Sickness can be frustrating, especially if it is a constant cough and cold. During this period, food can be your best friend. From boosting immunity to providing energy, food can certainly do so many things. For cough and cold, there are several types of food that will help your body to fight illness. However, it is important to remember along with the nutritional diet, there are certain products that you have to avoid, as they can worsen your cold or make you feel dehydrated. For instance dairy products, caffeine, and alcohol.
Cold and cough strongly interfere with your appetite. You always feel bloated, which kills down your need to eat anything. Though when you are sick, it is essential to stay hydrated and receive nourishment.
We have listed several foods that you need to consume in order to treat cold and cough.
Ginger
One of the most common and popular remedies to treat cold is ginger. With its anti-inflammatory properties, it works as the best cure for cough. A cup of hot ginger tea or adding a one-fourth teaspoon of ginger to your soup will not only provide relief to your throat but will also help in easing the cough. It is best known for its anti-nausea effects.
Honey
Honey is rich in antimicrobial properties, which helps in fighting cold and cough bacteria. Several households use a half tablespoon of honey to treat the cough of children. Adding to this, honey provides the same results as per the over the counter medicines, so a half teaspoon of honey will help you to cure the sore throat.
Citrus Food
Citrus food has a high level of vitamin C and flavonoids. These properties help in decreasing inflammation as well as boost immunity that aids in fighting cough and fever. These frozen juices help in soothing sore throat. Flavonoids help in fighting cold and cough that can also be found in berries, significantly helping in the treatment of rhinovirus infections.
BRAT Food
Most people suffering from cold and cough are recommended BRAT food, which involves banana, rice, applesauce, and toast. These foods are starch and fiber, helping you to recover from nausea and diarrhea. Other foods like oatmeal, soup, boiled potato are also included in the BRAT diet.
Garlic
Garlic has unlimited health benefits, and one of those is to treat cold and cough. Garlic has been considered a medicinal herb for ages, with properties such as antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral. In addition to this, frequent consumption of garlic helps in boosting immunity, which significantly helps in fighting virus and bacteria. A number of studies have been conducted that put focus on the benefits of garlic in treating sore throat and cough. You can consume garlic soup, eat a strand of garlic, or put it in your food while cooking, to help in getting treated as early as possible.
Herbal Tea
Other than the food, one of the things that you should not forget is the regular intake of fluids that are rich in antiviral properties. For cold and cough, staying hydrated should be the top priority. Thus, amplify your intake of fluids. Herbal tea is another popular product that helps in treating cough. You can add turmeric to the herbal tree, as its properties help in providing relief to a sore throat.
Spicy Food
Top health nutritionists recommend spicy foods during cold and cough, as their burning sensation helps in breaking up the mucus, curing a cold, and releasing sinus packages. The spicy foods are high in concentration, which has pacifying impact helping to treat sore throat. Spicy foods like pepper consist of capsaicin, which is a compound found in several pain relief gels. This is one of the reasons, several medical practitioners suggest spicy food intake such as hot and sour soup to help in gain relief from the painful throat.
Green Vegetables
One name that most of us hate is green vegetables, but we can never argue on the fact regarding the benefits these green leafy vegetables provide us. They are rich in nutrition, vitamins, and minerals, helping our immunity system to fight virus and bacteria. Foods such as spinach, kale, and lettuce are the house of fiber, vitamins, and minerals, helping to cure a frustrating cold. You can boil and eat them or can make a spicy soup rich with green leafy vegetables in order to get relief from the cold.
Remember, drinking lots of fluids and consuming a nutrient-rich diet will aid in quick and better recovery!
Author Bio:
Jennifer is an editor and author at citric labs. He loves to write and educate people about health, skincare and many more.