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 Chile Lovers Are Happiest When in Pain
By Jean Weininger, San Francisco Chronicle
Your mouth ignites. Your lips are ablaze. Your tongue smolders. Your face is flushed. Your eyes water. Your nose drips. You sweat. You're in ecstasy?
Ah . . . you're eating hot chile peppers.
A quarter of the world's population eats chiles at least once a day. In the United States, consumption of salsa and hot peppers has skyrocketed in recent years.
Hot foods have long been associated with a fire in the belly as well as in the mouth. But many of us choose to ignore occasional news reports suggesting that chiles may be a health hazard. Why bother eating if we can't have our chiles?
Chiles (Capsicum peppers) are native to this hemisphere, particularly Mexico and the tropical forests of Central and South America.
In fact, they were wrongly named by 15th century explorers, who mistook the fiery Capsicum of the Americas for the sought-after peppercorn of India.
The name "pepper" stuck, even though chile peppers are not related botanically to the plant that gives us black and white pepper.
Hot peppers didn't become part of the cuisines of Europe, Africa, India, China and Southeast Asia until they were carried along Spanish and Portuguese trade routes during the 16th century. Plant breeders subsequently tamed the hot pepper and produced the kinder, gentler bell pepper.
The pungent bite of chiles is due to capsaicin (pronounced "cap-SAY-iss-in"), a chemical related to vanilla, though there's no culinary connection between the two. Hot chiles are the only dietary source of capsaicin.
Capsaicin has no taste; it just hurts. When it hits pain receptors in the tongue, palate, throat and other delicate tissues, nerves carry a "pain" message to the brain -- just as if you were pricked by a pin or burned.
Why is this particular pain so pleasurable, and why do we seek it out? Paul Rozin, professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, has called it "benign masochism" -- a way to get intense thrills with no real danger, akin to riding a roller coaster.
Also, there's an addictive aspect to chile eating: Theory has it that the burn of chiles stimulates the brain to release endorphins, morphinelike pain killers that produce a feeling of well-being.
Chiles have a lot going for them.
They're very practical in tropical climates. The sweating inducedby hot chiles acts as natural air conditioning, cooling the body as the sweat evaporates. Chiles also stimulate the appetite -- which is suppressed in hot climates -- by increasing the flow of saliva and digestive juices. Hot peppers also act as a food preservative, protecting against rancidity.
In addition to their piquant contribution to our cuisine, peppers are packed with vitamin C and beta-carotene (a plant form of vitamin A). And there's evidence that chiles may have a number of beneficial health effects, such as protecting against blood clots and helping to lower blood cholesterol and blood pressure.
Yet despite such virtues, there's been ongoing concern about possible harm from the fire of hot chiles.
Ulcer patients are often advised to avoid irritating foods, including chiles. Although there's no evidence that eating hot peppers either causes ulcers or slows their healing, it makes sense not to eat foods or spices that cause gastrointestinal distress. (Many ulcers, linked to a bacterium, are now easily treated with antibiotics.)
But a news story last year sent chills through chile eaters.
A study of nearly 1,000 people in Mexico City found that those who described themselves as "heavy" chile-pepper eaters were 17 times more likely to have stomach cancer than those who didn't eat peppers.
However, when subjects were asked how many peppers they ate each day, there was no relationship between the number of peppers eaten and the incidence of stomach cancer.
The fact that stomach cancer rates are low in Mexico City, where hot peppers are eaten with nearly every meal, provides further evidence that the chile-cancer connection may be a false alarm.
Nevertheless, chile isn't off the hook yet, particularly since animal studies have also indicated that capsaicin in very large doses has cancer-causing potential.
It may be that protective factors in chiles -- such as antioxidants -- compensate for any potential harm from capsaicin. Or possibly the hot-pepper eaters in Mexico City have other practices that decrease their risk of stomach cancer -- such as high consumption of fruits and vegetables and low consumption of smoked meat and fish, pickled foods, alcohol and cigarettes.
As we say all too often, we'll have to wait for further research to clarify the situation.
In the meantime, if you enjoy it, go for the burn!
Cooling Off
When your food bites back, don't guzzle water, beer or wine. Instead, try quenching the flames by eating rice, bread or a tortilla. These soft, starchy foods help mop up the spicy oils. Milk -- which contains casein, a protein that literally grabs capsaicin -- will also help douse the fire. Raita, the yogurt and cucumber dish in Indian cuisines, serves the same function.
Some chile eaters find piping hot liquids such as tea soothing. Others find sucking on an orange or lemon helpful.
So the next time a hot-pepper bomb explodes in your mouth, experiment. (The pain will go away eventually no matter what you do.)
If you're going to buy chiles, read up on them first, or check with your produce manager or an experienced chile cook.
Different chiles have different levels of heat. In general, the smaller and thinner-skinned, the hotter. But peppers even on the same plant can vary in intensity, so always taste any dish gingerly until you know what you're dealing with.
Capsaicin is concentrated in the pepper's white tissue, which holds the seeds. If you want to cut the heat, discard this tissue, as well as the seeds, which are often hot because they're in such close contact with the white stuff.
It's a good idea to wear rubber or plastic gloves when preparing chiles, especially if you have a cut on your hand. Be careful not to touch your eyes, nose or other sensitive tissues until you've washed your hands -- or gloves -- with soap.
There's a reason why capsaicin is an ingredient in self-defense sprays! If you should get hot pepper in your eyes, flush quickly with lots of water.
The Soothing Side of Chiles
Capsaicin, the fiery agent in hot chile peppers, is used medicinally as well as gastronomically.
Paradoxically, skin creams containing capsaicin have been used to soothe sore muscles and relieve chronic, debilitating pain. Apparently the irritation caused by capsaicin serves as a distraction and short-circuits pain signals.
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