Man who created world’s hottest pepper breaks down what happened when he ate it
Ed Currie - the maker of the world's hottest pepper - has revealed what it was like to eat it.
Most people like a little spice in their diet every now and then. Some would even go as far as to say that a meal is no good if it doesn't set their taste buds on fire.
But there's one man takes his love for the hot stuff to another level.
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Currie has an admitted 'obsession' with peppers - he even starts his day with 'pepper oil' in his coffee.
That's taking things to another level.
Currie runs PuckerButt Pepper Company in South Carolina, where he taste tests peppers and hot sauces all day. He is such a pepper fanatic that he adds spice to his desserts.
But his own creation, Pepper X, was something that even he could not anticipate as it's been crowned the world's hottest pepper by Guinness World Records.
And it's no wonder - as if it left the hardened Currie 'literally bent over groaning in pain' for three to four hours.
It'll get a pass from me then, that's for sure.
Currie said: "When I ate a whole one, you get the flavour right away.
"But immediately that heat hits - and the heat, for me, was unbearable.
"It was kind of euphoric. Because I was getting an endorphin rush."
Somebody tried to hand Currie a milkshake to ease the pain but this reportedly made the heat spike up.
Currie said: "I started getting cramps and, you know, your body perceives capsaicin as a poison."
Capsaicin is the chemical that provides humans with the burning sensation of peppers.
"Those cramps become unbearable - okay, for a man at least. A doctor explained it to me that it was akin to a menstrual cramp," Currie said.
A few hour after recovering, Currie was back out eating peppers. That's an interesting way to get back on the horse.
Currie's company began with the help of his wife, Linda.
When he first met his future wife, Currie had just overcome a long history of drug and alcohol addiction. At first, she wanted nothing to do with him, but once he heard that she was a fan of salsa, he whipped up some for a dinner that they were both attending.
She asked who made the salsa and the rest is history as the two were married nine months later.
The interest was borne out of 1,100 pepper and tomato plants in their garden.
Once the company was set up, this number skyrocketed to 30,000.
One of Currie's employees spoke to BBC and said of his boss: "This is something that most of the world doesn't know about Ed - but I believe his true goal in life is to help people.
"(Ed) mentioned that he was an addict. He hires 90% of us, myself included, who are in recovery. "He's given us second chances where we wouldn't have gotten elsewhere.
"And now I'm paying a mortgage.
"I think his passion is in hot peppers - he loves to hurt people, but I think his true passion is helping people."
Topics: Food And Drink, US News
Ben Thompson