John Adams and China: Globalizing Early America

John Adams consumed a lot of Chinese tea. He especially appreciated the medical benefits associated with the hot beverage. In a 1757 diary entry, he wrote that "nothing but large potions of tea" could extinguish his heartburn. How did Adams know that Chinese tea cured heartburn?  Why did he believe that nothing else was as effective? This talk examines the ways medical ideas transferred across the world during the eighteenth century.