Top 7 Remedies For Cooling Off Your Mouth After Eating Spicy Food

Did you eat too many spicy habaneros? Is your mouth on fire and you want to cool it off? This is a side effect of eating spicy food, and it may last for hours.

A common mistake for spicy newcomers to do is to drink water. Drinking water will do nothing but spread the capsaicin oils all around your mouth and thus prolonging the pain.

Luckily for you we have some tips for cooling off your spicy mouth! Follow these tips and see what works for you. In our experience, drinking milk or some dairy product works very well.

Try these and see which works best for cooling off your spicy mouth! 

 

 

 1. Drink Milk or Consume Dairy Products

 

Why should you drink a glass of milk when your mouth is on fire? According to the American Chemical Society, Casein (the protein in milk) helps break down and encapsulate the capsaicin to be easily "washed away". It also helps break the bond of capsaicin to nerve receptors in your tongue! Talk about amazing chemistry. 

Unfortunately for some, this may not be an option for some, so here are some other ways to cool off your mouth.

 

2. Try a Splash Of Coconut Milk Or Some Almonds

 

The natural fats in coconut milk and other nuts can help reduce the capsaicin burn by diluting the capsaicin oils. 

Any naturally fatty nut should do the trick! 

 

 3. Consume Alcohol Or Rinse with Mouth Wash

 

If you consume alcohol, you may have noticed that the spice goes away quicker! This is because alcohol is a solvent. Beer isn't exactly a good option because it's mostly water and as you learned in Chemistry class, water and oil do not mix.

That being said you need at least 35% alcohol concentration to dissolve capsaicin. So swish some around your mouth and you should be good to go!

 

4. A Spoon Of Sugar Makes The Medicine Go Down

 

Did you know that sugar will absorb the capsaicin oil? Sugar will bond to the capsaicin allowing for a different taste AND to reduce the heat. 

Looks like Merry Poppins was right.

 

5. A Bite Of Chocolate Will Reduce The Bite

 

 

Since chocolate is just a fusion of mainly milk and sugar, this is another ideal solution for reducing the heat of something too spicy. 

The melting chocolate will coat your tongue and reduce the burn by absorbing the capsaicin. Milk chocolate will provide better relief than dark chocolate due to its higher sugar and fat content.

 

6. Try Eating A Slice Of Bread

 

Eating bread to cool off a spicy mouth is a very common way to reduce the effects of hot peppers on your tongue. 

This is because bread will soak up the capsaicin oil off your tongue. Rice will also work but it might take more because of it's grainy texture. 

 

7. Citrus Juices Should Help

 

 Citrus fruits contain a chemical called Citric Acid. Citric acid can help reduce a spicy mouth by breaking down the capsaicinoids that are stinging your tongue. 

So the next time your mouth burns, try these tips on how to reduce your mouth burn.

 

Other Things to Try

Some of our customers have reported the following to work:

• Licorice Root due to it's cooling effects.
• A pinch of cinnamon is said to burn worse than a pepper.
• A huge glass of Ice Water can provide temporary relief