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If you want to combat winter colds, look no further than your refrigerator. Although there are several cold remedies available in the drugstore, you’ll probably want to deal with your cold as naturally as possible. Remember when your mom used to throw you on the couch as kid and let you sweat it out without the help of cough syrup or decongestant pills? It turns out that her solution, a healthy dose of rest and a big bowl of chicken soup, could be the best way to help you bounce back from a cold virus.
Last week, my husband woke up with a sore throat and nasal congestion. Yep, all signs pointed to the dreaded first cold of the season. I decided to make him some chicken soup from scratch, and he wondered why I was giving this to him instead of a heavy dose of throat spray. I couldn’t really answer because it is something that I have always made when I am sick. I knew that it was good for him, but I wanted to know more about why chicken soup is the standby of caretakers everywhere. Here is what I found out:
Chicken soup has been around as both a nourishing meal and as a method to specifically treat colds for a long time. Chicken broth was used as a base for boiling meats, and the term broth was first recorded in a text from the 17th century. The proverb “Too many cooks spoil the broth’ is first recorded in Sir Balthazar Gerbier’s Three Chief Principals of Magnificent Building, 1665. According to writer Cindy Lee,
“The history of this natural cold remedy dates back many centuries. In ancient Egypt, chicken soup was prescribed as a cure for the common cold and during the 12th century, Maimonides, an Egyptian Jewish physician and philosopher, recommended it for treating respiratory tract symptoms in a treatise.”
Lee also notes that almost every culture has a beloved chicken soup recipe, including: “Greek egg-lemon soup (avgolemono), Brazilian soup (canja de galinha), matzo ball soup, and Vietnamese chicken pho”.
According to a study conducted by researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical School, chicken soup helps ease cold symptoms by having a mild anti-inflammatory effect in the body. The steam from the hot soup can have a decongestant effect on the nasal passages, and the salty broth can help sooth a sore throat. The study also noted that types and brands of chicken soup account for varied results. Not all chicken soup recipes have the same effect.
Instead of dumping out a can of chicken soup into a microwave safe bowl the next time you get sick, try this quick and easy homemade chicken soup recipe that I whipped up last week:
Preparation time: 5 minute(s)
Cooking time: 15 minute(s)
Number of servings (yield): 4
What is your favorite way to combat winter colds naturally?
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