Home-Made Soup a Great Cold Remedy
A Bowl of Chicken or Turkey Soup/Stew Boosts Your Immune System
Nov 13, 2008
There is nothing more satisfying than a hearty bowl of turkey or chicken soup on a cold day. But if you are suffering from a cold a bowl of chicken soup is an age-old remedy.
Secret to Making a Great Chicken Soup
The secret to a great chicken or turkey soup is simply boil the leftovers of a turkey or chicken dinner with all of the seasoned leftover vegetables. But add more fresh vegetables and definitely add more seasonings such as garlic, pepper and a little cayenne to give the soup that added 'Kick". However, there are many online recipes available for a great home-made chicken or turkey soup.
Research Supports Chicken Soup Remedy for a Cold
There is an abundance of research supporting chicken soup as a cold remedy. One study indicated chicken soup contains a number of substances with beneficial medicinal activity including an anti-inflammatory mechanism that could ease the symptoms of upper respiratory tract infections.
The study was reported in the article "Chicken Soup Inhibits Neutrophil Chemotaxis In Vitro," by Barbara O. Rennard; et al, October 2000 issue of CHEST, the peer-reviewed journal of the American College of Chest Physicians.
This study was initiated by researchers from the Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Section of the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska. The researchers set out to evaluate the ability of chicken soup's effect on the inflammatory response associated with colds.
Grandma's Soup
The recipe they used was called "Grandma's soup," which not only included chicken, but also onions, sweet potato, parsnips, turnips, carrots, celery stems, and parsley, with the addition of salt and pepper.
Many tests were conducted on the soup; for example, to determine which components of the soup contained "neutrophil inhibitor activity."
For comparison purposes, commercially available soups were obtained from a local supermarket and prepared according to the directions on the label.
In Dr. Rennard study, researchers found chicken soup contains a number of substances, including an anti-inflammatory mechanism that could ease the symptoms of upper respiratory tract infections.
The researchers also found that any chicken soup recipe shows the same kind of results as the doctors' wife recipe. In fact, almost any store bought chicken soup has similar results.
For more information check out the University of Nebraska Medical Center's web site - "Chicken Soup for a Cold."
You can click on to the video tab marked - "The Rennards cook and share "Grandma's" famous recipe." Stephen Rennard, M.D. took his wife's family recipe into his lab and discovered chicken soup slows cold symptoms.
Chicken Soup Age Old Remedy for a Cold
However, the suspected benefits of chicken soup were reported centuries ago. Colds are often infections of the upper respiratory tract from a variety of viruses. While incompletely understood, the viral infection leads to what researchers refer to as "the stimulation of a cytokine cascade."
Medical experts explain cytokines are soluble proteins secreted by various cell types and involved in cell-to-cell communication, co-ordinating antibody and T-cell immune interactions, and amplifying immune reactivity. In other words - you are all stuffed-up and congested with a runny nose.
Many, if not most symptoms related to colds are likely the result of the inflammatory response initiated by the 'cytokine cascade'.
So when you have a cold and are reaching for a glass of orange juice cook up a pot of chicken soup and have a bowl... it might make you feel better.
