Chilli peppers

Chilli peppers
Chilli peppers are used all around the world to season food.
While some people love them,
others will not even consider trying them.
When your tongue comes into contact with a chilli pepper,
you immediately feel a burning sensation in your mouth,
then you start to sweat
and your heart begins to beat faster.
But what is it that causes this reaction?
It is a compound called capsaicin,
which is found in all species of chilli peppers.
This substance stimulates the pain and heat receptors
found all over the body.
When we eat chilli peppers,
capsaicin stimulates the heat receptors located
on the surface of the tongue,
and a feeling of burning and pain is produced in the brain.
This causes the body to react
as if one's mouth were really on fire.
The Scoville scale, named after its creator,
American pharmacist Wilbur Scoville,
indicates the strength of the spicy heat of chillies.
To measure it, the chilli is dissolved in alcohol,
then this solution is diluted in water
until the heat can no longer be detected.
The Scoville rating of the pepper
is based on the degree of dilution.
Sweet bell peppers have a Scoville rating of 0,
while the Carolina Reaper, the hottest currently known chilli,
has a rating of about 2 million Scoville heat units.
The well-known Jalapeño chilli is medium hot,
with a rating of about 1000-20 000 Scoville units.
Since capsaicin is a strong irritant to the skin and eyes,
it is the active ingredient in riot control agents
known as pepper sprays.
These products have a heat rating
of about five million Scoville units.
But why do people enjoy eating hot chillies, even if it hurts?
Since when have chillies been used as a spice?
We don't know.
There is one thing we do know:
if you happen to eat hot chillies
drinking water will not help you
relieve the burning sensation.