Just Why Are Hot Peppers so Darn Hot?

Hot peppers seem like one of nature's big paradoxes. The seeds, like in most fruits, are inside the pepper. Naturally, this requires some sort of animal intervention to get the seeds out of the fruit and onto the ground. Peppers like other fruits ripen into a brightly colored advertisement to any herbivore that happens by. Yet capsaicin, the chemical giving peppers their heat, is one of those evolutionary defense mechanisms against being eaten. So what gives?

It turns out that capsaicin has virtually no effect on birds. It was relatively obvious to anyone who was looking, or anyone who's ever tried to pepper spray a bird. (Disclaimer: I have never pepper sprayed any birds, but with the millions of teenagers and college students out there, I'm sure someone has...much to their disappointment). There's a theory called "directed deterrence," developed in the 1960's, which implies that some plants have chosen which animals they get eaten by.

I know what you're thinking. How can a plant choose anything? It's actually a long term development, and not really a choice. Pepper plants don't like direct sunlight all that much. In the wild, they tend to be found growing under larger fruit producing bushes. Birds love large fruit producing bushes. Our feathered friend eats a few peppers then hops up into the bush and partakes of some berries, finally depositing peppers seeds under the bush. It's one of those ingenious symbiotic relationships often found in nature.

This still doesn't explain why the pepper plants have developed defenses against mammals. Plenty of mammals visit fruit bearing bushes, and enjoy the benefits of a fruit filled diet. Why have peppers been denied to them? A study was performed in 2001 by Joshua Tewksbury and Gary Nabhan (see attached link) using rodents and birds. With a mutated version of a hot pepper which contains no capsaicin, they determined that the digestive system of the rodents destroyed pepper seeds. The seeds would not germinate and therefore no new growth would come from the droppings of rodents. The seeds in bird droppings, however, had a high percentage of viability. Whether you subscribe to the theory of evolution, intelligent design, or *poof*...pepper plant, you must appreciate this little view into the workings of nature.

Enter the human being, defier of nature. You've seen them at your local hot wing joint, with their sweaty foreheads, runny noses and buckets of beer, trying their best to eat one more thermonuclear flavored chicken wing, and some of them actually enjoying it. You might chalk it up to macho mentalities, or endorphin rushes and you're likely right part of the time. In fact, there are many beneficial aspects of consuming hot peppers. They are very effective at clearing a stuffy head, as seen in the runny nosed wing patrons mentioned above, and are also powerful antibacterial agents. Since the banning of ephedra by the FDA, capsaicin has become an additive in fat burning diet supplements. A study performed by Duke University showed that capsaicin could be used to develop medicines to combat intestinal disorders. It's being used in several pain medications, and during surgery to speed the recovery of tissue. Capsaicin is also being used in fighting some cancers.

Hot peppers are good for you, if you can handle the heat. They may not actually be smarter than a fifth grader, but they are a colorful, spicy complement to any meal, or just a tasty snack. Hmm, colorful and spicy, perhaps the hot pepper plant is better suited as an American idol.