Cayenne pepper

Chilies growing in a garden

Potentially edible! Food woo

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Chemical structure of capsaicin

The cayenne pepper or Chili pepper (Capsicum annuum) is a spice. It and related species (esp. C. chinense) contain capsaicin (C₁₈H₂₇NO₃), which is the primary source of "spiciness" in most hot sauces. The purified capsaicin extract is an ingredient in some topical remedies for joint and muscle pain, and is also the main ingredient in many pepper sprays. The bell pepper is a different cultivar of the same species as cayenne; it does not produce capsaicin. Many spices contain antioxidants, and capsaicin is no exception. A 1999 study of culinary spice use found that traditional spice use was correlated with geographic latitudes and elevations, indicating that spice use likely developed as a way to counteract microbial contamination of foods (i.e., higher ambient temperatures increases microbial activity, which increases the need for more microbial control in the form of spices). Another proposed explanation (not exclusive of the first) is that spicy foods encourage perspiration, helping keep the human body cooler in hot weather.

Scoville scale

Capsaicin content and by extension spiciness is measured by the Scoville scale, named after its inventor, pharmacologist Wilbur Scoville. The scale works by diluting a sample of a pepper until spiciness can no longer be detected, with stronger required dilutions being inducated by higher numbers on the scale. A typical cayenne pepper is between 30,000-50,000 on the scale and a bell pepper is at 0, while Pepper X, the spiciest pepper yet cultivated, sits at a whopping 2.693 million Scoville units.

Woo

Apparently Cayenne is now recommended as an herbal treatment for heart attacks on the just-vague-enough-to-sound-believable premise that it "promotes warm blood circulation". Suffice it to say, this mechanism is poorly established at best, and in sensitive individuals, exposure to capsaicin has been known to cause heart attacks. (Capsaicin is an irritant, after all.) And while some small positive metabolic changes have been seen in rat models, human use of cayenne pepper for metabolic regulation can have nasty side effects, like most spicy peppers.

Derivation

Cayenne is the capital city of French Guiana, which seems to have derived its name from one of the many rivers in the area. Hot peppers are known there, but the local cuisine, although spicy, is not notably sphincter-burning.