Food and health at the time of Rubens A lecture given at the ESPEN Congress, Antwerp 1991.

The Renaissance period in Europe saw many dietary changes due to imports of new ingredients from the Far East as well as from newly discovered Central and South America. Maize and potatoes rapidly conquered European markets and because of their easier cultivation and higher calorie content, displaced grains such as wheat and rye. Drinking habits too changed, when tea, coffee and chocolate were introduced, first as strengthening medicines, later as 'délicatesses' in the aristocratic British and French cafés. These new foods and beverages may have helped diminish the periods of famine typical of Medieval and Early Renaissance times. In the 16th and 17th century, new diseases were described that were directly related to dietary intake. Ergotism and scurvy, particularly, sometimes decimated whole populations in rural areas or at sea. It was not until the 18th century that scientific research elucidated the cause of such diseases and helped us to understand the importance of a balanced diet.