Category: Aromachology

The Toxicity of Tanneries During the French Revolution

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One of the largest contributors to pollution during the French Revolution was the work of tanneries, which converted what is essentially animal skin, into leather goods. First the hide was immersed in an alkaline lime and water solution for up to 3 weeks, then it was brought out and shaved for both the hair on one side of the hide and the dissolved fat referred to as “sinew” on the other side. Once this process had been complete, dog and bird feces were mixed with hot water and human urine to create a bacterial cocktail which would work together to soften the hide and help it absorb dye. All of these components were dumped into local water sources once they had served their purpose which made living around them nearly impossible, with many people developing ulcerative lesions upon their throats when around these ingredients for extended periods of time

Bakers and Grocers Using Additives to Increase Profit Margins During the Victorian Period

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Profit margins were incredibly thin for Victorian bakers so to stretch flour as far as possible, they would add all sorts of additives to adulterate the end product (e.g. clay, plaster of Paris, sawdust, chalk, and alum, the same chemical used to clean swimming pools during the modern day etc.). Alum had both bulking qualities and acted as a bleach for the flour, so alum despite it being the most dangerous additive, was also the most popular supplement during this period. Victorian grocers would use tactics like watering down milk to stretch it as far as possible, going even further than bakers when it came to food tampering. Grocers would often add red lead to cheeses like Red Gloucester cheese, add iron sulfate to pickles to make them appear more green, spruce up old vinegar by adding sulphuric acid, add poisonous Prussian blue to tea leaves, and mixed mercury with children’s candy to enhance its color

The Origin of Birthday Cakes, Birthday Candles, and Birthday Wishes

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The modern day birthday cake tradition can be traced to Medieval Germany. During the Medieval period, German bakers began creating sweetened bread doughs for birthday celebrations with this specific kind of cake referred to as a “geburtstagstorte” (pronounced “guh-boorts-stocks-tor-tuh” with a slightly rolled “r” sound). German cakes became more elaborate over time, introducing ingredients like sugar. The practice of placing candles upon birthday cakes also has its roots within Germany, as candles were believed to hold special significance. One of the most subscribed to theories of the use of birthday cake candles within Germany is that these candles represented the light of life and blowing them out while making a wish was thought to ensure that the wish would come true. It was believed that the smoke from the candles carried the wishes of the person being celebrated upward, toward the ear of God

The Dietary Abstentions of Hindus, Muslims, and Buddhists

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Hindus do not consume beef because the cow is considered sacred within the Hindu religion. Those who are Muslim, do not consume pork because the pig is considered to be impure. Buddhists tend to avoid all variations of meat

The Etymology of “Curry Powder”

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The term “kaṟi”, referred to during the modern day as “curry”, is described within a mid 17th century Portuguese cookbook entitled the “East Indian Cookery Book” which was written by members of the British East India Company who traded with Tamil merchants along the Coromandel Coast of southeast India. Curry powder is referred to as such because one of the spice blends in the book which contains 2 or more spices is referred to as “kari podi” which has been Romanized to read as “curry powder”

The Accidental Discovery of Tea and the Agricultural Advents Developed by Chinese Emperor Jiang Shinian

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Tea was discovered entirely by accident. The first emperor of ancient China, Emperor Jiang Shinian (Shen Nung or Shennong) was boiling water in his palace courtyard when a tea leaf fell from above, and into the boiling pot. Due to the pleasant scent, Jiang ingested the water as it cooled and by coincidence discovered the activity of tea consumption. The name Jiang Shinian directly translates to mean “Devine Husbandman” within Mandarin, as it is believed Jiang developed multiple Chinese agricultural advents (e.g. crop cultivation for medicinal herbs, soil managment strategies, irrigation etc.). It should be noted, this account of the discovery of tea is believed to most likely be fictitious and mythological in origin by Chinese historians during the modern day

The Origin of the Birthday Celebration

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The origin of the birthday celebration tradition within China dates back thousands of years. The Chinese marked birthdays, starting from the first year of survival, as a mark of how long one has survived with the hope of longevity ahead. Besides matching the year with one’s own astrological calendar (based upon 12 years rather than 12 months), the Chinese traditionally celebrated during antiquity and continue to celebrate birthdays during the modern day with noodles, specifically chang shou mian which means “long life noodles” in Mandarin. This is because it is believed within Chinese culture that long noodle strands consumed within a single attempt symbolically represent a long life to come. It should be noted, it is believed the foundation origin of the concept of the “birthday” originated within Ancient Egypt around 3000 B.C. with Ancient Egyptian pharaohs celebrating their own coronation day as a birth of a god, with the Chinese, and later the Germans, developing the concept of a birthday more reminiscent to the modern day

American Cheese Manufacturer Kraft Producing Kraft Singles and Kraft Slices With Ingredients Which Are Not Cheese

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The Kraft Singles and Kraft Slices product lineup Kraft is renowned for are not entirely comprised of cheese. For this reason, Kraft cannot use the term “cheese” upon the product label within North America which is why these products are typically labeled as “Kraft Singles” or “Kraft Slices”. This is also the reason why Kraft Singles and Kraft Slices often display the phrase “pasteurized prepared cheese product” which is due to the fact that cheese within the North America must contain 51% cheese to be legally considered cheese and Kraft falls short of this threshold with these particular products

The Importance of Gastrointestinal Microbes for Weight Loss

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There are 100,000,000,000,000 (100 trillion) microbes within the gastrointestinal system and scientists have learned that by transplanting microbes from one animal to another, weight gain and weight loss can be turned on and off at will. Scientists now understand that the greater diversity a person has in terms of the types of microbial life which live within their body, the less likely they are to gain weight or maintain a higher than ideal body weight, with the exact opposite effect occurring in those who have lower than average values in reference to the number of microbes living within the body. Diets rich in fiber are typically associated with higher values of microbes, so increasing fiber intake, can significantly reduce overall body weight and promote the existence and health of many different kinds of microbes. Increasing fiber content for only a few days, has a measurable and marked effect upon microbrial gastrointestinal health

The Development of Japanese Tea Gardens and Tea Houses

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The Japanese tea garden is the antithesis of the Buddhist Zen garden and originated in the 9th century after tea was imported into Japan from China. Buddhist monks would drink Chinese tea to keep themselves awake during long meditation sessions. Over the subsequent centuries, tea drinking became an elaborate practice which was highly ritualized with samurai, geishas, and monks all serving tea using these same concepts. Japanese tea gardens developed during the 16th century with direct influence from the concepts of tea ceremonies, designed and constructed to surround tea houses