The Best Soup for Bronchitis

If you’ve got bronchitis or another respiratory infection, such as the cold or flu, what you eat and drink may help temporarily improve your symptoms as you’re undergoing treatment, says Mount Sinai.

Fluids are particularly important. Hot liquids, such as soup, have a slight advantage over cold for relieving symptoms.

When it comes to soup, homemade chicken noodle soup may be one of the best choices, although there hasn’t been much research comparing different types of soup.

Consult your doctor or dietitian before making any changes to your diet while you’re receiving treatment for bronchitis.

Chicken Soup

Consuming fluids helps keep you hydrated and loosen mucus, allowing you to breathe a little better by limiting congestion. Warm liquids like chicken soup also help soothe sore throats.

Chicken soup may be better than other types of soup. According to one study, chicken soup provided mild anti-inflammatory effects in test tubes. Researchers found the soup also contained substances with beneficial medicinal activity.

Beneficial Additives

Bland chicken noodle soup won’t be as helpful as a version that contains spices and seasonings that make your nose run and your eyes water, according to Hamilton College.

Pungent spices clear your sinuses and make you less congested. Consider including hot peppers, mustard, garlic, wasabi, ginger, curry powder, or horseradish in your chicken soup.

You can easily add these spices to canned chicken noodle soups when you’re not up for making soup from scratch.

Other Alternatives

If you don’t eat animal products or just don’t like chicken soup, any other broth-based soup may be helpful, especially if it is a bit spicy.

Chinese hot and sour soup, vegetarian Indian mulligatawny soup, and miso soup are all good choices.

Soups with vegetables and protein sources, such as tofu or egg, can also help you fit in the nutrients you need.

Drinking hot tea can also provide some relief.

Potential Considerations

Soup only temporarily helps bronchitis symptoms. It won’t cure your bronchitis or any other illness. You’ll need to see a doctor for medical treatment.

Using a humidifier and taking an over-the-counter medication that includes expectorants may help relieve bronchitis symptoms, too.

Call your doctor if your symptoms don’t improve after a week or get worse, or if you have trouble breathing.