Ketchup was sold as medicine in the 1830s
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In the 1830s, tomato ketchup was prescribed by American doctors as a medicine for conditions including diarrhoea, liver disease, and indigestion. Tomatoes were considered to have medicinal properties, and ketchup — then thicker and spicier than today's version — was marketed in pill form as well as liquid. Dr. John Cook Bennett was the primary physician-promoter of tomato medicine. The treatment fell out of fashion by the 1850s as tomatoes became a mainstream food rather than a medical product.
Ketchup is so thoroughly associated with fast food and condiments that discovering it was once a prescription medicine inverts its cultural identity completely — from the most banal of toppings to a regulated pharmaceutical.
The Science Behind It
In the 1830s, tomato ketchup was prescribed by American doctors as a medicine for conditions including diarrhoea, liver disease, and indigestion. Tomatoes were considered to have medicinal properties, and ketchup — then thicker and spicier than today's version — was marketed in pill form as well as liquid. Dr. John Cook Bennett was the primary physician-promoter of tomato medicine. The treatment fell out of fashion by the 1850s as tomatoes became a mainstream food rather than a medical product.
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Sources & Verification
OddlyHuman Editors
VerifiedWritten and fact-checked by the OddlyHuman Behavioral Science Team. We verify all psychological, sociological, and historical claims against peer-reviewed journals, primary sources, and established encyclopedias to bring you accurate insights.
Read our Editorial Guidelines →“Ketchup was sold as medicine in the 1830s. Doctors prescribed tomato ketchup for liver disease, diarrhoea, and indigestion. It came in pill form. 🍅💊 #OddlyHuman”