Friedrich Eduard Bilz (June 12, 1842 – January 30, 1922) was a German naturopath who was a native of Arnsdorf in the

Kingdom of Saxony The Kingdom of Saxony () was a German monarchy in Central Europe between 1806 and 1918, the successor of the Electorate of Saxony. It joined the Confederation of the Rhine after the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, later joining the German ...

. As a merchant of a ''Kolonialwarenladen'' (shop offering non-European goods) in Meerane, Bilz became interested in

naturopathic medicine Naturopathy, or naturopathic medicine, is a form of alternative medicine. A wide array of practices branded as "natural", "non-invasive", or promoting "self-healing" are employed by its practitioners, who are known as naturopaths. Difficult ...

. In 1888 he published ''Das Neue Naturheilverfahren'' (The New Natural Healing), a book that became very popular and was translated into twelve languages. In 1895 Bilz founded a health spa at Radebeul that was soon expanded into a large sanitarium. In the early part of the 20th century, he constructed a ''Licht-Luft Bad'' (a large outdoor swimming pool) at the sanitarium (the "Bilzbad"). In 1911 he displayed a ''Wellenmaschine'' ( wave machine) at the International Hygiene Exhibition in

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

. It was installed at Bilzbad during the following year. In 1902, Bilz created a soft-drink named ''Bilz-Brause'', a beverage consisting of

mineral water Mineral water is water from a mineral spring that contains various minerals, such as salts and sulfur compounds. It is usually still, but may be sparkling ( carbonated/ effervescent). Traditionally, mineral waters were used or consumed at t ...

and

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the family Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, mandarins, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. ''Citrus'' is nativ ...

juice that was served to patients at the sanitarium. After forming a partnership with local

industrialist A business magnate, also known as an industrialist or tycoon, is a person who is a powerful entrepreneur and investor who controls, through personal enterprise ownership or a dominant shareholding position, a firm or industry whose goods or ser ...

Franz Hartmann, the name was changed to Sinalco, and the drink was marketed worldwide.

References

A Century of Flavor, an article on SinalcoThe Natural Method of Healing - Volume 1The Natural Method of Healing - Volume 2
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bilz, Friedrich Eduard 1842 births 1922 deaths People from Mittelsachsen People from the Kingdom of Saxony Naturopaths