Do hot peppers screw up your digestive system like they do mine?

I love eating hot peppers and hot sauce but always, always regret it the next day. I get serious bowel cramps and sometimes have to delay going to work for an hour or two to work things out. Is there something wrong with me (other than sharing this info with you?)?

I used to love hot peppers, hot pepper sauce, and raw onions. I can't touch them now. I would say that there is nothing wrong with you. Just buck up and drop those things that make you ill. That's what I had to do. I'm rather obnoxious about it to. I ask first - always - in restaurants, and then I send it back if an offender is in/on the dish. I tell friends point blank: "Sorry, I don't do Mexican restaurants" (tough in Dallas).

I love chilis and especially the small yellow ones while eating a burger etc.. I can't put down about 10-15 of those at a time!

jalepenos too.. yum

most times - no problem at all. There is the occasional payback and I haven't been able to figure out why but the payback can be brutal
:-)

The seeds in peppers can cause flare ups of diverticulitis, an intestinal condition that needs a diet change if you have it. If you have this disease and get early notice, you can save yourself lots of troubles later on by getting a diagnosis and treatment early.

In any event, you should only get medical advice from a doctor you visit, not over the internet like this.

See your doctor. If you don't have one, get one. Meanwhile, quit the offending food and report that result to your docs.

Used to be able to eat Jalapenos whole and fresh when I was younger, no problems at all.

Now just a little bacon/jalapeno pizza gives me the... ugh...

For some reason its the whole peppers that do it... I can handle plenty of ground red pepper, which is just as hot, without any trouble.

used to drink a glass of Jack Daniels and down a jar of Jalapenos in a flash...
I never understood it, but I can definetely eat jalapenos with no ill effect..
On the other hand NO hard likker for me...2 beers a day is ALL I can handle now at my age.

I've been consuming peppers since being a tot (as at least some kind of pepper will be included in every Thai dish) Don't know what that means when I get older though, my dad doesnt seem to have a problem with spicyness.

YOu can enjoy the heat from the peppers themselves as long as you remove the seeds. If you still have difficulty, you can take a tablespoon of olive oil before enjoying your favorite heat. Peppers create acidity and if you have difficulty with acidity the oil can help neutralize it. IF that fails, I don't know what else to offer, but try it and see.

to me, eating should be an enjoyable endeavour, not a painful one...
and with the advent of a little thing called refrigeration, the heavy spices aren't necessary.
The reason spices and the spice trade were such a big deal in the past was because they were used to cover up the taste of rotting meat.
there's no real purpose for some of them anymore.

I prefer flavor that doesn't make my eyes water.

It just tastes SO good.

I eat a lot of hot peppers and never have a problem like that. A few years ago, I read that the chemical in hot peppers is irritating to the H. pylori bacteria that causes ulcers, so eating spicy food can actually prevent someone from developing an ulcer. However, if you already have an ulcer or another problem, then the peppers would be too irritating.

It might be worth asking for a check-up to see if you are developing an ulcer.

Some people are just more sensitive to vegetables than others, and it is very personal how your body reacts. People who react to onions, cabbage, brocoli all benefit from Beano -- not just people who react to beans. It could be that you would benefit from Beano when consuming hot peppers. Worth a try, if the doctor says you are otherwise OK.

Of course I will consult my own physician. I have pretty much layed-off hot peppers for now.