But how do I get above the weather?

I've been a little under the weather lately. Which is very easily explained because due to a crappy, warm winter (global warming and such) all the viruses have survived and are now getting to us one at a time. Even my parents, who are never ill, joined me in my war of the sniffles.

It sucks. I want soup.

There are actually some things you can do to help boost your immune system! Thru food! Which is of course my favorite way to cure anything.

First, let get something out of the way, you can't cure the cold you have by eating anything from pills to oranges - you are ill. Sleep it out.
But you CAN however help your body recover more quickly by just following these simple steps:

1. Sip on anything broth based. 

Yes, granny was right. Her chicken soup WILL get you better! Now any broth based soup will help you prevent dehydration and keep your throat and nose from going soar - meaning it keeps every airway nicely moist. But I also learned that chicken contains an amino acid called cysteine which apparently thins all that lovely mucus in your lungs. Aside from an 'EW' for the word mucus, thank you Ms. Hen and cysteine.

Fun fact - Sheep use cysteine to grow wool. So if it wasn't for cysteine we'd be shivering and sniffing all winter long. The things one learns when browsing the web. Magical.

2. Get it steaming, hot stuff

Not sexy steamy - although it couldn't hurt - but boiling water steamy!
Tea. Tea is the answer to everything in my humble opinion. Add some honey to cure your sore throat and you are sure to be hydrated with your soothing cup of heaven.



Fun fact #1 - If you use honey from a local beekeeper you are sure to get an immunity boost for next years pollen season! How? Bees make honey from pollen - as we all know - and if you eat the honey they create from the pollen that grow around your natural environment your body can build up an immunity or tolerance for those particular pollen.

Fun fact #2 - If you also suffer from a stomach ache add some fresh ginger root to your tea. Ginger is a natural anti inflammatory and helps sooth your stomach acid.

3. Ice, ice baby

Popsicles. Cold helps to numb any feeling, so if you're in bad need for some relief - popsicles.

An easy recipe: Take any type of frozen fruit, put it in a blender with some ice cubes (or water), put your mixture in either a plastic cup or something that resembles a popsicle (popsicle mold), let it set in your freezer for about 45 minutes and enjoy a healthy, refreshing snack.

Fun fact - Although eating vitamin C to get better is a myth, the soft white skin on citrus fruits actually contains flavonoids which help boost your immune system! A nice strawberry-orange-sicle anyone?

4. Spice it up!

Get that nose running! It's better to let it all out. Also, your body might not function as happily as it normally does on the whole movement of the bowls and such, and spicy foods help prevent congestion.
Grab your crock pot, toss in beans, legumes, veggies and meat and add lots of healthy garlic, spices and flavors.

Fun fact - Using natural flavors to enrich your meals - spices, herbs, salt, peppers - is actually one of the healthiest ways to eat! Many of these taste enhancers have proven to boost our immune system, lower blood pressure, help digest certain types of foods in proper combinations and help your body to absorb those healthy vitamins! More on that later on as I am currently very intrigued by this, but in the meantime - get creative!

WARNING: When badly ill, do stay away from anything too spicy as this might cause some stomach pains. Eat a banana with some cinnamon instead - bananas are rich in nutrients, easy to digest and your body needs the energy to get those bad viruses out of your system. Also studies have apparently shown that bananas may help lower body temperature. They definitely will in the form a delicious popsicle.

5. Sleep

As daddy always said when me or my siblings were ill: "sleep it off".
And damn, he was right.

Give your body some well deserved rest, it needs to work its ass off from the inside out so you can help by getting comfy in your bed, get Netflix going and do nothing for the rest of the day. Easy as that.

So there you go! What to do when feeling a little (or a lottle) ill.

I myself am just recovering from the flu 2.0 - my taste was gone, my head was exploding and my body had an overall reaction of 'neh' to any form of movement. Me and my bed got really close these last couple of days.
Also, mommy dearest - also down with the flu - made me and the rest of the van der Laan residence some delicious chicken soup á la mama when I was crashing at my parents. I happened to be there anyways due to a rehearsal with the orchestra I'm going to perform with for the third time June 6th, so I decided to do some good old couch crashing with some motherly love close by.

Mommy's ♥

To end with a quote I live by:

Hope you liked this post, I sure did!

Love,
Anouk


sources:
greatist.com // Steaming cup of chicken soup
And my own knowledge on food on most of the facts due to my obsession with food :D

Feel free to ask anything on the matter!