Men having  high testosterone levels take to spicy food, says a group of French researchers in a study soon to be published in “Psychology and Behaviour”.

According to AFP, the study, suggestively entitled “Some like it hot” depicts the case of 114 men aged 18 to 44 who took part in a tasting session. Before the session,  each participants’ saliva was sampled to determine the testosterone levels.

The actual testing session involved a reasonably generous portion of mashed potatoes seasoned by each participant with hot Tabasco sauce and salt. The volunteers,  at liberty to use as much Tabasco or salt as needed, were later on asked to grade their tasting experience using numbers from 1 to 4, meaning tastes such as salty, hot, creamy or floury.

“These results are in step with similar results from other studies, suggesting there is a connection between high testosterone levels and taking big risks, whether financial, sexual, behavioural risks. This time, we’re looking at tasting risks”, asserted Dr. Laurent Begue, professor of social psychology at the Grenoble University in France.

The researchers say that the reverse connection may be possible as well, that is, to get a boost in testosterone levels after eating hot spicy foods. This has only been seen in rodents, and still needs further investigation.