By PL Chang on February 27th, 2009

Bell Peppers – Great Sources of Lycopene

Image provided by Tracy O
Many people don’t like peppers because they are too hot for their taste but they don’t realize how much nutrients they are missing from not eating them. Peppers are very rich in many essential nutrients, such as vitamin A, C, phytochemicals and beta-carotene. Unlike most peppers, bell peppers are not hot because they don’t contain capsaicin. Capsaicin is a natural chemical found in peppers that is responsible for their hotness. Bell peppers come in 3 main colors, depending on their ripeness, bell peppers can come in green, red and yellow. Out of the 3, red bell pepper is the one with the most nutrients; one red bell pepper has more than 150 percent of the RDA for vitamin C — about as much as an orange — and more than 80 percent of the RDA for beta-carotene. Red bell pepper is one of the few foods that contain lycopene, a phytochemical that is known to help prevent prostate, cervix, bladder and pancreas cancer.

Bell peppers are excellent sources of antioxidants which are important for neutralizing free radicals. Free radicals are molecules that had lost an electron which make them very destructive and unstable. When free radicals come near your healthy molecules, they steal their electrons making them unstable too. This can cause a chain reaction in your body which can damage your cells, DNA, etc. Because of their destructive nature, many health experts agreed that free radicals are major contributors to heart disease, nerve and blood vessel damage, joint pain, cancer and premature aging. Bell peppers are also good sources of dietary fiber, vitamin B6, vitamin K, and are decent in manganese, folate and potassium.

Benefits of bell peppers: