Chicken soup; medical benefits.

[count tiszula]

This may be old news, but I saw a tv item the other day where the use of chicken soup to cure the common cold was discussed, and whether it has any real medical benenfit.

You know the sort of thing. Anyway, apart from the fact that it is warm and nutritious, it was claimed that it hs a real therapeutic effect because some chemical in the chicken apparently causes mucus to loosen or be produced.

Is this true; any experiences of it? Do you have to inhale the fumes, I wonder.

It wasn't a tradition when I was brought up; if anything tomato soup was commoner. And I suspect that may have been because the red colour looks as if it's warming. And I seem to rememebr a college friend of mine recommending mushroom soup.

[Guest iffthelurker]

I don't know about chemicals in the chicken, but just about any warm liquid loosens up the mucus if I'm congested.

After looking around though, I found this:

http://archives.cnn.com/2000/HEALTH/diet.f...cken.soup.reut/

[ellwren]

I believe that some ingredient or other has been found to suppress the movement of neutrophils. Chicken soup also has anti-inflammatory properties, which relieve symptoms.

I was raised on the stuff and had matzoh ball soup shoved down my throat my entire childhood, until I was old enough to declare my staunch vegetarianism and put an end to the food tyranny. But matzoh balls and dill and parsley and carrots and noodles are so delicious.

[KawaiiKitty]

Okay...I got really curious about this because I wondered if chicken has magical properties or something and if there is a connection between the chicken soup belief and what I was led to believe about "essence of chicken" which is not taken so much for colds as for when the body needs a boost in strength, which does include recovering from an illness (as well as taking exams, etc.)

And I have heard the claim over and over again that the benefits of essence of chicken is "scientifically proven".

So I poked around on the internet to see if I could find any similarities between chicken soup and essence of chicken but I couldn't actually find any scientific proof that wasn't attached to some brand purely saying "this is scientifically proven". Nothing that talked about any specific properties of chicken that would lead to health benefits.

I did find a rather disturbing study that involved burning rats and then feeding them essence of chicken to see if it sped up recovery time. A summary is Here, there was a really complicated PDF file I found as well but it was very detailed and complicated.

But that's all I could find. Wow, I sure was useless in this discussion, wasn't I? Still, if chicken related things are universally beleived there must be something there, right?

[countless]

I remember from my childhood that my grandmother would prepare a broth when someone had come down with a bad cold or flu.

It was not made from chicken, but PIGEON. And it was supposed to give strength, and loosen the mucus. As my grandparents died in their 90's only I suppose it must be good for one's health. But I have never tried it myself.

C

[ellwren]

I remember from my childhood that my grandmother would prepare a broth when someone had come down with a bad cold or flu.

It was not made from chicken, but PIGEON. And it was supposed to give strength, and loosen the mucus. As my grandparents died in their 90's only I suppose it must be good for one's health. But I have never tried it myself.

C

Never heard of cooking pigeon. Where was your grandmother from?

[countless]

I remember from my childhood that my grandmother would prepare a broth when someone had come down with a bad cold or flu.

It was not made from chicken, but PIGEON. And it was supposed to give strength, and loosen the mucus. As my grandparents died in their 90's only I suppose it must be good for one's health. But I have never tried it myself.

C

Never heard of cooking pigeon. Where was your grandmother from?

100 % Belgian.

Nowadays pigeon can be eaten in the better restaurants. And it is said to be tasty, a bit like chicken but with a finer flavour.

I should give it a try.