Spicy foods are popular in many parts of the world, but some cultures rarely eat them. For example, not many traditional Irish dishes are made with spicy ingredients. Some experts believe this is related to climate. They came to this conclusion after noticing that people in hot countries like Thailand, Mexico, and India tend to prefer spicy foods. They believe people in these countries once used chilies to kill bacteria in meat to make it safer to eat. These experts reasoned that people in colder climates didn’t use chilies because meat doesn’t rot as quickly in lower temperatures.
A recent study that examined 33,000 recipes challenged this idea, though. The study found there were no strong connections between climate, health, and the popularityof spicy foods.
