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Liking spicy food is not a whim or a form of masochism, as psychology explains. A study by psychologist Paul Rozin of the University of Pennsylvania maintains that it is a brain mechanism that activates pain and pleasure at the same time.
Spiciness is not a taste but a warning signal that the tongue sends to the brain. It is activated through the vanilloid receptor, the same one that detects heat and burns. The brain learns that there is no real damage, and that certainty turns the alarm into pleasure.
Why does the brain associate spicy food with pleasure?
When eating something spicy, the brain activates the pain circuits and the dopamine system at the same time, which is responsible for feelings of reward. Both processes share the same areas of the cerebral cortex.
Research by neuroscientist Siri Leknes of the University of Oxford, published in the journal Plos One, maintains that relief and pleasure are almost identical processes. The brain first interprets spiciness as a threat and, upon confirming that there is no danger, releases a feeling of relief that it perceives as pleasure.
What other activities generate this same combination of pain and pleasure?
A study by Rozin, published in the journal Motivation and Emotion, defined this behavior as benign masochism: a safe way to feel fear without real risk. According to that research, human beings are the only species that voluntarily seeks this type of sensation.
This mechanism also appears in other leisure activities that combine controlled fear and enjoyment:
- Skydiving
- Riding a roller coaster
- Watching horror movies
In all cases, the brain detects a controlled threat and, upon confirming that there is no real danger, turns that tension into well-being.