Does Chicken soup really help cure a cold?

Thank you very much indeed for your help :)...

Thank you very much indeed for your help :)

Steve M	Yes, it does! Jewish mothers have been making home-made chicken soup (including boiling the bones) for 200 years - it's become known as 'Jewish Penicillin.'

Whipass Chick	It helps!

Toni Angel	Not really sure it does, but it does make you feel better when you eat it. Calming and filling. You're welcome. ♥

Mal777	Well, I hear liquids help, and the veggies and protien is probably a good balance, so it might help.

☼ ツMARY -KATE♥☮™	WOW!!!!! where did u hear that?????? no, indeed!!!!!!!!!

D	Not really but it does taste nice when your not feeling well.

lazybird2006	I do not know. But I do know a Hot toddy sweats it out, if you drink them.

crazeeladee no more	***Well my mother in law used to make it every week and whenever i had a cold it always made me feel better.....i think it's because it was homemade and wholesome....a comfort thing...***

Lewisthelab	No, who told you this cobblers

sapphire_630	homemade works. It is not a cure but it does help as much as anything else. The broth/stock/bones contains some kind of ingredient that is good for colds. I have been trying to find the site that had the ingredient and explanation but I haven't been able to find it again. Adding spices like Garlic, Onion, red pepper flakes, a little cayenne helps even more. When it is hot and steamy it helps clear a stuffy nose too. http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art19003.asp

Irishprincess	Its more like a comfort food to have when you have a cold. Well i always take a bowl of chicken soup when i have a cold and it always works for me.

sweets	no but commonly with colds you have chills from a fever and a sore throat...soup will help these as well as the steam from the soup opening your nasal passage. it wont cure your cold, but its very comforting.

lori	It doesn't cure a cold but helps relieve and sooth one.

Guy	No, but it tastes nice.

cutie ♥	No, it doesn't, but that doesn't mean it won't make you feel better! It soothes you throat, and relaxes you, AND, it is also one of those things that puts you in the state of mind that you are healing. So, my friend, drink on, as far as I'm concerned. Live. Laugh. Love. -Cutie

Cherrypicker	According to The Observer Book of the Body -under the heading "old wives' tales", "keeping well nourished is important at any time in life, whether you have a cold or not. Chicken soup has no special benefits that affect a cold but is relatively easy to make and might mentally make you feel better."

zxcvbmnz	I find the best thing for a cold is to take some Echinacea. Sounds weird but it is basically a flower and it works wonders for me when I have a cold. Follow the link for more details.

Mark B	No, it doesn't 'cure' a cold, but for many people having a hot tasty soup can help relax them and warm them up. However, if it is a homemade soup with lots of fresh ingredients, it can help battle a cold and stregthen the immune system, but chicken soup does not "cure" a cold, no.

jacs	no but tastes wonderful x

Sadie	I don't think it actually improves your condition just makes you fell warm inside. It is also very relaxing.

♥Dog♥Lover♥	Not really its just relaxing to have.

Champagne	I actually think it's more of a comfort for when you're ill. My mum used to make me chicken soup when i was ill as a child. I have Tonsilitus now and my mums chicken soup is all i can seem to eat and it's definitely making me feel a little better. ( Im now 29 but she still makes it for me when im ill )

old know all	No. Nor does malt whisky, or crespoline washed down with Valpolicella. But it's as good an excuse as any.

colorado kid	....research has been done on this, at taxpayer expense no less, and it works...it does help, homemade is better, but, I would suggest some good brand rather than a cheap brand, and grind some black pepper in it also...I have been using it to help for years little partner...get some in yourself, and keep some extra handy !!!

j.pee69	Apparently it does!!

Sunshine	It clears the sinus--but any hot liquid does the same:-)

Blueberryflowers	Chicken soup with Garlic and onions with greens cooked in it and some hot pepper or chili paste to clear the sinuses. Eat Oranges too and Zinc. The vegetables and Garlic do help fight off the cold. Use fresh Garlic.

Spelling Bee-otch	No, but the steam from the hot soup can help open up nasal passages, so if you eat it, lean over the bowl!

mistickle17	Homemade chicken soup where the bones have been boiled is supposed to be very good, I can't remember why but I know I read it recently and it was not an old wives tale.

Quizard	According to food historians chicken soup was prescribed as a cure for the common cold in Ancient Egypt. The 10th century Persian physician Avicenna referred to the curative powers of chicken soup in his writings. In the 12th century the Jewish Sage Maimonides wrote that chicken soup “has virtue in rectifying corrupted humours”, and recommended it as nutrition for convalescents; Maimonides also particularly recommended chicken soup for people suffering from hemorrhoids and the early stages of leprosy. Modern research conducted by Dr. Stephen Rennard, professor of pulmonary and critical care medicine, and his colleagues at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha suggests that there might be some scientific basis for the belief in the curative powers of chicken soup. They found that the particular blend of nutrients and vitamins in traditional chicken soup can slow the activity of certain white blood cells. This may have an anti-inflammatory effect that could hypothetically lead to temporary ease from symptoms of illness. Their research was published in 2000 in the scientific journal Chest[2]. This was not, however, an in vivo clinical trial, and did not demonstrate that chicken soup was the best foodstuff for this purpose. Because it is simple to prepare, relatively cheap, nutritious, and easily digested, chicken soup is a good food for winter convalescents. Sipping warm soup can also clear the sinuses because of the steam ventilating into the nasal passages, serving as a natural Decongestant, which also relieves Cold And Flu symptoms. Last, but not least, chicken soup can be beneficial due to the placebo effect of comfort foods.