Eli5: What happens to our tastebuds when we eat something sour or spicy, how does it let our brain know

Question

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In: 4

Answer 1

If thing of the toddler toy where you put the shaped block in the corresponding shaped hole, that is how taste buds work. We have little specific shaped sensors on our tongues that go off when activated by the corresponding shape.

However, spicy is not a true flavor, it is a burning sensation caused by a chemical defense in certain plant species. We do not have taste receptors for spicy, it’s literally just use enjoying a masochistic response to chemical burns.