Why humans are drawn to extremely spicy or sour foods — even if they hurt

Nelson Cheney, now 36-year-old started consuming spicy peppers and sauces when he was much younger for the purpose of impressing his dad. He said he continues to eat these foods to the present time though he used the term 1 alone in his statement. 1 million followers on tik tok. 
 
Cheney whose Twitter handle is @craving_capsaicin, a play on the chemical that makes chili peppers so hot, said he developed a liking for the high that he gets when consumes barely palatable spicy foods. 
 
“As for me, it is a way of life,” Cheney said. “I enjoy the pursuit of an endorphin rush, depending on your definition of ’endorphin dump. ’ I have the feeling if I triumph over something and get a rush, it feels like winning a race. 
 
According to researchers, he is not alone. 
 
Regardless of whether the spice they are looking for is hot or the taste which people consciously crave for is one of burning, detriment, danger, humans are capable of being attracted to the hardness of hard edged foods. It is the same as watching some horror flick – it elicits a fight or flight response and lots of endorphins and dopamine get released into the system. There is a feeling of achievement whenever the hormonal response in the brain triggers after coming from a perceived or real risky situation. 
 
“These challenges are really attracting people who have psychological mindset— sensation seeking, reward seeking types of behaviour,” said Elisa Trucco who is the director of the Research on Adolescent and Child Health Lab at Florida International University. 
 
Sour and spicy foods elicit painful sensations, but they affect two different nerves in the body’s framework. If an individual chewing spicy food, then saliva begins to work on the food, capsaicins gets into throat, nose and esophagus and comes into contact with touch sensitive nerves according to Robert Pellegrino, postdoctoral fellow at the Monell Chemical Senses centre in Philadelphia. The ensuing pain is like touching the hot stove. 
 
“It is possible to perceive spice all over the place,” Pellegrino said. 
 
On the other hand, sourness stimulates the taste nerves as pointed up by Ohbuchi & Akiyama 1992. When people take sour foods, many a time, the body sends signals that there is a substance in what is being taken that can harm the body and so it begins to feel pains. 
 
Both types of pain signal can, however, be modulated at the level of the brain. Paul Rozin from the University of Pennsylvania observes that this override happens because people are able to distinguish between self inflicted and 
‘innocuous’ pain. In moderation, people are not in danger when consuming spice, according to him, yet the body responds to it as a threat. 

“That’s where the pleasure comes, from the fact that you’re overriding your body’s signal not to do this,” Rozin said. 
 
Moreover, many people record the process of eating such meals and posting them on social networks, which gives the same dopamine because it is intended to give a reward for the actions accomplished via likes and followers. 
 
Originality again is something else I think has to do with the status, the popularity and the feedback one receives from other people: Trucco . 
 
Cheney, a sheet metal worker who also likes to farm peppers said he appreciated the community of like-minded people he had made for the love of growing and consuming peppers. 
 
Some enthusiasts who once never took the idea of eating hot stuff are now EXPERIENCING a tolerance and even taking spicy foods daily ‘It is cool to have some people join in with me’, he said. 
 
Although all these feel good hormones may feed some people’s appetite, extreme food challenges have received a backlash due to several deaths recorded. In Massachusetts last year, a teen died while trying to take a tortilla chip dipped in chili pepper extract as part of a wager on social media. Extremely sour foods can also have harmful consequences: In April, girl from the U. K. produces burns in her throat because of supersour candy she saw in the TikTok. 
 
Dr. Edwin McDonald at the University of Chicago Medical Center said that it is safe to consume spicy and sour foods but too much spice would mean a trip to the hospital. 
 
Some of the foods that have this chemical compound need to be taken occasionally because, ‘‘Consequently, consuming some foods that have capsaicin in it may be linked with an increase the longevity and reduced likelihood of cancer,’ McDonald pointed out. “But these are not the peppers that people are doing in the challenge”. 
 
Competitive eating contests are detrimental to the health and can pose a critical threat to anyone with a chronic health condition such as hypertension and asthma said internal medicine physician and Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons assistant professor Dr. Chantel Strachan. Due to the unknowns, Strachan cautioned that it is best to avoid putting oneself forward and, if one does, don’t do so without prior medical clearance. 
 
“Unfortunately, it is only after the first try that you know how you are going to respond to such substances,” she said. 
 
Children and teenagers are most vulnerable to social media challenges, that is why, according to Trucco, parents should also take notice. 
 
“It is as if when these challenges are portrayed it is almost glamorous, all the time you only get to see the positive side of things,” Trucco said. “They are very common and as a parent and it is always advisable to have the knowledge about them so that one can sit down and explain them to your children. ”