidity;
poor liver function;
chronic kidney disease in the acute stage;
colitis, prolonged hemorrhoids.

You should carefully approach the choice of goods in grocery stores. Recently, peppers that have been overly treated with agricultural pesticides have been appearing on the shelves. Unscrupulous farmers do not spare insecticides and pesticides for their products, which are extremely toxic to the human body. Therefore, you should carefully read the information about the product and give preference to vegetables from reliable manufacturers that have been tested for harmful substances.

Bulgarian (or sweet) pepper was known to people already in the 6th millennium BC, and even then people realized the beneficial properties of this vegetable. Bell pepper, the benefits and harms of which will be discussed in detail in this article, comes from Latin America. At the end of the 15th century, it came to Europe, and then, through the territory of Bulgaria, to Russia and the CIS countries. Therefore, in these countries they began to call it that - Bulgarian.

Useful components of pepper

Bell pepper, the benefits and harms of which are explained by its composition, is the fruit of an annual herbaceous plant belonging to the nightshade family. It can have different shapes (elongated, ovoid, cone-shaped, cylindrical or spherical) and weight (from 0.5 to 200 g). Depending on the plant variety and the pigments contained in the fruits, bell peppers come in different colors: green, red and yellow, orange, and even purple.

The beneficial properties of bell pepper are due to the vitamins and minerals it contains:

The content of vitamins and minerals in sweet peppers may deviate from the specified parameters depending on the color of the fruit, which means that the benefits and harms of bell peppers of different varieties are not the same. For example, sweet red pepper is the leader in vitamin C content (250,000 mcg), so the benefits of red pepper for baby food are greater than other types, since children need vitamin C for the full development of the immune system.

What are the benefits of yellow sweet pepper? It contains more potassium than red or green. Therefore, people in adulthood and those who suffer from heart and vascular diseases are recommended to give preference to yellow bell pepper.

calories

Despite such a large number of useful components, there are very few calories in bell pepper: only 20-29.5 kcal (depending on the variety of pepper) per 100 g of product. This explains the frequent use of this vegetable for food by those who follow diets and are worried about the harmony of their figure.

Important: Speaking about the calorie content of sweet pepper, you need to pay attention to the variety and color of the vegetable. Green pepper has the least calories (20 kcal), red has an intermediate value (28 kcal), and yellow pepper has the highest value (29.5 kcal).

In addition to its low calorie content, the benefit of sweet peppers for those who are “on a diet” also lies in the high content of B vitamins, which allow them to cope with depression, bad mood and loss of energy, because they so often accompany people who limit their diet.

Another effect is the ability of bell pepper to enhance the secretion of gastric juice, which improves metabolism. But this is sweet pepper, and its benefits and harm to the body also have a downside. Increasing metabolism improves digestion, which promotes weight loss. This same property can also complicate dieting, since increased gastric secretion often provokes an increase in appetite.

On guard of immunity

The beneficial properties of sweet peppers regarding the immune system are determined by the presence of vitamins C and A in them.

Attention: Vitamin C is easily destroyed under the influence of high temperatures (over 100˚), therefore, to obtain maximum benefits, sweet peppers should be consumed without heat treatment.

Vitamin A also plays an important role in maintaining optimal functioning of the immune system. It is able to increase the permeability function of the mucous membranes, due to which infections cannot penetrate the body. Vitamin A can protect against colds, acute respiratory viral infections, respiratory tract and genitourinary system infections. This action is based on its ability to increase the phagocytic activity of leukocytes, as a result of which they quickly destroy pathogenic agents.

Cancer prevention

How is bell pepper useful for those who want to try to protect themselves from cancer? Let's take a closer look at red bell pepper; its health benefits and harms are due to its slightly different composition from other types of these fruits. Red sweet pepper contains a special substance - lycopene, which serves as a powerful antioxidant and protector of DNA molecules, which reduces the risk of cancer. In addition, lycopene is able to inhibit pathogenic microflora in the intestines, exhibiting antibacterial and antifungal properties.

The preventive anti-carcinogenic effect of red bell pepper is also due to the presence of a high concentration of vitamin C in it. After all, as a result of exposure to free radicals, damage to cells and their structures, including the genetic apparatus, occurs. This leads to the development of cellular mutations and can ultimately trigger the development of a tumor. Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that protects cells from the effects of free radicals and, accordingly, reduces the risk of developing tumors.

Possible harm

Despite all the listed positive effects of sweet pepper, not everyone can eat it, because the beneficial properties and contraindications of this vegetable can appear simultaneously.

The possible benefits and harms of bell pepper are explained by the substances it contains. One of the varieties of alkaloids is capsaicin, which gives this vegetable its distinctive flavor and has the ability to lower blood pressure and reduce its viscosity. Therefore, for people with coronary artery disease and hypotension (low blood pressure), the use of sweet pepper is contraindicated.

What else can sweet peppers be dangerous for? Its natural ripening period is July-September, but the fruits of this vegetable are available for sale all year round. This is explained by the widespread use of nitrate fertilizers and pesticides for processing peppers when grown in greenhouse conditions. They can accumulate in fruits and, when entering the human body, have a carcinogenic effect. Therefore, it is better to buy fresh bell pepper only during the period indicated above, and the rest of the time use frozen vegetables, because when frozen, all the benefits of bell pepper for the body are preserved.

Some symptoms of appearance:

increased sweating;
weakened immunity, frequent colds;
weakness, fatigue;
nervous state, depression;
headaches and migraines;
alternating diarrhea and constipation;
I want sweet and sour;
bad breath;
frequent feeling of hunger;
problems with losing weight;
decreased appetite;
night grinding of teeth, drooling;
pain in the abdomen, joints, muscles;
cough does not go away;
acne on the skin.

If you have any of the symptoms or are in doubt about the causes of your ailments, you need to cleanse your body as quickly as possible. How to do it .

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Any vegetable contains many vitamins and minerals, the only difference is that one contains more vitamin E, and the other contains vitamin B. Raw red bell pepper is an excellent source of vitamin C. Just 40 g of pepper per day is enough and the daily norm of this substance will be replenished by 100 %.

What vitamins are in bell peppers?

Ascorbic acid:

Has a powerful restorative effect,

Stimulates wound healing,

Antioxidant, helps cope with the aggression of free radicals,

Clears blood vessels from anti-sclerotic plaques,

Improves the elasticity of blood vessels,

Promotes the absorption of iron and hemoglobin synthesis.

Promotes the production of interferon. Accelerates recovery from acute respiratory infections and acute respiratory viral infections.

100g of raw red bell pepper contains:

40% of the daily norm of carotene,
4% of the daily value of vitamin B2,
5% of the daily requirement of vitamin PP,
4.5% of the daily value of vitamin E,
25% of the daily value of vitamin B6.

Beneficial features.

Carotene deposited in the body when there is a lack of retinol synthesized into it. The accumulated pigment acts as an antioxidant. That is why it is considered an anti-cancer vitamin. It lowers cholesterol levels and reduces the risk of colds.

There is also a lot in bell pepper vitamin B6 (pyridoxine). Which promotes the synthesis of nucleic acids, prevents aging. Reduces muscle spasms, hand numbness. Pyridoxine acts as a natural diuretic. Vitamin B6 reduces the need for insulin and blood sugar. This property is important for people with diabetes.

Bulgarian pepper is a low-calorie healthy product. Its effectiveness largely depends on color: yellow, red and green peppers contain beneficial substances to varying degrees and their effects on the body differ.