Revenge of the Carolina Reaper is chilli fan’s five-week headache

EATING one of the world’s hottest chillies can cause five weeks of headaches, scientists have warned after a man had to be treated in hospital.

The 34-year-old American required emergency treatment for excruciating head and neck pain after eating the Carolina Reaper chilli.

A brain scan showed several arteries had temporarily narrowed, causing severe “thunderclap” headaches.

Doctors warned of the dangers of taking part in chilli-eating contests as they published details of the incident in journal BMJ Case Reports.

Produced by the Puckerbutt Pepper Company, the Carolina Reaper has been known to reach 2.2 million on the Scoville Scale. That means one drop of its oil would be detectable in 2.2 million drops of water. A Jalapeño pepper typically rates between 2,500 to 5,000 units on the scale.

The patient, who was not identified, endured “intense” neck pain and headaches, each lasting just a few seconds, days after sampling the chilli.

The pain was so severe that he sought emergency treatment and he was tested for multiple neurological conditions.

A CAT scan showed the effect on several arteries in his brain and he was diagnosed with reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome (RCVS).

The symptoms cleared up on their own and a CAT scan five weeks later showed his arteries had returned to normal.

Dr Kulothungan Gunasekaran, who treated the patient at the Department of Internal Medicine, Bassett Medical Center, New York, said: “The pain was excruciating.

“No cases of RCVS secondary to peppers or cayenne have been previously reported, but ingestion of cayenne pepper has been associated with coronary vasospasm and acute myocardial infarction.”

In May 2017, the Carolina Reaper was overtaken as the hottest chilli ever recorded after Mike Smith, a Welsh fruit farmer, “accidentally” created the Dragon’s Breath, which registered 2.48million on the Scoville heat scale.

Just months later the creator of the Carolina Reaper announced that he had cultivated the Pepper X, reportedly registering 3.18 million on the Scoville scale.