Ever wondered why one person can eat foods coated in hot sauce without breaking a sweat, while another tears up over mild salsa? Let’s find out why...
What makes hot sauce hot?
The “heat” in hot sauce comes from a compounds called capsaicinoids, with capsaicin being the star player (1). These are found in chili peppers from the mild jalapeño to the notorious Carolina Reaper, just in different amounts.
When we eat chilli, the capsaicin latches onto tiny sensors in the body that detect heat and pain (1). Normally, these sensors warn us about things like boiling water or fire. But capsaicin tricks them into activating, sending signals to the brain that scream: Heat! Pain! Danger! That’s why hot sauce can hurt, even without real damage.
Why Can Some People Handle Spice Better Than Others?
A big reason is genetics. The gene that builds the capsaicin sensor (TRPV1) comes in different versions, inherited from your parents. If your sensor is extra sensitive, even mild chili can feel overwhelming. If it’s less reactive, you may barely feel the burn (2).
But it's not all up to blood lines, people can train their sensors to react less over time, much like muscles strengthen with exercise. Regular exposure makes the sensor less reactive to the “threat.”
Why do we like the pain?
There may even be a survival advantage to spicy foods, especially in hot, humid places where food spoils quickly. Before refrigeration, capsaicin’s antimicrobial powers helped slow spoilage and kill harmful bacteria (3). This may explain why many cultures in warmer regions developed famously spicy cuisines.
Repeated exposure can also lead to enjoyment, not just tolerance. In psychology, this is called benign masochism—taking pleasure in things that feel threatening but are safe (4). Roller coasters, horror movies, and spicy foods all fall into this category.
So whether it started as survival or curiosity, humans learned to embrace the burn...so much so that today, hot sauce is at the center of a pop-culture phenomenon starring A-list celebrities.
Cassie Stylianou
References
- Caterina, M. J., Schumacher, M. A., Tominaga, M., Rosen, T. A., Levine, J. D., & Julius, D. (1997). The capsaicin receptor: a heat-activated ion channel in the pain pathway. Nature, 389(6653), 816-824.
- Chu, Y., Cohen, B. E., & Chuang, H. H. (2020). A single TRPV1 amino acid controls species sensitivity to capsaicin. Scientific reports, 10(1), 8038.
- Balcazar, S., Burnatowska-Hledin, M., Winnett-Murray, K., & Hertel, L. (2016). Antimicrobial Properties of Spices. Proceedings of the Association for Biology Laboratory Education, 37(4).
- Spoor, S. P., & Hormes, J. M. (2024). Crying the pain away: the nature, measurement, and function of benign masochism. The Journal of Social Psychology, 164(1), 1-11.