Cayenne (Capsicum annuum or frutescens, or red pepper) has been in continuous use by Native Americans as a food and medicine for roughly 9,000 years.
Chilies belong to the nightshade family, same as tomatoes, potatoes, and eggplant. They originated from the Americas. In the wake of Christopher Columbus, many cultivars of chili pepper are found around the world and they are still being used as food and as medicine.
Cayenne Pepper is derived from grinding the dried red skins of several types of hot chili peppers.
Some like it HOT
The hot, pungent sometimes burning taste of cayenne pepper is derived from its most active compound known as capsaicin, (/kæpˈseɪ.ɨsɪn/; chemical name 8-methyl-N-vanillyl-6-nonenamide) Capsaicin is the most active ingredient in cayenne; it’s the main capsaicinoid in chili peppers. The hotter the chili pepper the more capsaicin it contains.
Myth Buster: The heat of a chili is NOT primarily in the seeds. Yes, the seeds do have some heat, but by far most of the capsaicin is located in the ribs that hold the seeds.
Factoid: “Capsaicinoids are derived from the compound vanillin, which gives vanilla its delicious taste and smell. Surprisingly, their “hotness” or “spiciness” is not a taste but rather a sensation. There are no taste buds associated with capsaicinoids.”
Chili Pepper Emergency Medicine
Cayenne pepper is the one herb that should be in everyone’s medicine cabinet as part of their emergency first aid kit. Cayenne is the ‘go to herb’ when you need to quickly stop severe bleeding within seconds. A modicum of research reveals that cayenne pepper has many other exceptional health benefits and medicinal uses as well, including stopping a heart attack cold within minutes of ingestion. However, this article is focused on how to use cayenne to stop both external and internal bleeding in emergency situations.
“In 35 years of practice, and working with the people and teaching, I have never on house calls lost one heart attack patient and the reason is, whenever I go in–if they are still breathing–I pour down them a cup of cayenne tea: a teaspoon of cayenne in a cup of hot water, and within minutes they are up and around.” Dr. Christopher
John Raymond Christopher (1909–1983) was an American herbalist, often called “Dr. Christopher” while not holding any doctorate. He is known for his numerous publications on herbs and natural healing, including School of Natural Healing.
How to Use Cayenne for External Wounds
According to the late Dr. Christopher, “By the time you count to ten, the heavy bleeding should stop completely after administering cayenne pepper.”
First relax, take a deep breath and get centered. It’s a very simple protocol.
Next take some cayenne pepper powder or tincture and simply apply it liberally and directly into the bleeding cut or laceration. The bleeding should stop within 10-15 seconds. If you use a cayenne tincture use the dropper to directly flood the wound with tincture, or if you just have a jar of homemade tincture you can pour some into a small bowl and then soak a clean, cotton ball in the bowl of cayenne tincture. Now squeeze the tincture into the wound via the saturated cotton ball.
Cayenne tincture should be reserved for small cuts and scrapes. If you’re dealing with a large wound that’s bleeding profusely, call 911 as you pack the wound with lots of cayenne pepper powder and additionally take at-least a teaspoon or so of cayenne powder in a glass of warm water and drink it down fast.
Cayenne is a powerful styptic (a substance capable of stopping bleeding when applied to a wound.) It does this by quickly equalizing blood pressure and triggering coagulation or blood clotting, which happens faster thanks to cayenne. Not only does it stop bleeding quickly, it also disinfects the cut so there’s no need to worry about an infection setting in.
