Wait. Really?

In the 1830s, American patent-medicine makers bottled tomato ketchup and sold it as a cure for everything from baldness to jaundice. This wasn't pure fraud: tomatoes were genuinely believed to have medicinal power, and ketchup was an easy way to concentrate that power into a swallowable dose. ^[1]

For much of the 18th century, many Europeans and Americans avoided tomatoes, fearing they were poisonous. That changed in the early 1800s, when doctors and writers began promoting the tomato as a health food. By the 1830s, the tomato was celebrated as a cure for indigestion, dyspepsia, and liver complaints. ^[2]

In the 1830s, American patent-medicine makers bottled tomato ketchup and sold it as a cure for everything from baldness to jaundice. This wasn't pure fraud: tomatoes were genuinely believed to have medicinal power, and ketchup was an easy way to concentrate that power into a swallowable dose. ^[1]

For much of the 18th century, many Europeans and Americans avoided tomatoes, fearing they were poisonous. That changed in the early 1800s, when doctors and writers began promoting the tomato as a health food. By the 1830s, the tomato was celebrated as a cure for indigestion, dyspepsia, and liver complaints. ^[2]

In the 1830s, American patent-medicine makers bottled tomato ketchup and sold it as a cure for everything from baldness to jaundice. This wasn't pure fraud: tomatoes were genuinely believed to have medicinal power, and ketchup was an easy way to concentrate that power into a swallowable dose. ^[1]

For much of the 18th century, many Europeans and Americans avoided tomatoes, fearing they were poisonous. That changed in the early 1800s, when doctors and writers began promoting the tomato as a health food. By the 1830s, the tomato was celebrated as a cure for indigestion, dyspepsia, and liver complaints. ^[2]