Most people could name four of the basic tastes, sweet, sour, salty, and bitter.

The rare foodie may be able to nail umami.

But what about the forgotten flavor sense?

Spicy.

This seeming neglect is somewhat surprising, given that hot peppers are one of the world's

most widely used spices.

In fact, as many as one in four people on the planet

currently eat chilies on a daily basis, raising the question,

why is spicy food so popular? Why do some like it hot enjoying what is at first glance in

irritating and potentially painful mouth sensation? According to one popular suggestion,

it is the endorphine hit,

the release of the natural morphine-like painkiller chemicals from your brain. You hear

this a lot in the popular press, but we still don't have any convincing evidence to support

it. Another suggestion is that we learn to use it for its antimicrobial properties before the age of refrigeration,

given that spicy food tends to be preferred by cultures living in warmer climates.

And for that matter, maybe it makes us sweat and thereby ultimately helps cool us down.

Then again, maybe it's just because people just like the taste. Preference

for spicy foods does seem to run in families. Based on twin studies comparing the preferences

of identical to fraternal twins, genetic factors may account for up to half of the variations

similar to the heritability of sweet and sour preferences.

It may also be hormonal.

Researchers in France noted that particularly males like spicy food and wondered if it was a

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