What to Eat When You Have a Cold: 8 Healing Foods
Updated: Oct. 04, 2018
Have a case of the sniffles? Here’s the foods you need to be eating to beat a case of the common cold as quickly as possible.
Chicken noodle soup
Eating a bowl of steaming chicken noodle soup provides more than just comfort when you have a terrible cold. In 2000, University of Nebraska researcher Dr. Stephen Rennard published findings in Chest, the journal of the American College of Chest Physicians, showing chicken soup contains anti-inflammatory agents that can ease a cold’s symptoms. Dr. Mehmet Oz agrees. “Start with a bowl of Mom’s chicken soup,” he has said. “Research has yet to show how it works (and how the heck Ma knew), but we do know that a nutrient-rich diet builds your immune system and fights inflammation.”
Check out these 6 Homemade Chicken Soup Recipes.
Milk and other vitamin D-rich foods
Vitamin D-rich foods like milk or fortified cereal might help combat a cold. A 2009 study by Massachusetts General Hospital found that people with low levels of vitamin D reported more colds than those who weren’t vitamin D deficient. As an added bonus, these foods may help boost your mood during cold weather months, according to researchers at Loyola University.
Carrots and other vitamin A-rich foods
All vitamins are essential to maintaining good health, but Harvard Medical School says vitamin A is a key player in maintaining a strong immune system. When you have a cold, try eating sweet potatoes, carrots, squash, spinach, or collard greens.
Brush up on the 13 Essential Vitamins Your Body Needs to Stay Healthy!
Cold green tea
Green tea is full of antioxidants, which will boost your immune system even when you’re already sick. Green tea can also help ease symptoms that often come with a cold, like a sore throat. Instead of sipping a hot mugful, Dr. Michael Greger suggests brewing it cold: antioxidant levels are higher that way compared to when it’s made with boiling water.
Garlic
Garlic has been found to help prevent colds when consumed regularly, owing to its immune-boosting compound allicin, says Donna Cardillo, RN. Eat more garlic when you have a cold, or try it raw with an orange-juice chaser.
Check out 10 More Healing Herbs and Spices!
Blueberries
Researchers from Cornell University found that blueberries contained the most antioxidants than any other fresh fruit tested, which should help beat your sniffles. Eat them alone when you have a cold, or sprinkle on a bowl of cereal or yogurt to add some vitamin D.
Check out more of the health benefits of wild blueberries!
Tea
Tea is soothing when you’re congested, especially a brew with natural expectorants like anise seeds. Health.com recommends the American Pharmaceutical Association’s recipe: one cup of crushed anise seeds to one cup of hot water, flavoured with sugar, garlic, cinnamon, or honey. Sip tea up to three times a day. If you don’t like licorice flavour, try peppermint. University of Maryland Medical Center reported that peppermint tea acts as an expectorant, loosening mucus and breaking up coughs.
Fish
Health.com suggests eating oily fish, like salmon and tuna, when you have a cold, to take advantage of their omega-3 fatty acids. These compounds help reduce inflammation in the body, which can prevent your immune system from working properly.
