Why Does Eating Hot Chilies Make My Nose Run
Curated News:
By Timberlake Dental curated from SLATE
“If you’ve ever bitten into a raw habanero, eaten a dish laced with Scotch Bonnets, or skinned a basket of roasted New Mexico green chilies, you’re familiar with a roster of physiological effects…”
See full article on SLATE
Commentary:
Hot favorites such as peppers and chilis have a substance called capsaicin that burns you on the way down, tricking your body into all kinds of responses, most of which revolve around a sensation that you are too hot. One of the side effects is that your defensive mechanisms kick in as well – causing your nose to run – to get rid of this capsaicin as quickly as possible. As much as we love ’em these hot favorites surely kick up a storm when we eat them!
Dr. Rodney Chowning, General Dentistry and Implants, Denton, TX