Reddit user Noblesseoblige94 suffered severe pain after cuddling with his girlfriend, who had applied a chili pepper muscle rub to her lower back.
The man experienced an intense sensation resembling stinging ants on his penis less than 30 seconds after embracing his partner, a South Korean graduate student attending the University of California.
Reddit is a popular social media and news aggregation platform where users post personal anecdotes, health misadventures, and relationship stories under pseudonyms.
Capsaicin ointment accident
According to the post, the couple typically spent their evenings together cuddling unclothed until falling asleep, often after the student had completed writing 14 pages of academic research. On the night of the incident, the man noticed his partner applying a cream to her lower back and assumed it was an ordinary cosmetic lotion.
When the sudden burning began, the man jumped out of bed to determine what was causing the distress. After suspecting the mysterious lotion, he asked his girlfriend about its specific ingredients.
She explained that her back was aching, prompting her to apply a pain relief ointment she had brought with her from South Korea.
The primary component of the ointment was a Korean equivalent of capsaicin, the active chemical compound found in hot chili peppers that produces intense heat. Capsaicin is widely used in topical analgesics to relieve muscle aches, but contact with delicate skin or sensitive body parts causes severe burning sensations.
The University of California is a prominent public research university system in the United States, attracting international graduate students and researchers from across the globe, including South Korea.
Unconventional hygiene risks
The incident is part of a growing category of online stories detailing painful mishaps caused by personal care products and topical treatments.
The report highlighted a previous incident in which a woman regretted using deodorant in an unconventional manner due to an obsession with cleanliness. Her inventive hygiene effort resulted in extended minutes of unbearable burning in her anus.
Deodorants and antiperspirants contain alcohol, fragrances, and active chemicals formulated strictly for underarm application, which can cause acute mucosal irritation and burning when applied to other sensitive areas of the body.
