The Scoville scale is a system used to measure the heat or spiciness of chili peppers. It is expressed in Scoville heat units (SHU), indicating the amount of the alkaloid compound capsaicin present in the chili pepper. Capsaicin is a colorless, odorless substance that does not dissolve in water.

HOW DOES CAPSAICIN WORK?

What makes chili hot? By binding to molecules of capsaicin receptors in the skin, it triggers a nerve signal interpreted in the brain as a sensation of heat and burning. When we consume spicy food, the same mechanism occurs, explaining that spiciness is not a taste but a sensation of elevated temperature in the mouth.

It is believed that this effect also triggers the release of endorphins (natural feel-good hormones), which alleviate pain. Moreover, consuming a large amount of very spicy food can lead to the release of exceptionally high levels of endorphins, even causing euphoria. Capsaicin has been tested on human lung and pancreatic cancer cells, revealing its ability to induce cancer cell death.

Capsaicin Cream and Other Capsaicin Benefits and Uses

In 1991, capsaicin was proven to reduce muscle, joint, and nerve pain when applied in the form of various tinctures. The benefits of capsaicin reach far and wide.

By combating digestive bacteria, it increases the secretion of digestive fluids in the stomach, improving digestion, stabilizing appetite, reducing hunger, and preventing the formation of fat cells.

It also stimulates the cardiovascular system and lowers cholesterol and blood pressure levels. However, while spicy peppers are highly medicinal, excessive consumption can cause or worsen gastritis.

How Is Spiciness “Converted” Into the Scoville Scale Units?

The scale is named after the American pharmacist Wilbur Scoville, who first devised a method to measure capsaicin in spicy peppers.

The initial test conducted was organoleptic. It involved dissolving a certain amount of dried peppers in alcohol to extract the components that provide spiciness (the mentioned capsaicinoids).

This substance would then be dissolved in a solution of water and sugar in an amount one hundred times its mass.

Then this solution would be given to five trained tasters and diluted using the same process until at least three of them could no longer perceive any spiciness. The measure of spiciness would be based on this solution, or rather, on how many times it had been diluted.

Of course, there are already a couple of potential problems with the validity of this test. It relies on subjective judgment, and since different individuals have different taste/spiciness receptors, it cannot be precise.

Additionally, receptors can become desensitized to capsaicinoids when repeatedly exposed to them in a short period, in which case they may not feel spiciness even though they would otherwise.

In the 1970s, high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was perfected, a laboratory procedure used to separate components from a mixture. By the 1980s, it had become the primary technique for measuring spiciness.

It accurately measures the concentration of capsaicinoids in a mixture, making it the most reliable and valid technique for measuring spiciness. It is usually converted into Scoville units using a specific formula. Of course, today the results obtained through this technique and the original organoleptic test only share the unit name, as the former are far more precise.