Chicken Soup for the Common Cold

The winter season is upon us, and with that: the common cold.  We know we need to wash our hands, try to keep our immune systems functioning properly, but it is destined to befall all of us as we spend most of our time in enclosed places during these cold months.

Reputable sources discount the effectiveness of everything from antibiotics to over-the-counter  medicines as a cure for the common cold.  Alternative medicine is full of natural remedies, everything from zinc and vitamin C to echinacea and other herbal remedies.  But the answer to relief from the common cold may have been stewing on our kitchen stove all along: chicken soup!

In a recent study out of the University of Nebraska, Dr. Stephen Rennard showed that chicken soup actually has medicinal value.  Using his wife's recipe, passed down from her Lithuanian grandmother, Rennard's study demonstrated the soup's ability to slow down the movement of neutrophils.  Neutrophils are immune system cells that help the body's response to inflammation.  It was also shown to, "temporarily speed up the movement of mucus through the nose, helping relieve congestion and limiting the time viruses are in contact with the nasal lining," according to the Mayo Clinic. 

Results are out as to what exactly in the soup produces these reactions.  They believe it may be the workings of both the vegetables and the chicken together.  Yet more proof that our food can actually cure.

Here is the actual chicken soup used in the study:

Grandma's Recipe:
1 5-to 6-pound Stewing hen or baking chicken
1 package of chicken wings
3 large onions
1 large sweet potato
3 parsnips
2 turnips
11-12 large carrots
5-6 celery stems
1 bunch of parsley
salt and pepper to taste

Clean the chicken, put it in a large pot and cover it with cold water.  Bring the

 water to a boil.  Add chicken wings, onions, sweet potato, parsnips, turnips and 

carrots.  Boil about 1 1/2 hours.  Remove fat from the surface as it accumulates. 

Add the parsley and celery.  Cook the mixture about 45 minutes longer.  Remove the

 chicken.  The chicken is not used further for the soup.  (The meat makes excellent

 chicken parmesan.)  Put the vegetables in a food processor until they are chopped 

fine or pass through a strainer.  Both were performed in the present study.  Add

 salt and pepper to taste.