Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site unisoft.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!harpo!seismo!hao!hplabs!zehntel!dual!unisoft!ed From: ed@unisoft.UUCP (Ed Gould) Newsgroups: net.cooks Subject: hot peppers, ref Salsa Message-ID: <211@unisoft.UUCP> Date: Fri, 2-Mar-84 02:08:05 EST Article-I.D.: unisoft.211 Posted: Fri Mar 2 02:08:05 1984 Date-Received: Fri, 2-Mar-84 15:20:12 EST References: <193@teklds.UUCP> Organization: UniSoft Corp., Berkeley Lines: 22 Actually, the hotness in peppers comes from a chemical that is not an irritant, but a nerve stimulant. As I understand it, at least, this chemical "tricks" the nerves into thinking that there is something going on, and what the nerves get is something like a burn or heat. However, the body's burn reactions are all wrong! For some reason, good burn reactions have never evolved in humans, and the body over-reacts, essentially panicing. This results in blisters and the like, which are actually bad for healing the burn. How does this relate to peppers, you ask. Well, peppers do cause burn reactions in some people. But the burn wasn't really there. The nerves were stimulated into thinking that something was wrong, and the body paniced. (I don't claim complete accuracy for all of this, it's way out of my expertise. It is the way I understand that it all works, though, from talking to some folks who do know.) -- Ed Gould ucbvax!mtxinu!ed