“Feed a cold
Starve a fever”
Truth or myth?
It’s that time of year again where we will undoubtedly get “that bug that’s going round” (not Corona). I’ve just had the cold bug for about a week, and the silver lining to having the sniffles is all the guilt -free munching that comes with it. But how serious am I being here?
FEED A COLD
All the food! Get tap-happy on the Uber Eats app and enjoy McDonalds, pizzas and kebabs, all in the sake of medicine! Am I teasing you? A bit, but not entirely.
We need to feed our bodies with essential nutrients to fight back at the virus. There is the well-known infection-fighting vitamin C, but also we need to load up on vitamin D and zinc to build up the immune system so it can force the illness away.
So yes, feed a cold is correct, but make sure you understand that means with nutritious meals! I also need to stress that to FEED a cold is correct - do not worry about calorie-counting. Eat as much of the good stuff as you can. Whilst your body is repairing itself, it will be using extra energy anyway. And the odd less-nutritious stodgy meal isn’t a no-go either. That happy buzz from a cheeky stodge-delivery is a healer in itself (dopamine, that is!).
So what should you be eating?
These are the staples I always buy when I’m poorly - I include something from this list with all meals (even if part of that meal is a pie or pizza), or you could make them into a soup, smoothie or juice.
(per 100g - RDA 60mg)
Broccoli 89.2mg VitC
Kale 120mg VitC
Oranges 53.2mg VitC
Kiwis 92.7mg VitC
Grapefruit 31.2mg VitC
Garlic - studies have proven that the length of cold symptoms can be reduced up to 70%.
Ice Cream - a soothing treat!
STARVE A FEVER
A fever is your body’s natural creation to battle an infection. This is what the food you
eat does during a cold, so you do not have the same reasons to eat when you’re feeling fever-ish, nor will you probably even want to. When you do, still focus on getting immunity-boosting nutrients inside. Think soups and smoothies, nutrient-packed with each forced-sip!