In the 1830s, Americans bought tomato ketchup as medicine after a physician claimed tomatoes could treat indigestion and diarrhoea; pills made from tomato extract were sold across the country before the craze collapsed.

AI representation of Dr cook making medicine from tomatoes Let's be honest, everyone knows someone who puts ketchup on absolutely everything. Pastas, pizzas and whatnot. We have all thought that those people need some medicine. Well, what if I told you that, in the 1830s, tomatoes were actually being promoted as medicine, and people were even encouraged to consume them in the form of ketchup?Believe it or not, there was a time when tomatoes were not just any other ingredient in your kitchen but were being promoted as a remedy for several health problems. In the 1830s, an American physician made some rather extraordinary claims about the humble tomato, suggesting that it could help treat digestive problems like indigestion and even diarrhoea. What followed was an unusual medical craze, with tomato extracts being turned into pills and sold to people across the country. An ordinary vegetable had suddenly become a supposed miracle remedy, and before long, competing manufacturers were making a business out of it.But how did a simple tomato become America's latest medical obsession?When doctors started prescribing tomatoes instead of medicineDr John Cook Bennett, physician and promoter o...