America's most favorite condiment, ketchup, was first made available as pill medication and was said to cure all kinds of diseases.
Named, "Dr. Miles' Compound Extract of Tomato," Archibald Miles marketed what he claimed to be a tomato extract with medicinal properties in the United States. The extract was sold in the 1830s in the form of pills with recommended dosages for a variety of illnesses and ailments. Many Americans purchased the pills in the hopes the medication would rid them of their ailments by "purifying their blood."
Although no one is certain of what exactly they were made of, the tomato extract pills probably contained vitamin C and laxatives. Regardless of whether they were actually beneficial or not, they made a lot of money for Miles and other sellers who followed in his footsteps in the lucrative tomato medicine business.
More about ketchup:
- Ketchup is originally Asian, but the original condiment had nothing to do with tomatoes. The Chinese condiment "ke-tchup" was a fish condiment eaten by Asians as far back as 544 A.D.
- As of 2014, Americans on average consume three bottles of ketchup per year.
- Ketchup exits a Heinz bottle at the speed of 1.3 centimeters (0.5 inches) per second.