Fun Facts

Though the term “dietary fiber” didn’t come into use until the 1950s, Hippocrates appears to have been the first person to reference fiber in medical literature.

Soy crayons have been created to replace petroleum-wax crayons.

One bushel of corn will sweeten more than 400 cans of pop.

Kiwis were originally called Chinese gooseberries. But when U.S. importers began to bring the fruit to the U.S. in the 1950s, they changed the name to avoid high import tariffs and connotations with communist China.

How do Republicans’ and Democrats’ views on GMOs differ? Both Republicans (39%) and Democrats (40%) feel that GMOs are worse for health, but more Democrats (60%) than Republicans (50%) believe organic foods are healthier, according to an December NPR article.

According to legend, St. John’s wort got its name because the plant blooms around June 24-the same day as the feast of St. John the Baptist in some Christian traditions.

Small amounts of caffeine can be found in the leaves and flowers of several citrus plants, including grapefruit, lemon, and orange, but not in the fruits.

As a result of rising corn prices, some farmers now supplement cattle feed with candy, such as Skittles, as a way to provide a cheaper source of carbohydrates for the cows.

Spelt, a staple grain in Ancient Rome and medieval Europe, is especially rich in manganese, phosphorus, and niacin.

Before European contact with the Americas, tomatoes were not used in Italian food, peanuts were not used in Thai food, and chili peppers were not used in Indian food.

Lemongrass can be used to both repel mosquitos and attract honey bees. It is also a solid dietary source of iron, magnesium, and zinc.

Raw cashews contain urushiol, an allergenic chemical also found in poison ivy that causes a skin rash. Almost all cashews sold today have already been shelled and cooked to remove the urushiol.

It takes about 400 cocoa beans to make one pound of chocolate, although some types of chocolate require even more than that.

If Santa Claus visits 500 million homes this Christmas, and has two bites of cookie and one sip of milk at each house, he could easily consume more than 35 billion calories.

Capsaicin, a component in chili peppers that produces the heat sensation, is created by the pepper plant to stop animals from eating its fruit. It does not affect birds, which spread the plant’s seeds.

Kumquats are one of the highest fruit sources of calcium. They are also rich in fiber, vitamin A, and vitamin C.

Peanut oil can be processed to produce glycerol, a component used to make the explosive liquid nitroglycerine, which is a key ingredient in dynamite.

The average American consumes about 3000 calories during the Thanksgiving meal.

In 1995, the potato became the first vegetable to be grown in space. More recently, in 2015, astronauts on the International Space Station ate red romaine lettuce grown in space.

Americans are consuming five times as much food dye today as they did in 1955. Artificial colors Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6 are the most widely used food dyes.

Cranberries bounce when they’re ripe. Many cranberry farmers today use a machine that simulates bouncing to sort out the freshest cranberries.

Worried about cavities this Halloween? Onions contain antimicrobial compounds that researchers have found may destroy the bacteria responsible for tooth decay.

The pumpkin, a close relative of the zucchini and the watermelon, is an excellent source of vitamin A. Pumpkin seeds are also rich in potassium.

Beets offer the highest sugar content of any vegetable. They are also an excellent source of folate.

Often used as Christmas trees, spruce trees are a rich source of lignans.

Artichokes are one of the highest vegetable sources of antioxidants. They are also a good source of fiber and vitamin C.

Cloves are one of the richest dietary sources of polyphenols, with more than 15,000 mg of polyphenols per 100 g.

Red grapes produce resveratrol to defend against fungal infections and other environmental stressors. Organic grapes, which are grown without fungicides, have especially high resveratrol content.

Helicopters are used to dry cherries during the wet season. Without their use, the tender skins of cherries might very well break.

In emergency situations, coconut water has been used as a short-term intravenous hydration fluid when medical saline was unavailable. Most physicians today do not recommend this practice.