Peppers, Nutmeg, and Cloves

Peppers, Nutmeg, and Cloves

 

Nutmeg, peppers, and cloves, were considered valuable substances during the past few centuries due to their lower availability and less industrialized and technologically advanced methods of obtaining, processing, producing, and transporting the products to other people, therefore trade and monopoly were required to allow other types of people from other parts of the world to obtain these resources. Peppers contain the molecule, piperine, which consists of atoms of carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen atoms and the shape of the molecular structure was responsible for the hot sensations that arise upon ingestion of the substance. The molecule in ginger, zingerone, also is responsible for the hot sensation because the shape of the molecules permit them to bind to a pain receptor, a particular protein, which are located on the tongue, and the depolarization of the pain receptors causes the brain (the somatosensory centre of the pariental lobe) to respond with the corresponding perception due to the presence of an irritant in the body. However, spicy foods do stimulate salivation and aid in digestion, along with the stimulation of bowel movements. Whenever one experiences pain in response to a certain stimulus repeatedly over a short period of time, the peptide hormones, endorphins, which mimic opiates and are natural pain relievers provide a sense of well-being and block pain receptors by binding to them and preventing depolarization, which inhibits the propagation of action potentials carrying the perception of pain. Clove contains the molecule eugenol, while nutmeg contains the molecule, isoeugenol. These are two aromatic compounds that differ in the position of the double bond, yet possess a pungent odour. The benzene ring contributes to the chemical stability of the substances due to the resonance hybrid and the presence of delocalized elections, which do not readily engage in chemical reactions because they are too occupied with being shared amongst just six carbon atoms while three double bonds are present in the benzene ring. Certain species of plants synthesize these types of molecules in a metabolic pathway not for our benefit, but for chemical means of self-preservation, self-defense, and as pesticides/fungicides/insecticides. These three molecules, zingerone, piperine, and capsaicin, perform this function in plants, yet are detoxified into inactive and non-toxic metabolites in the liver. Nutmeg’s adverse effects are caused by the molecules myristicin and elemicin, which are responsible for the hallucinogenic and psychedelic properties. The effects of consuming too many nutmeg units would be sweating, palpitations, hallucinations, delirium, nausea, and elevated blood pressure. A similar molecule to myristicin, safrole, lacks the OCH₃ group attached at the bottom of the benzene ring, which could be metabolizes into the drug MDMA or ecstasy in a metabolic pathway. Peppers were used mainly by the wealthy because they were expensive and difficult to obtain certain centuries ago. The Venetian monopoly became active and generated large profit margins from trading and exporting the product to other parts of the world, such as Africa and India. Certain people have sent fleets and ships to obtain and transport the product, the peppers, from one area to another to sell it at exorbitant rates, which means that only and mainly citizens of a higher social class were able to afford peppers, which were used for their health benefits and as flavor enhancers. Clove, on the other hand, was applied in society to cure certain diseases, as an antiseptic, and as a topical anesthetic. Nutmeg was used to cure stomach aches and was used to provide protection against fatal accumulative diseases such as smallpox, part of the Black Death. The molecules myristicin and elemicin have insecticidal properties and are more toxic to humans, and the molecule isoeugenol has antibacterial properties and has the potential to provide protection and cure against bacterial and streptococcal infections that precipitate fatal conditions and threaten life and physical health such as Typhus. Pepper, which is derived from the plant species Piper nigrum, is still one of the most commonly used spices and could is produces in many countries, but has originated in India. These valuable resources have impacted society and civilization because it has provoked monopoly, trade, and transportation across considerable distances to obtain and transport the peppers to generate profit. During this time period, several centuries ago, since the abundance of this resource has been significantly lower, compared to today’s abundance of peppers, it has been a very lucrative practice to actively participate in the trade of peppers, nutmeg, and clove. The clove trade has been dominated by the Portuguese, during the sixteenth and the Dutch, during the next century, and a series of conflicts, attacks, and massacres also occurred to obtain this resource. I personally think that these molecules have impacted society and the modern world because these resources are still being commonly used and applied as flavor enhancers, yet many people are unaware of all of the explorations, journeys, and conflicts people in the past have encountered as a result of these fragrant molecules and their properties. The author’s argument makes sense during this chapter because Penny Le Couteur effectively outlines the impact of these molecules and resources on society, history, the behavior that would be provoked instinctually such as generating profit, and the actual applications of the resources in the past that are now obsolete, such as providing protection against various bacterial infections and as psychedelic drugs (nutmeg). In conclusion, these molecules could be commemorated for the fortunes they built, the conflicts they provoked, and the widespread, ubiquitous applications of these fragrant molecules as spices in foods. Every type of commonly used resource, such as spices, salt, and olive oil contributed to variations in social order, industrial advances, and monopolies in the past, but are now simply and cheaply obtained chemical compounds that a majority of people take for granted.