A pastille is a type of

sweet Sweetness is a basic taste most commonly perceived when eating foods rich in sugars. Sweet tastes are generally regarded as pleasurable. In addition to sugars like sucrose, many other chemical compounds are sweet, including aldehydes, ketones, ...

or medicinal

pill Pill or The Pill may refer to: Drugs * Pill (pharmacy), referring to anything small for a specific dose of medicine * "The Pill", a general nickname for the combined oral contraceptive pill Film and television * ''The Pill'' (film), a 2011 fil ...

made of a thick liquid that has been solidified and is meant to be consumed by light chewing and allowing it to dissolve in the mouth. The term is also used to describe certain forms of

incense Incense is an aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremonial reasons. It ...

. A pastille is also known as a troche, which is a medicated lozenge that dissolves like sweets.

Origins

The word ''pastille'' comes from the same origin as

pastry Pastry refers to a variety of Dough, doughs (often enriched with fat or eggs), as well as the sweet and savoury Baking, baked goods made from them. The dough may be accordingly called pastry dough for clarity. Sweetened pastries are often descr ...

, from the Latin word ''pastillus'', for a lump of meal or grain, which was from ''panis'', "bread". A pastille was originally a pill-shaped lump of compressed

herb Herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal purposes, or for fragrances. Culinary use typically distingu ...

s, which was burnt to release its

medicinal Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

properties. Literary references to the burning of medicinal pastilles include the short story " The Birth-Mark" by

Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne (né Hathorne; July 4, 1804 – May 19, 1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. His works often focus on history, morality, and religion. He was born in 1804 in Salem, Massachusetts, from a family long associat ...

, the poem "The Laboratory" by

Robert Browning Robert Browning (7 May 1812 – 12 December 1889) was an English poet and playwright whose dramatic monologues put him high among the Victorian literature, Victorian poets. He was noted for irony, characterization, dark humour, social commentar ...

, and the novel ''

Jane Eyre ''Jane Eyre'' ( ; originally published as ''Jane Eyre: An Autobiography'') is a novel by the English writer Charlotte Brontë. It was published under her pen name "Currer Bell" on 19 October 1847 by Smith, Elder & Co. of London. The firs ...

'' by

Charlotte Brontë Charlotte Nicholls (; 21 April 1816 – 31 March 1855), commonly known as Charlotte Brontë (, commonly ), was an English novelist and poet, the eldest of the three Brontë family, Brontë sisters who survived into adulthood and whose novel ...

. They are also mentioned in the novel '' McTeague'' by

Frank Norris Benjamin Franklin Norris Jr. (March 5, 1870 – October 25, 1902) was an American journalist and novelist during the Progressive Era, whose fiction was predominantly in the naturalism (literature), naturalist genre. His notable works include ''M ...

, when the title character's wife burns them to mask an unpleasant odor in the couple's rooms. In

Dashiell Hammett Samuel Dashiell Hammett ( ; May 27, 1894 – January 10, 1961) was an American writer of hard-boiled detective novels and short stories. He was also a screenwriter and political activist. Among the characters he created are Sam Spade ('' The Ma ...

's '' The Maltese Falcon'', "a half-filled package of violet pastilles" is among the items found in Joel Cairo's pockets. In

Alexandre Dumas Alexandre Dumas (born Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, 24 July 1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas , was a French novelist and playwright. His works have been translated into many languages and he is one of the mos ...

's ''

The Count of Monte Cristo ''The Count of Monte Cristo'' () is an adventure novel by the French writer Alexandre Dumas. It was serialised from 1844 to 1846, and published in book form in 1846. It is one of his most popular works, along with ''The Three Musketeers'' (184 ...

'', pastilles are used for the delivery of both medicine and poison. They were also widely used during the eighteenth century in Western cultures to take herbal curatives and medicines, which eventually were developed into sweets.

Production

Pastilles are made by pouring a thick liquid into a powdered, sugared, or waxed mold and then allowing the liquid to set and dry. The substances contained in the dried liquid are slowly released when chewed and allowed to dissolve in the mouth. The substances are then absorbed by the mucous membranes of the oral cavity or in the lower gastro-intestinal tracts. Various substances, be they of medicinal nature or for flavour, can be put into pastille forms. Due to the oily nature of these active substances (

essential oil An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile (easily evaporated at normal temperatures) chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the ...

tinctures A tincture is typically an extract of plant or animal material dissolution (chemistry), dissolved in ethanol (ethyl alcohol). Solvent concentrations of 25–60% are common, but may run as high as 90%.Groot Handboek Geneeskrachtige Planten by Ge ...

and extracts), pastilles are usually based on mixtures of

starch Starch or amylum is a polymeric carbohydrate consisting of numerous glucose units joined by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by most green plants for energy storage. Worldwide, it is the most common carbohydrate in human diet ...

and

gum arabic Gum arabic (gum acacia, gum sudani, Senegal gum and by other names) () is a tree gum exuded by two species of '' Acacia sensu lato:'' '' Senegalia senegal,'' and '' Vachellia seyal.'' However, the term "gum arabic" does not indicate a partic ...

, which emulsifies the substance and binds them in a

hydrocolloidal A colloid is a mixture in which one substance consisting of microscopically dispersed insoluble particles is suspended throughout another substance. Some definitions specify that the particles must be dispersed in a liquid, while others exten ...

matrix. The starch and gum also reduces the rate in which the pastille dissolves and moderates the amount of active substances delivered at a time. Gum arabic also hardens the pastilles and makes them more sturdy in storage and transport.

Types

Well known pastille type candies include: * Fisherman's Friend medicinal sweets * Läkerol * Violets * Mason Dots *

Mentos Mentos are a brand of packaged scotch mints or mint-flavored candies owned by the Italy, Italian-Netherlands, Dutch company Perfetti Van Melle. First produced in 1932, they are currently sold in more than 130 countries worldwide. The mints are ...

Mint (candy) A mint or breath mint is a food item often consumed as an after-meal refreshment or before business and social engagements to improve breath odor. Mints are commonly believed to soothe the stomach, given their association with natural byproducts ...

* Pine Bros. throat drops *

Vocalzone Throat Pastilles Vocalzone Throat Pastilles is a brand of throat pastille, or throat lozenge, used to help keep a speaking or singing voice clear during public performance and singing. The company was founded in 1912 by William Lloyd, who adapted a medicine he ha ...

, natural throat pastilles for voice overuse *

Jujube Jujube (UK ; US or ), sometimes jujuba, scientific name ''Ziziphus jujuba'', and also called red date, Chinese date, and Chinese jujube, is a species in the genus '' Ziziphus'' in the buckthorn family Rhamnaceae. It is often confused wit ...

Rowntree's Fruit Pastilles Rowntree's Fruit Pastilles (rebranded in Australia as Wonka Fruit Pastilles after the 1988 acquisition of Rowntree's by Nestlé, Fruit Joy in Italy; Frutips in Canada, China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan) are small round sweets measuring about ...

, small round sweets * Vichy Pastilles, octagonal candy pastilles * Wine gum * Grether's Pastilles * Pastiglie Leone, Herbal digestives and candy pastilles

References

__notoc__ {{Dosage forms Medical treatments Confectionery

Origins

Production

Types

See also

References