Several of their findings may explain in an ultimate, evolutionary sense why we use spices. First, spices prevent spoilage, a major cause of bacterially mediated food poisoning. Indeed, nearly all of the spices called for in these recipes and used at the levels commonly found in food inhibit bacterial growth. The spices most effective at killing bacteria were also more likely to be used across all countries. Intriguingly, in recipes that include spices containing chemicals degradable by heat, like the chemicals in parsley and cilantro, the spices were added after cooking and not before. Those
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