Do not drink water while eating spicy food.

Instead of drinking water, drink a glass of milk when you eat spicy food to reduce the burning sensation in your mouth.

Photo: Boldsky.

Vietnamese people enjoy spicy food, but a common mistake is drinking water immediately after eating something spicy. Most people believe that drinking cold water reduces the spiciness, relieves the burning sensation on the tongue, and eliminates the stinging feeling in the mouth. However, studies have shown that this is a misconception.

Here are the reasons why you shouldn't drink water after eating spicy food.

What creates the spicy sensation?

The chemical that causes the burning sensation in the mouth is capsaicin. Capsaicin binds to receptors on tongue cells that detect temperature and send messages about pain. In fact, when you eat spicy food regularly, the burning sensation on your tongue will be less intense because the receptors no longer react as strongly to the compounds. This phenomenon is called "capsaicin desensitization."

Water doesn't reduce the spiciness.

Studies show that capsaicin is a non-polar molecule, only soluble in other non-polar substances. Water, on the other hand, is a polar molecule and cannot soothe the burning sensation in the mouth. This is why you shouldn't drink water after eating spicy food.

Water spreads the burning sensation.

Instead of relieving the pain or spiciness, water can spread the burning sensation to other parts of the mouth. This makes the burning feeling even worse and also increases thirst.

How to deal with spiciness

Using any non-polar liquid to relieve pain from spicy food is the best approach. Milk is considered a good option because it is non-polar in nature and can dissolve capsaicin.

According to VNE