““Cornell researcher Sherman theorized the antimicrobial properties of these spices is one of the reasons humans like the taste of spicy food. Foods cooked with these spices were better preserved, and in a time before refrigeration, the people who ate them were at a lower risk of food-borne illness. They were healthier and lived longer than people who did not consume spicy food, so they had more children. Natural selection favored those who ate spicy food, because they survived, and the preference for spicy food became a dominant trait in humanity. A””