Traditional Chinese Medicine Warns: 9 Types of People Must Never Eat Spicy Food, It Could Be Fatal
Hemorrhoid Patients: As the saying goes, "nine out of ten people have hemorrhoids." Friends with hemorrhoids should take note. Although chili peppers are rich in vitamin C and can stimulate the taste buds, boosting appetite during hot summers, they also contain a large amount of irritants. For people with hemorrhoids, eating chili can easily lead to congestion and edema of the hemorrhoidal veins, further worsening the condition and potentially leading to perianal abscesses. Additionally, chili can aggravate constipation, making hemorrhoids more severe. Therefore, patients with hemorrhoids should absolutely avoid eating chili peppers in the summer.
Those Taking Chinese Medicine: Capsaicin in spicy food can interfere with the efficacy of Chinese medicine. Therefore, while taking Chinese medicine, one should avoid spicy foods. Individuals on Chinese medicine should have a relatively light diet and cannot eat chili or any irritating foods, as this can cause a relapse of the illness. Due to the stimulation of capsaicin, stomach acid secretion increases, which can cause gallbladder contraction and spasm of the sphincter of Oddi, leading to difficulty in bile excretion. This can induce cholecystitis, biliary colic, and pancreatitis. Furthermore, patients with these conditions should eat more foods rich in dietary fiber and avoid strongly irritating foods like radishes, chili peppers, and onions, as these can easily trigger biliary colic and worsen the condition.
Patients with Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Diseases: Capsaicin in spicy food ingredients causes a sharp increase in circulating blood volume, accelerates the heart rate, and leads to tachycardia. A large intake in a short period can lead to acute heart failure and even sudden death.
Kidney Disease Patients: Capsaicin from spicy food is excreted through the kidneys and can damage renal parenchymal cells. In severe cases, it can lead to changes in kidney function or even renal failure.
Pregnant and Postpartum Women: This group may experience symptoms like canker sores and constipation from eating spicy food, and it can also cause illness in their breastfeeding infants.
Hyperthyroidism Patients: As they already have a fast heart rate, consuming spicy food will further increase the heart rate, making the symptoms more pronounced.
Patients with Conjunctivitis and Keratitis: Xiao Li, a 22-year-old and a 2010 student at a certain university, recently returned to campus for the new semester. He met up with classmates for a late-night snack, and since they all loved spicy food, they ordered dishes that were very spicy. Unexpectedly, the day before yesterday, Xiao Li's eyes became hot and swollen, and he was diagnosed with conjunctivitis at the hospital. After questioning, the doctor stated that his condition was related to his love for spicy food.
Experts explain that heating agents like chili peppers cause the blood vessels in the eyes to dilate and充血 (congest), reducing the eye's resistance to infection and making one more susceptible to conjunctivitis. Moreover, spicy foods should be avoided in the summer, and the diet should be light. Therefore, patients with conjunctivitis, keratitis, and other similar symptoms should strictly avoid spicy food during their illness. Eating spicy food can easily lead to "internal heat" (上火), thereby aggravating the condition.