Cayenne: First Aid Herb for Bleeding

Have you ever cut yourself while chopping food in the kitchen?

Next time reach for cayenne powder to quickly and effectively stop the bleeding.

Cayenne pepper (Latin name Capsicum annuum) is a wonderful cooking spice AND a wonderful medicinal herb.

My daughter sliced her toe and called me asking what to do. I told her to immediately grab her cayenne powder from the kitchen and dump it on her toe and then to apply pressure. She followed the instructions and within 30 seconds the bleeding had stopped.

The beautiful thing about using cayenne powder in a first aid situation where someone is cut or has a wound, is that the cayenne powder mixes with the blood and forms a cayenne crust, for lack of a better term, over the wound. This crust-scab creates a barrier helping to prevent infections because of the anti-microbial properties of the cayenne.

Once the cayenne crust is formed, cover the wound, and leave it alone. The longer the crust can stay undisturbed on the wound, the more protection the wound has and that gives the body a good opportunity to heal faster. The following pictures are of my daughter's injured toe and then the healed toe just days later.

I had a neighbor who came over to my house, opened the door and yelled, “First aid emergency!” I immediately came running and saw that she had cut her toe pretty bad. I had her step on some newspaper and then dumped about half of a tablespoon of cayenne powder on the wound. I told her to apply pressure with her hand.

30 seconds the bleeding had stopped. She was a little in shock and asked why I would use a spice that burns. I asked her if it was stinging. She paused and listened to her body. She admitted that when she came over it was hurting, but now it wasn’t. Capsaicin, which is a major constituent of cayenne peppers, helps block substance P which relays pain sensations in your body.

I have cayenne powder in all of my first aid kits because you never know when you’ll need it!

written by Beth Davis

Beth Davis is a Master Herbalist and Footzonology Practitioner.

She loves empowering others to take control of their health by teaching numerous classes on topics ranging from Kitchen Medicine to Immune System Health.

Currently, her family is traveling around America exploring its many wonders.

If you would like to have her teach a class or two in your area, you can find her at

bethofthewest.com or

on Instagram @BethoftheWest or

email her at bethofthewest2023@gmail.com