Help! I Ate A Hot Pepper. Now my tongue feels like it is on fire! What should I do?!?!
If this sounds like you, then keep reading…quickly!
What Not To Do
You have eaten a hot pepper and your mouth feels like it is on fire. What do you do? Don’t drink beer. There is a misconception out there that beer will help, it won’t. Water also will not help you as it does not contradict the hotness of the pepper.
Why Your Mouth Feels Like It's Burning
The reason why your mouth feels like it is on fire after you eat a hot pepper is because of the chemical capsaicin. Your body reacts to the capsaicin the same as it would, if your mouth really reached a hot temperature. To get it to cool off you will need to eat a food that can contract the reaction of the capsaicin.
Best Solution For Hot Peppers
Food that is high in Oil or Fat are going to be your best bet.
The best solution for your mouth being fire, is to eat full fat sour cream or full fat ice cream, since these foods have the highest fat content.
Other good options would be a spoon full of peanut butter, honey, a glass of milk, ice cream, sour cream or even cheese. You could also try eating some bread or rice to try to help absorb the heat. Cucumbers might even help to have a cooling effect.
An Alternative
Some people, let’s say… special people…. might suggest trying to eat another pepper to help calm the hotness from the first pepper. They suggest this because if you build up your resistance to capsaicin you will actually get a high of capsaicin-triggered endorphin to release. This could result in you being addicted to hot peppers. We however do not recommend this as a solution for your burning mouth.
The Best Practical Solution
The best option that most people have readily available would be a glass of milk, or a bowl of ice cream. Just remember, the higher the fat content, the faster your mouth will quit burning.
Help! I Ate A Hot Pepper and now my tongue feels like it is on fire! What should I do?!?! By now, hopefully your mouth has quit burning as you have tried one of the suggestions above and it worked.
What are some of your other solutions to ease the aftermath of a hot pepper?
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