提醒：点这里加小编微信（领取免费资料、获取最新资讯、解决考教师一切疑问！）
You know the feeling—you start to warm up, your tongue goes numb, you start sweating and taking deep breaths. You’ve just eaten something spicy knowing it would be painful, and, yet, you chose to do it anyway. Are humans just masochistic , or is there something else going on The answer lies in both science and history.
Let’s start with the science. Spicy isn’t actually a taste like salty, sweet, sour and bitter—it’s a sensation. This sensation is triggered by a chemical compound found in chili peppers called ‘capsaicin’ .When we eat foods containing capsaicin, our bodies are tricked into thinking the temperature is actually rising. In trying to temper the burning sensation, our bodies release endorphins which control pain and, at the same time, give a feeling of pleasure—like painkillers. This is what is happening chemically, but there is also a conscious side to choosing spicy food. Dr Tamara Rosenbaum, Cognitive Neuroscientist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, explains in an interview that this is because we are rational beings—we know that the burning sensation of chilli does not physically harm us. Furthermore, we derive pleasure from the other ingredients chilli is generally cooked and eaten with, including fat, sugar and salt. So like skydiving, eating chilli is a form of thrill-seeking or ‘benign masochism’, where we get pleasure from a seemingly negative sensation.
This masochistic relationship with capsaicin has been a long one, starting in the Andes of South America, where chilli peppers originate. Humans were one of the few mammals on Earth that developed a taste for capsaicin so, archaeological evidence suggests, they started cultivating chilli peppers about six thousand years ago. Human intervention changed the chilli pepper to suit human tastes and needs—including the pepper’s colour, size and capsaicin content—helping to explain the many different types of chilli peppers now available.
Fast-forward to today, and our love affair with the chilli pepper is going strong. We eat around 57.3 million tons of peppers globally each year, and chilli is a key ingredient in traditional dishes from Mexico to Korea. Maybe we are masochistic after all.
1. What happens to us when we eat something spicy？
A We have difficulty in breathing.
B. The temperature of our bodies is rising.
C. Our bodies release endorphins which gives a feeling of joy.
D. We are physically harming ourselves.
2、Why do we feel pleasure when eating chilli peppers?
3、 How is eating chilli similar to skydiving?
4、Where did the chilli originate?
A.South America B.Europe
C.Asia D.Africa
提醒：点这里加小编微信（领取免费资料、获取最新资讯、解决考教师一切疑问！）
