What You Should Do If You’ve Eaten Something Way Too Spicy

Can you handle the heat? No really — can you? Because even though we’d all love to be hot pepper champions, we don’t all have the stomach for it (literally). It’s something you can train your tastebuds for, but even looks can be deceiving sometimes. For example, I remember my first run-in with wasabi. I was introduced to sushi in college, and after asking someone who I assumed was my friend about the green blob, his response was, “Try it all at once to really experience it.”

It wasn’t my finest moment, but I still played it off like a champion. I simply had no idea that wasabi packed so much heat. These days, I love it — but still, it would have been nice to have some miracle berries by my side during that rough and spicy introduction.

Miracle Berry Fruit Tablets are currently being sold online, and they promise to turn spicy and sour foods into sweet and more palatable experiences. Even if you enjoy the spice, it’s still a pretty cool thing to have on hand, just for the science of it. According to the listing on Amazon, they contain Miraculin, which helps induce sweetness while overpowering any sour flavors. “I tried drinking vinegar and it tastes like soda,” one customer wrote. “Because this is USA, I want to add: Don’t try it with vinegar.”

In order to make the miracle berries work, you’ll want to make sure your entire tongue is coated before trying them with any type of food.

Hot sauce is popular for those who buy the tablets, and since it’s easily obtainable, it’s a good way for miracle berry beginners to try it out.

Other good foods to try include acidic fruits and pickles. Keep in mind that even if miracle berries help mask the tartness of any of these things, it’s probably not the best to eat ten lemons in a row — so like with all foods, proceed with caution.