Bell pepper, which is actually from South America, is also called sweet, with virtually no sugar. Other properties of this amazing vegetable, its beneficial qualities and methods of use will be discussed in the article.

Vitamin composition and calorie content of bell pepper

This vegetable is literally full of vitamins, which are presented in it:

• beta carotene (A);
• thiamine (B1);
• riboflavin (B2);
• niacin (B3);
• pantothenic acid (B5);
• pyrodoxine (B6);
• folic acid (B9);
• ascorbic acid (C);
• tocopherol (E);
• phylloquinone (K);
• biotin (H);
• flavonoids (P).

The calorie content of bell pepper is small: in 100 g of fresh product, only 27 kcal.The energy balance of pepper is distributed as follows:

• proteins occupy 9.5% of it;
• fats - 11%;
• carbohydrates - 79.5%.

Sweet pepper fruits can be colored in red, yellow, and green. At the same time, the color of peppers also indicates the quality of their internal content.

Did you know? Sweet pepper fruits are three-chamber and four-chamber, conventionally called male and female, respectively. At the same time, three-chambered fruits are coarser and tougher compared to women, which by their conditions are ideal for salads.

Therefore, wondering how much pepper contains, for example, vitamin C or, say, potassium, it should be clarified what color the fruit means:

1. In red pepper a large amount of vitamins C and A is represented. By the presence of ascorbic acid, the vegetable surpasses citrus fruits and even the recognized favorite in terms of vitamin C content is black currant. Its 100 g contains 4 daily allowances necessary for the human body.
2. Yellow color fruits indicates that they have a lot of trace elements potassium, which is essential for the full functioning of the heart. In addition, potassium is useful for the normal functioning of the nervous system.
3. Green pepper has the above nutrients in more modest sizes. But it contains chlorogenic acid that can fight cholesterol plaques in blood vessels.

The effect of pepper on the body of men and women

Doctors have revealed the specific effect of the bell pepper fruits on the body of both men and women.

For the health of the fair sex, a vegetable is useful:

• low calorie content, which is a very significant factor for weight watchers;
• the presence of folic acid, indispensable in creating optimal conditions for the activity of the female reproductive system;
• the ability to combat anemia with a high iron content in the product;
• the ability to protect teeth, hair and nails from decay during pregnancy;
• the ability to cheer up due to the presence of serotonin;
• the ability to have a preventive effect on the body, helping to prevent the onset of cancer in the mammary glands;
• the ability to have a rejuvenating effect on the skin of women with the help of masks from the fruit.

This wonderful vegetable is able to solve purely male health problems by:

• restoration and stimulation of erectile function;
• activation of the production of the main male hormone testosterone;
• prevention of prostate cancer due to the presence of lycopene;
• combating baldness by activating the activity of hair follicles that promote hair growth;
• strengthening male physical activity due to the high potassium content;
• stimulate muscle building;

Benefit and harm

In addition to the specific sexual differentiation of its usefulness for the human body, the described vegetable has a wide range of preventive and therapeutic advantages, equally suitable for both women and men.

Did you know? The vegetable in question is able to compete with chocolate in raising the mood of a person, as it also has endorphins, which are called hormones of happiness. And if you take into account the cost of chocolate and its calorie content, pepper is clearly beaten out in the lead.

The usefulness of this product for the human body can be judged by the following list, from which it is clear that bell pepper:

• effectively strengthens the immune system;
• significantly lowers the level of bad cholesterol in the blood;
• prevents the onset of diabetes;
• cleanses the body of poisons, including in the lungs, which is very important for smokers;
• improves appetite;
• activates the body's synthesis of collagen, which is important in the formation of new skin cells;
• helps to strengthen the muscular system and joints;
• normalizes the state of the nervous system;
• improves blood flow, preventing the formation of blood clots;
• inhibits flatulence in the intestine;
• increases the strength and elasticity of blood vessels;
• improves appetite;
• strengthens memory;
• helps to optimize visual functions;
• eliminates depressive states.

With such a rich set of advantages, sweet pepper, however, can also cause harm to human health. But this happens only in cases where contraindications are ignored, which to one degree or another exist with the use of any food product, for example, with an individual intolerance to a vegetable.Although pepper has some peculiarities that some people cannot tolerate the consumption of red and yellow fruits, they calmly eat green ones.

Contraindications

In addition to personal intolerance in relation to this vegetable, there are also contraindications to its use, expressed by the presence of:

• hypotension, as the Bulgarian pepper fruit is able to lower blood pressure;
• cardiac arrhythmias;
• hemorrhoids;
• gastritis with increased acidity in the stomach;
• gastric and intestinal ulcers;
• epileptic seizures;
• chronic diseases of the liver and kidneys;
• insomnia
• excessive excitability;
• angina pectoris.

Consumption rate

Even if there are no contraindications, do not abuse excessive amounts of this vegetable. Doctors and nutritionists believe that one medium-sized fruit is enough per day to get the necessary daily dose of vitamins, minerals and amino acids.

