How one brave man changed the public’s mind about the tomato

‘How to live longer’ is a question many people want to know the answer to, and many studies have proven what you eat can have a positive effect on longevity. Consumers need health information which is clear and unambiguous. Advice to “eat more fruit and vegetables” gives consumers no guidance on the quantities involved. Popular advice is to eat “five portions a day”.

But when it comes to specific foods to eat, which ones are best?

In the late 1700s, a large percentage of Europeans feared the tomato.

It is not difficult to overstate the contribution of tomatoes to our culinary culture.

Imagine how poorer we would be without pizza, marinara sauce, salsa, or any of the countless dishes that rely on the savoury vegetable, although biologically the tomato is a fruit. Today, physicians encourage including tomatoes in our diet to provide vital nutrients to our body. Until the end of the 18th century, it was a different story. 

Doctors warned that tomato consumption would lead to such maladies as appendicitis and cancer of the stomach. Tomatoes were avoided at all costs and believed to be poisonous until one man changed everyone’s mind.

There was one fellow who thought...