My Grandmother Swore By Chicken Soup When We Were Ill—Our Experts Weigh In on Which Urban Wellness Legends Actually Work

My grandmother swore by chicken soup whenever we were ill. At the first sign of a sniffle, Nanny would have a pan bubbling away on the hob, filled with chicken, garlic, turmeric, root vegetables and enough steaming salty broth to clear your head before you’d even picked up the spoon.

It always came with a French stick slathered in butter so thick you could leave teeth marks in it. Not, admittedly, an essential part of any flu-fighting protocol, but it did go “straight to the heart”, as she would fondly say.

Like many of the remedies passed down through families, I never really questioned whether Nanny’s chicken soup was actually doing anything. It was hot, comforting and made with love; when you’re eight years old and feeling rotten, that’s evidence enough. But now that cold and flu season is rolling around again, I wanted to know whether there was any science behind the saucepan.

A study found that soup could help ease common respiratory symptoms such as a blocked nose, sore throat and cough, along with a modest reduction in how long people felt unwell. Further research suggests chicken soup appeared to affect the movement of neutrophils - immune cells involved in reducing inflammation. Granted, none of this proves it's a cure, but it does suggest there may be more to the ritual than comfort alone.

When I asked four experts spanning nutrition, pharmacy and medicine, their verdict was surprisingly united: my grandmother wasn't exactly making medicine, but that bowl of soup was doing rather more than simply warming me up. If you're looking for more ways to stave off a cold this winter, read our expert-led guide on failsafe formulas for avoiding a cold. Plus, this read on what happened when one MC writer drank bone broth for a month before breakfast is worth bookmarking, too.

Can Chicken Soup Really Cure A Cold? I Asked The Experts

What does the body actually need nutritionally when we’re fighting a virus?

The short answer? Yes—but it isn't fighting the virus itself. Unfortunately, there isn’t a food capable of karate-chopping a cold virus out of your system. What your body does need is enough fuel and fluid to carry on doing its natural role of fighting it off.

“When you're ill, your body is working hard, so the basics matter most,” explains Francesca Chetham, nutritionist for Doctor Seaweed. Fluid is particularly important, she says, because fever, sweating and a runny nose can all increase fluid loss. Your body also still needs energy and protein, even when your appetite has vanished.

Performance chef and nutritional specialist Dan Sargeant points out that chicken soup provides "fluids, protein and a good spread of nutrients", while Pupinder Ghatora, pharmacist and founder of Ingenious, adds that its warmth can be soothing for a sore throat or congestion.

In other words, soup isn't attacking the cold or flu virus. It's giving your body hydration, fuel and nutrients in a form you can probably stomach when a proper dinner feels impossible.

Which chicken soup ingredients actually help?

My Nanny’s tendency to throw half the vegetable drawer into a saucepan may have been doing more than making the kitchen smell incredible.

Chicken is high in protein and zinc, while the vegetables add their own mix of immune-supporting nutrients and plant compounds: carrots are a source of beta-carotene, which the body converts into vitamin A. Onions contain plant compounds including quercetin, and the broth itself provides fluid and salt alongside nutrients released from the ingredients while they cook.

Scientific research points to the further benefits of chicken broth, with amino acids and minerals that may help support the gut barrier, nutrient absorption and the body’s normal inflammatory response.

Then there are the flavour-makers. "Garlic, ginger, chilli and coriander all have compounds with antimicrobial, antiviral or anti-inflammatory properties," says Sargeant—although he's clear that evidence in humans isn't strong enough to treat any of them as a cure.

Garlic is a good example. It contains sulphur compounds that have attracted scientific interest, but Ghatora says there "isn't strong enough evidence to suggest that garlic can stop you getting ill".

So by all means be generous with the cloves. Just don't expect them to behave like medicine.

Can food really support your immune system?

There’s one phrase almost every expert I spoke to wanted to clear up: “boosting” your immune system.

“You can't really ‘boost’ it,” says Sargeant. “The aim is to give the body what it needs to do the job it already does well.”

And the less exciting truth is that what you eat before you wake up bunged up probably matters more than panic-buying ginger shots afterwards.

“An orange on Monday won't give you a superhuman immune system on Tuesday,” Sargeant adds. Instead, eating a varied diet containing enough protein, fruit, vegetables, wholegrains and other nutrient-rich foods consistently helps supply the nutrients required for normal immune function.

Dr Samila Asad, GP at the Female Health Doctor clinic, also makes an important distinction: getting ill doesn't mean your immune system has failed. "You can look after yourself well and still pick up a virus," she says.

Once you're sick, she cautions against trying to compensate with handfuls of supplements. More isn't automatically better and, in some cases, excessive supplementation can be harmful. Her prescription is considerably less glamorous: rest, drink regularly and eat what you can manage.

So, what's the verdict on chicken soup's 'flu fighting' properties?

According to the four experts I spoke to, yes - with a fairly important caveat. It won’t cure a cold or flu, nor will it magically “boost” your immune system, but it can give your body several things it genuinely needs when you’re unwell: fluid, energy, protein and useful nutrients, all in a form that’s easy to eat when your appetite has disappeared.

The warmth may help soothe congestion and a sore throat, while early research suggests there could also be mild anti-inflammatory benefits.

Fact or Fiction? The Experts Debunk 6 Cold and Flu Old Wives' Tales

1. Chicken soup fights flu

It doesn't kill the virus or cure flu, but it can provide hydration and nutrition, soothe symptoms and may have mild anti-inflammatory effects. As Dr Asad puts it: "If it helps you eat, drink and feel a little more comfortable, that's worthwhile in itself."

2. "Feed a cold, starve a fever"

Your body needs fuel and fluid either way. "Don't force yourself to eat if you have no appetite, but don't deliberately restrict food either," says Ghatora. Hydration becomes particularly important with a fever.

3. Vitamin C prevents colds

Vitamin C is essential for normal immune function, but taking huge doses after symptoms begin isn't a shortcut to recovery. Regular supplementation hasn't been shown to prevent colds in most people, although evidence suggests it may modestly shorten their duration.

4. Garlic stops you getting ill

Garlic contains compounds with interesting biological properties, and some research has explored whether it could play a preventative role, but evidence remains limited.

Consider it a delicious addition to your soup rather than an invisible force field against a commuter coughing on public transport.

5. Honey and lemon kills a cough

It won't kill the virus, but it might make being ill slightly less miserable.

“Honey has some evidence for easing a cough, and the warm drink can soothe your throat,” says Dr Asad. The NHS also recommends a warm lemon-and-honey drink as one way to soothe a sore throat. However, honey should not be given to babies under one year old.

6. Going out with wet hair gives you a cold

Sorry, Nanny. Colds are caused by viruses, not damp hair. They're more common during colder months, partly because we spend more time indoors and close to other people, making viruses easier to spread.

Perhaps, then, the real genius of Nanny's soup wasn't that it could magically stop a cold in its tracks. It was that one steaming bowl managed to hydrate us, feed us and make us feel looked after when we felt rubbish.

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