Features of use

The multifaceted healing qualities of sweet pepper determine the features of its use in specific health problems.

With gastritis

From the list of contraindications, we already know that with gastritis with increased secretion of the stomach, pepper should not be consumed. The source of this problem is the capsaicin alkaloid present in the peppermint, which irritates the gastric mucosa. In addition, this alkaloid stimulates the synthesis of prostaglandins and activates the separation of mucus, which leads to an increase in the level of hydrochloric acid in the gastric juice.

In addition, the presence in the bell pepper of hard fiber, which is slowly digested, leads to additional irritation of the already inflamed gastric mucosa.

With loss of visual acuity and myopia

With problems in the organs of vision, sweet pepper is shown as an effective additional tool for improving the visual functions of a person. Since this product is available in fresh, canned or frozen forms almost all year round, this allows it to regularly saturate the body with zeaxanthin and lutein, as well as beta-carotene. These substances improve visual acuity, inhibit the growth of cataracts and level eye strain.

With a cold

A strong immune system is the best way to prevent or fight colds. And in this regard, the vitamin and mineral sets of nutrients in sweet pepper are the best way to enhance immunity in the human body. Vitamin C, which is very much in this vegetable, is especially valuable. With the onset of the period of seasonal colds, SARS specialists recommend eating up to 300 g of red bell pepper daily in any form.

For weight loss

Although this vegetable can improve appetite, it is also an effective tool to help you lose weight. This is facilitated by a rich set of useful substances that are balanced in pepper and activate metabolic processes in the body. This is especially pronounced when taking dried and chopped red bell pepper, in which all the useful qualities of the vegetable are presented in a concentrated form.

Did you know? American researchers in the course of experiments have established for certain that dried paprika when added daily to food leads to getting rid of excess weight.

How to choose and store the product

Since the fruits on the bush ripen unevenly, two stages of sweet pepper maturity are distinguished:

• in the technical period, the fruitsHaving reached the required size, they have not yet acquired the desired color, and the dense pulp has not yet ripened to conditional juiciness and meatiness;
• at the biological stage When ripened, the fruits acquire their characteristic color, and the flesh becomes juicy and fleshy, which allows them to be consumed raw, while with technical maturity they are suitable only for long-term storage or preservation.

When creating optimal conditions, bell pepper is able to remain fresh until six months. To do this, you should choose fruits with a smooth, undamaged surface without the slightest sign of rot and always with a preserved peduncle.

Important! In any case, the fruit of the pepper must be fully collected from the bushes before the onset of frost.

Fresh fruits can be stored:

• in the basementin which at a humidity of about 90% and a temperature ranging from +10 to + 12 ° C, technical maturity pepper is placed under a layer of sand or sawdust or in an open plastic bag, where it matures within 2 months;
• on the balcony or loggiawhere they are placed on paper in a box, covered with sawdust and stored for up to 2 months at a temperature of + 8–12 ° C;
• in fridge. In the lower compartment - up to a month in a plastic bag with ventilation holes, provided that there is no condensation on the fruits;
• on the bush, which is pulled out of the ground along with ripened fruits hanging on it and suspended upside down on the balcony, loggia or porch, after being sprayed with a one percent solution of copper sulfate. In this form, pepper, fed from the bush, can be stored for more than a month until the stems completely dry.

To significantly extend the shelf life of pepper, freezing and drying of its fruits are used:

1. Freezing it is carried out after cleaning the fruits from seeds and stalks, washing with water and drying with a towel, after which the whole fruit, cut into pieces or shoved into each other, is placed in plastic bags with a lock and placed in the freezer.
2. Before drying the fruits are freed from the core, washed, dried with a towel, cut into small pieces, blanched in salted water for 2 minutes and dried in a oven after draining in a sieve at a temperature of up to 70 ° C for 3 to 5 hours, depending on the meatiness of the fruits.

Important! Practice shows that if you first rub the pepper fruit with vegetable oil, then it lasts longer.

Cooking recommendations

There are many ways to cook pepper - among them the most often and fruitfully used are:

1. Semi-finished products manufacturingin which pepper is mixed with other chopped vegetables - carrots, green peas, green beans, corn, onions, broccoli, or stuffed with minced meat, vegetables with rice, minced meat with mushrooms, seafood, and then frozen.
2. Canningin which the fruits, cleaned from seeds and diced, are stacked with salt-sprinkled layers in a glass jar and covered with a lid.
3. Mashed potatoesFor this purpose, the fruits, cleaned of the stalk and seeds, are cut into pieces and, using a blender, crushed to a puree state, salted to taste and laid out in small glass jars with the addition of vegetable oil to each tablespoon.

Not a single cuisine is unthinkable without bell pepper today, which is facilitated not only by the excellent taste of the product and its attractive aroma, but also by the presence of the most valuable substances in the pulp of this vegetable.