When you’re sick, your body burns more calories fighting infection while your appetite drops, so the goal is to eat foods that are easy to tolerate, support your immune system, and keep you hydrated. Fever alone increases your energy expenditure by about 11 to 16% for every degree Celsius your temperature rises. You don’t need to force large meals, but eating the right things can genuinely shorten your illness and help you recover faster.
Chicken Soup Really Works
Chicken soup isn’t just comfort food. Lab research published in the journal Chest found that chicken soup inhibits the movement of white blood cells called neutrophils in a concentration-dependent way. Neutrophils are the immune cells that rush to infection sites and trigger the inflammatory response behind congestion, sore throat, and that heavy, achy feeling. By slowing their migration, chicken soup appears to have a mild anti-inflammatory effect that can ease upper respiratory symptoms.
The study tested the individual ingredients and found that the vegetables and the chicken each had inhibitory activity on their own. So a homemade version with carrots, celery, onions, and chicken in a brothy base gives you the broadest benefit. The warm liquid also helps loosen mucus and keeps you hydrated, which matters more than most people realize when they’re running a fever.
Hydration Is the Top Priority
Fever, sweating, vomiting, and diarrhea all pull water out of your body fast. Replacing fluids is the single most important thing you can do during any illness. Water is fine for mild cases, but if you’re losing fluids through vomiting or diarrhea, you also need electrolytes. Your small intestine absorbs water most efficiently when sodium and glucose are present in a 1:1 ratio, which is the principle behind oral rehydration solutions.
You don’t necessarily need a store-bought electrolyte drink. Broth-based soups, coconut water, and diluted fruit juice all provide some combination of fluid, sodium, and sugar. Popsicles and ice chips work well if swallowing liquids feels difficult. The key is sipping consistently throughout the day rather than trying to drink large amounts at once, especially if nausea is an issue.
Protein Helps Your Immune System Recover
Your immune system runs on protein. One amino acid in particular, glutamine, is normally considered non-essential because your body makes enough of it on its own. But during infection and inflammation, glutamine becomes “conditionally essential,” meaning your body burns through it faster than it can produce it. Glutamine fuels the rapid multiplication of T-cells (the immune cells that target specific invaders) and supports the production of signaling molecules that coordinate your immune response. When glutamine levels drop, immune function measurably declines.
Good sources of glutamine and other immune-supporting amino acids include eggs, skinless chicken or turkey, fish, and yogurt. These are all relatively easy on the stomach. If solid protein feels like too much, stirring an egg into hot broth or sipping on a smoothie with yogurt can get protein into your system without requiring much appetite.
What to Eat With an Upset Stomach
The classic BRAT diet (bananas, rice, applesauce, toast) has been standard advice for decades, but there’s no research comparing it to other approaches. Harvard Health notes that it’s reasonable to follow BRAT for a day or two during stomach flu or food poisoning, but there’s no reason to limit yourself to only those four foods. Brothy soups, oatmeal, boiled potatoes, crackers, and unsweetened dry cereals are equally easy to digest.
Once your stomach starts settling, transition to more nutritious options: cooked squash, cooked carrots, sweet potatoes without the skin, avocado, and lean proteins like chicken or eggs. These are bland enough to tolerate but provide the protein and vitamins your body needs to actually recover. Sticking with BRAT too long can leave you short on nutrients at the exact moment your immune system demands more of them.
Honey for Coughs and Sore Throats
Honey coats the throat and can calm a cough about as effectively as the standard over-the-counter cough suppressant dextromethorphan. A clinical trial in children found no significant difference between honey and dextromethorphan for relieving nighttime cough and improving sleep. Both were better than no treatment, but honey matched the medication’s results without the side effects.
A spoonful of honey in warm water or tea is the simplest approach. It works for adults and children over 12 months old. (Honey should never be given to infants under one year due to the risk of botulism.) Buckwheat honey was the specific type used in the research, but any variety will coat and soothe an irritated throat.
Ginger for Nausea
If nausea is your main symptom, ginger is one of the most studied natural remedies. The active compounds in ginger root help settle the stomach, and most clinical research has used between 250 mg and 1 gram of powdered ginger taken one to four times daily. You don’t need capsules to get this effect. Fresh ginger steeped in hot water as tea, ginger chews, or even flat ginger ale made with real ginger can help. For context, a one-inch piece of fresh ginger root contains roughly 250 mg of the active compounds.
Vitamin C: Timing Matters
Vitamin C is the supplement people reach for most when they feel a cold coming on, but the timing changes everything. If you take vitamin C regularly before getting sick, it shortens colds by about 14% in children and 8% in adults. That translates to roughly one fewer day of symptoms for a week-long cold. However, if you start taking vitamin C only after symptoms appear, the benefit drops to a statistically insignificant 2.5% reduction in adults.
This means vitamin C is better as a daily habit during cold season than as an emergency remedy. That said, eating vitamin C-rich foods while sick (citrus fruits, strawberries, bell peppers, kiwi) still provides hydration, antioxidants, and easy calories your body can use.
Foods and Drinks to Skip
Some foods make symptoms worse or slow recovery. Sugary drinks and candy can suppress immune cell activity for hours after consumption. Alcohol dehydrates you and interferes with sleep, both of which your body can’t afford during illness. Greasy, fried, or heavily spiced foods are harder to digest and can worsen nausea or diarrhea. Caffeine in large amounts is also dehydrating, though a small cup of tea is generally fine and can provide soothing warmth.
One thing you don’t need to avoid: dairy. The idea that milk increases mucus production is a persistent myth. Research going back to 1948 has consistently found no connection between drinking milk and producing more phlegm. What actually happens is that milk and saliva mix to create a slightly thick coating in the mouth and throat, which people mistake for extra mucus. Studies in asthmatic children found no difference in symptoms between those who drank dairy milk and those who drank soy milk. So if yogurt, warm milk, or cheese sounds appealing when you’re sick, go ahead.
A Simple Sick-Day Eating Plan
You don’t need a complicated strategy. Focus on three things: fluids first, then easy protein, then whatever fruits and vegetables you can tolerate.
- Morning: Warm broth or tea with honey, oatmeal with banana, or scrambled eggs if your stomach allows it.
- Throughout the day: Sip water, broth, or an electrolyte drink consistently. Don’t wait until you feel thirsty.
- Meals: Chicken soup, rice with steamed vegetables, toast with avocado, yogurt with fruit. Keep portions small and eat more frequently rather than forcing three big meals.
- Snacks: Crackers, applesauce, popsicles, or a smoothie if chewing feels like too much effort.
Your appetite will likely be low for the first day or two, and that’s normal. Don’t force yourself to eat large amounts, but do keep sipping fluids and nibbling on whatever you can manage. As your fever breaks and energy returns, gradually reintroduce fuller meals with lean protein and cooked vegetables to replenish what your body burned through fighting the infection.