Many people love spicy food, but sometimes, when the heat is intense, things get scary. In one case, a spicy chip social media challenge has even been linked to the death of a teen.
That teen participated in something called the “One Chip Challenge” calling for people to eat a chip covered in Carolina Reaper and Naga Viper pepper flakes – both are about a million units on the Scoville Scale, which measures the pungency of spicy foods. While he reportedly had and underlying heart condition and the death is still under investigation, the story left us with questions.
Our team at “Something Offbeat” reached out to Dr. Paul Terry, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Tennessee Graduate School of Medicine. He helped us explore the risks and possible benefits of eating food with lots of spice.
Terry even dropped some tips for dealing with extreme spice.
“I believe that milk is the, you know, the best method that people have,” he said. “You see people with their milk on their side of the table when they’re doing a spicy challenge. And I do believe that there’s some reason for it. The capsaicin is surrounded by the calcium protein of milk, and it kind of neutralizes that.”
However, he always warned against participating in spice challenges, as they can be risky and ruin real enjoyment of spice flavor. Listen to Terry’s full conversation with host Mike Rogers here.
Each week, “Something Offbeat” takes a deeper look at an unusual headline. If you have suggestions for stories the podcast should cover, send them to us at somethingoffbeat@audacy.com.