As it is national Healthy Weight Week and National Family Health Month, this month’s spices are ones that can help to boost your metabolism. Not only do they taste great but they help you to burn fat too!

Cinnamon

A 2003 study showed that a teaspoon of cinnamon a day can help you to lose weight. The spice reduces your blood sugar and helps your body to process carbohydrates more effectively. What’s more, it lowers LDL cholesterol by up to 27%. Sprinkle on your porridge, enjoy with stewed apples, or put a teaspoon or two in your soups, stews and curries.

Cayenne Pepper

Cayenne pepper is well known for its ability to help burn fat. It also encourages the central nervous system to produce more heat, which burns more calories.

There are various theories as to why cayenne helps you to lose weight; some say it capsaicin act as an appetite suppressant, some say it is simply that it is hard to eat too much spicy food. Recent research suggests that the spice stimulates the oxidisation of fat by increasing the burning of energy.
Spice up your meal with a little cayenne or, if you don’t like your food super spicy, take cayenne pepper in its supplement form.

Ginger

Ginger really does seem to be an all-rounder when it comes to its benefits. Well known for its healing and immune support properties, this spicy root is a diuretic, reducing water retention and improves gastric mobility, which means it pushes food more quickly through your digestive system, helping to reduce cholesterol.

It is also thought to increase the metabolism, although more research is needed to support this. Heap your curry with ginger; add fresh ginger to hot lemon for a fat burning, cold-fighting drink, or make a sweet treat with fresh or ground ginger added for extra fat-burning power.

Keep an eye out for our next recipe, which will be heaped with fat-burning, immune-boosting spices to keep you happy and healthy.

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