A recent Australian study said that you can burn more calories, increase your metabolism and help control your body sugar and insulin levels by simple incorporating more chili spice and peppers in your foods.

The active ingredient in chilis (capsaicin) causes this slight increase in your metabolic rate and it can also burn more calories than usual. Both animal and human studies have given proof on this case.

But this study further tested how chili peppers can affect positively your metabolic rate as well as your insulin levels. An experiment of two groups showed that the chili-eating group has considerably lower insulin levels and more stable blood sugar level than the group who did not eat chilis with their foods.

“The chili is probably having some effect on the ability of the body to clear — or remove — insulin from the bloodstream,” Dr. Madeleine Ball said.

Aside from those, chili peppers also have significant amount of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties.