Press

Why Some People Love Spicy Food and Others Can’t Handle It

December 9, 2018

A offered some insight on spicy food lovers in this piece for Eat This, Not That!:

Despite all that, many people truly enjoy spicy food, and many are able to tolerate “hotter” food than others. Why is that? The short answer is that everyone’s bodies and sensory perceptions are different. As Maya Feller, MS, RD, CDN of Maya Feller Nutrition, explains: “The spiciness from different foods is based on the individual food’s heat index, as well as a person’s individual taste receptors. So one person may be incredibly sensitive, where another finds a scotch bonnet pepper as mild as a bell pepper.” Cultural influence and basic personal preference also play a role. “People have likes and dislikes as well as cultural food pathways that introduce them to varying degrees of spicy foods from a young age,” Feller says.

Maya Feller

Maya Feller, MS, RD, CDN is the founder and lead dietitian at Maya Feller Nutrition. In her practice, her team provides medical nutrition therapy and nutrition coaching for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, mood disorders, developmental disabilities, disordered eating, and more. Maya believes in providing inclusive nutrition education from an anti-bias patient-centered, culturally humble approach to help people make informed food choices. Maya shares her approachable, food-based solutions with millions of people through regular speaking engagements, writing, her social platforms, and as a national nutrition expert on Good Morning America, is a Healthline Medical Advisor, and on the advisory board for SHAPE and Parents, as well as appearing on TODAY Show, Tamron Hall, and in The New York Times, mindbodygreen, Well+Good, Food Network, Martha Stewart, Real Simple, Good Housekeeping, Cooking Light, Eating Well, Prevention, Glamour, SELF, and more. She is the author of The Southern Comfort Food Diabetes Cookbook: Over 100 Recipes for a Healthy Life and Eating from Our Roots: 80+ Healthy Home-Cooked Favorites from Cultures Around the World (goop Press, January 24, 2023).

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