“I cannot abide the smell of hot meat since”

While some foods were believed to boost sexual appetites and performance, others were considered to provide protection from associated risks.

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For example, unlikely as it seems today, in earlier times stewed prunes were associated with prostitutes and brothels. In the satirical poem The Knave of Harts (1612) by Samuel Rowlands, a “whoring knave" is served with “Burnt wine, stew'd Prunes, a Puncke [prostitute] to solace him”.

Why the reference to prunes here?

One theory is that they were believed to protect against sexually transmitted diseases such as syphilis.

Links between prostitution and food don’t end with prunes. Take the following line spoken by Abraham Slender in