The Science of Spiciness TED ED

The compounds in spicy foods activate sensory neurons called ________.

• Polymodal nociceptors

• Thermoreceptors

• Chemoreceptors

• Photoreceptors

When you eat a chili pepper, your mouth feels like it's burning because your brain actually thinks it's ________.

• Freezing

• Burning

• Tingling

• Numbing

The standard measure of a food's spiciness is its rating on the ________ scale.

• Richter

• Scoville

• Celsius

• Fahrenheit

Mustard, horseradish, and wasabi are made up of smaller molecules called ________.

• Alkylamides

• Isothiocyanates

• Capsaicinoids

• Piperines

The Trinidad Moruga Scorpion and the Carolina Reaper measure between 1.5 and 2 million ________ heat units.

• Kelvin

• Scoville

• Joule

• Calorie

Spiciness is considered a taste like sweet or salty.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

Spiciness is not actually a taste. It is a sensation caused by certain compounds in spicy foods that activate sensory neurons called polymodal nociceptors, which are the same receptors activated by extreme heat.

Polymodal nociceptors are the same receptors activated by extreme heat.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

Polymodal nociceptors are sensory neurons that respond to multiple types of stimuli, including extreme heat. When you eat something spicy, these receptors are activated, making your brain think your mouth is burning.

The Scoville scale measures how much capsaicin content can be diluted before the heat is no longer detectable to humans.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

The Scoville scale is used to measure the spiciness of foods by determining how much capsaicin content can be diluted before the heat is no longer detectable to humans.

The cool, minty compound in menthol activates your heat receptors.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

The cool, minty compound in menthol activates your cold receptors, not your heat receptors. This is why menthol feels cool and refreshing.

People who like to eat spicy foods rate the burn less painful than those who don't.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

Studies have shown that people who enjoy spicy foods do not rate the burn as less painful than those who don't. They simply seem to enjoy the sensation of pain more.