The incredible benefits of bell pepper
Red, green, or yellow, peppers lend themselves to a thousand and one recipes and are teeming with benefits. Rich in fiber, diuretic and dietetic, this fruit vegetable is an undisputed star of the Mediterranean diet.
• Antioxidant, anti-aging
Pepper is a true ally of beautiful longevity. Studies on its composition show that it is in particular:
- A champion of vitamin C content: it contains up to 150mg per 100g, almost as much as parsley, top of the list in this category, and twice as much as orange or kiwi. It is therefore excellent for stimulating the body's defenses. Vitamin C having major anti-oxidant properties, pepper also makes it possible to fight effectively against free radicals and premature aging, neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular, muscular, and joint pathologies.
- A brake against malignant cells
: with its richness in antioxidant vitamin C, the pepper associates molecules (flavonoids, campsites), useful to prevent but also to slow down the development of cancer cells. In
Read also: The 5 health benefits of zucchini
• Rich in fiber, dietetic, and diuretic
Healthy food rich in minerals and trace elements (iron, copper, calcium, potassium, phosphorus, manganese, zinc), pepper is also a slimming food ... All the more reason not to deprive yourself of it.
- 29kcal / 100g: it is really a lightweight food because, composed of 90% water, it owes its caloric intake only to a tiny fraction of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.
- 2g of fiber / 100g: this rather high density makes it possible to sustainably satiate and avoid cravings, but also to stimulate intestinal transit, to trap some of the dietary fats and sugars, and better eliminate waste.
• What color to choose?
To take advantage of all the benefits of peppers, it is better not to buy it crumpled and not to deprive yourself of mixing shades happily. Whatever its color (which reflects its degree of maturity), it is the same fruit vegetable, with some nuances:
- Red: it is the ripest and the richest in vitamin C, but also in vitamin B6 and E as well as in beta-carotene and lycopene, antioxidant pigments.
- Yellow: at this intermediate stage, it is the sweetest to the taste, the sweetest. It is particularly rich in beta-carotene and flavonoids, but also in vitamin B9.
- Green: picked before maturity, this is the one that harbors the most flavonoids, the content of which gradually decreases with ripening. It is also a source of vitamin K.
• To eat raw or cooked?
The pepper goes well with other vegetables from the sun, enhances a plate of rice, an omelet, lends itself to all kinds of stuffing ... A few details to fully appreciate it:
- Raw with the skin, sliced in a salad or as an aperitif, it is under these conditions that it retains the maximum of its virtues. Even without having a digestive problem, it is always better to remove the seeds and the slightly bitter white filaments.
- Cooked and peeled, seedless, and filament free, this is how it is most easily digestible. Just roast or steam it to easily remove the skin. The ideal is then to cut strips and marinate them in olive oil, garlic, and sweet pepper: a delicious antioxidant and anticancer cocktail!
- Precautions with green ...
... In people sensitive to FODMAPs, green peppers (like green bananas), even cooked, will not pass. Reds and yolks, cooked and peeled, on the other hand, will not cause digestive problems.
... In some pollen allergies, ingestion of green pepper (as well as certain fresh fruits or nuts) can trigger a brief oral allergy syndrome: itching, burning sensation in the mouth, lips, and throat.
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