Interesting Facts about Pasta and Spaghetti

Here are some interesting facts about pasta and spaghetti:

One of the most important times in the history of the spaghetti was World War II. It was then that American soldiers came in close contact with European cuisine, bringing home tales about spaghetti and demanding its presence on the American market.
There are 158 calories in 100grams of spaghetti.
Some of the most notable components of spaghetti are fat, carbohydrates (fiber and sugar), proteins, magnesium and iron.
There are currently over 310 confirmed types of pasta. They are known by over 1300 names

Tomato juice is today synonym for spaghetti consumption, however that was not always so. Tomato juice and ketchup were invented in 18th century.
Spaghetti became truly popular in the United States only after they were offered in stores as easy to use spaghetti kits.
The largest ever bowl of spaghetti was created in 2010 when Californian restaurant Buca di Beppo managed to fill one swimming pool with around 6.250 kg of pasta.
In 1955 Italy exported 74,000 tons of spaghetti. This number increased regularly, and in 2008 Italy exported 1.7million tones.

Biggest importers of pasta today are United States, Germany, UK and France.
Average Italian eats more than 25 kg of pasta every year.
Pasta was used as food for more than 5000 years, but first confirmed mention of spaghetti comes from 11th century AD. During Roman times in 1s century AD, Italian cooks prepared meals with similar look, but those pasta products were not spaghetti.
First American factory for spaghetti production was established in in Brooklyn in 1848.