So I’m not a big hot spicy foods person, but I’ve become more willing to experiment with them as I’ve gotten older. Last week I bought some mild salsa and corn chips. Today I finished off the small jar and a few hours later found myself making a sudden trip to the bathroom. It occurred to me that the same thing happened the previous two times I ate the chips and salsa.
There’s nothing in the salsa that should give me an allergic reaction, and nothing I ate around the time should have caused a reaction either.
Is it possible to be allergic to mild salsa? Is a sudden bathroom trip something that can happen with spicy foods?
That seems pretty unlikely. I’ve had food poisoning before, and that’s not what this is. Also, it’s not the first time I’ve had salsa, but I usually eat very little. In each of these cases I was taking in a fair amount.
Finally, I experimented with mild salsa as key ingredient in some burritos I made a while back, and also got the same reaction. In that case, however, I though it was the result of the cheese, which I have a sort of allergy to.
It it took around 8-12 hours to come on, it was probably food poisoning. If not, not. You might have less tolerance for spicy foods these days. I used to do shots of hot sauce in my youth, but that’ll mess me up now.
It certainly could be the spice. My friend throws up every time he eats any wings stronger than mild.
Does long does it take salsa (opened) to spoil? I figure the big brand name stuff lasts a pretty long time, like pickles. And are spices natural preservatives?
Spices are not natural preservatives, and actually make spoiled stuff taste way nastier. If the chilis were bad or the salsa was spoiled, he’d have definitely noticed.
The three times this week were the same jar. The burrito case was a different jar and different brand.
The problem is that I don’t have history to fall back on. As I said earlier, while I’ve had salsa before, it’s never been in any signfiicant amount. This time it was quite a bit at each sitting.
I should also add that once I’ve done my business, I feel fine. Another indication, at least in my mind, that it’s not tainted.
When salsa goes bad, which can be in a pretty short period of time (unless you’re like me, and sacrifice a little taste for a load of preservatives), you’ll notice that it sort of sizzles on your tongue, like Pop Rocks.
When salsa is even a little bad, it can give you an adverse reaction. On the other hand, how are you with onions in your food? I’ve found that even though I enjoy onions, they tend to grease the wheels when it comes to digestion.
Now, mix onions and fish, and you’ve got an excellent colon cleanser.
You can actually make your own salsa if you want to test the theory of it causing a reaction. But the deal is that there is very little in mild salsa that would give you those symptoms.
Tomatoes, tomatillos, cillantro, onions, bell pepper (not hot, at all), and a very small amount of jalapenos, plus some minor things in the mix (pepper, cayenne pepper, oil, salt, etc). Some sauces don’t even have the jalapenos, but instead have things even milder.
I too would say you probably ate bad salsa. Either that or you have an allergy to something in it, which could even be things they added as preservatives.
I encourage you to keep trying, whether a new jar of a different brand, or make a small batch of salsa yourself. Spicy foods done well (ie not greasy) will open you to flavor combinations that are wonderful…plus peppers are good for the digestion.
If he’s not accustomed to hot foods, I would expect that it is merely what little capsaicin is in the salsa that is giving him problems. As much as I love hot foods, as I get older, I find that they give me urgent shits more and more often. I would recommend graduating to at least a medium salsa. The more your body become accustomed, the fewer problems you’ll have.
This is a timely thread because I have some leftover Chilis salsa that sat out of the fridge in a sealed container overnight. (Leftovers from a to-go order of chips&salsa.) I want some really badly here at work as a snack, but I’m worried…
