Pepper sauce toxicity.

An acute oral LD50 of Pepper Sauce in male white Sprague-Dawley rats was determined to be 23.58 ml/kg with upper and lower limits of 29.75 and 18.70 ml/kg, respectively, at the 0.95 confidence level. In the female rats, the LD50 was determined to be 19.52 ml/kg with upper and lower limits of 24.35 and 15.64 ml/kg, respectively, at the 0.95 confidence level. This sex variation was found to be insignificant. A subchronic oral toxicity evaluation of Pepper Sauce in male and female white Sprague-Dawley rats revealed no gross or microscopic pathological changes in the animals nor were any significant biochemical changes noted. The growth rates remained within normal range. Pepper Sauce was shown to be a mild skin irritant and a moderate to severe eye irritant in New Zealand albino rabbits; vinegar, an ingredient of Pepper Sauce, was shown to contribute significantly to the ocular toxicity. The Pepper Sauce did not induce terata in Sprague-Dawley rats nor skin sensitization in guinea pigs.