Even though they sound dangerous, chilies often make the food taste better, healthier, and even more popular. And while it enhances food taste, chilies, and spicy foods also make you have a runny nose even while eating. While it is a common occurrence, these are also the symptoms of other conditions.
Medically known as rhinorrhea, if your nose begins to run after eating spicy foods, it happens because of food allergies – also known as allergic rhinitis. According to experts, the distinctive spiciness of chili peppers derives from the chemical capsaicin - which causes a burning sensation when in contact with bodily tissues. What leads to the burn? Chili plants produce capsaicin in their fruits to fend off hungry mammals.
Its irritant qualities are so pronounced that pepper sprays made from it are more debilitating than tear gas, according to the European Parliament's Scientific and Technological Options Assessment report. According to experts, capsaicin is the only best-known ingredient of spicy food irritants. Another, allyl isothiocyanate, is an oil that lends its kick to radishes, horseradish, wasabi, and mustard.
Manufacturers also use it as an ingredient in insecticides and fungicides. What does all of this have to do with your runny nose? Capsaicin and allyl isothiocyanate irritate the mucous linings protecting your lungs and various body openings and cavities from infectious agents such as fungi, bacteria, and viruses. What are the signs and symptoms of allergic rhini.
