Meet the Chili king

Meet the man who can’t imagine his life without super hot and spicy chilli peppers, in the village of Shawoli in Henan province, China.

Li Yongzhi has become a local celebrity for his incredible addiction to red hot chilli peppers. The man has earned the nickname “Chilli King” for eating 2,5 kilos of chillies every single day and even using them as a toothpaste in the morning.

Li can’t imagine his life without hot chilli peppers

The man started having cravings for peppers when he was a youngster. Since that time he could go without meat or eggs but never without spiciness. Li loves them so much he grows eight different varieties in his own garden to eat peppers whenever he wants.

Li eats 2,5kg of peppers a day

“In the morning, other people always brush their teeth, but the first thing I do is eat chili and rinse my mouth with that. If the food has no spiciness then it has no taste. I don’t have any super powers. I just like eating and I can eat a lot. The doctors say I’m as normal as everybody else,” Mr Yongzhi  said.

Li was crowned the ‘king of chilli’ by the provincial government of Hunan after beating other competitors in a chilli-eating contest

Li, who eats chilli for breakfast, lunch and dinner says he rarely gets sick and is very healthy. Red chilies contain large amounts of vitamin C,  B, and vitamin B₆. They are very high in potassium, magnesium, and iron.

Humans who consume spicy foods, especially fresh chili peppers, were less likely to die of cancer or diabetes

A large study conducted by the British Medical Journal has found some indications that humans who consume spicy foods, especially fresh chili peppers, were less likely to die of cancer or diabetes