Why are foods spicy to certain people?

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My fiancé *LOVES* spicy food, and a lot of other foods I don’t like, which is fine, but we were talking a few days ago and I told him I thought bell peppers were spicy, he laughed and said, “They’re not spicy? What do you mean?” Which made me contemplate everything I’ve ever known. Am I just broken?

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Anonymous 0 Comments

Capsaicin, the compound that your body interprets as “heat” in a picante way, is a chemical that your body can adjust to. Eat it long enough and your body will adjust and no longer notice when you eat it. 

Edit: there also might be a perceptual component to it, since bell peppers *should* have no capsaicin whatsoever. I have a family member who will eat homemade tomato sauce (tomato, salt, and pepper) and complain that it’s too spicy. 

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