Table 1.

Weighted mean difference in the resting metabolic rate (kcal/day), energy expenditure (kcal/day), fat oxidation (g/hour), and carbohydrate oxidation (g/hour), in seven clinical studies with dietary hot pepper (capsaicin) [45,46,47] or non-pungent capsinoid [38,48,49,50]. These studies reported a modest but consistent increase in the resting metabolic rate that may be attributed to a rise in fat oxidation, with no difference between hot pepper and mild pepper consumption.

Reference	Resting Metabolic Rate (kcal)	Energy Expenditure	Fat Oxidation	Carbohydrate Oxidation
[45]	24.09	3.06	0.06	−1.05
[46]	34.41	6.96	0.12	−3.04
[47]	23.87	23.9	1.00	N.D.
[48]	47.51	N.D.	0.61	4.33
[49]	8.50	14.38	0.54	N.D.
[38]	43.00	N.D.	0.29	N.D.
[50]	53.60	N.D.	0.05	N.D.