“The food you eat can be either the safest and most powerful form of medicine or the slowest form of poison.”
— Dr. Ann Wigmore, co-founder of the Hippocrates Health Institute
The idea that food can prevent and treat illness dates back to Hippocrates, the founder of modern medicine, nearly 3,000 years ago. Since then, science has upheld Hippocrates’ beliefs about food’s medicinal powers.
It’s cold and flu season, the perfect time to take advantage of the immune-boosting properties of food. Adding foods rich in the right nutrients to hearty soups is an excellent way to do this. In this article, we’ll look at the immune-boosting properties of food and some recipes for immune-boosting seasonal soups.
Food and Our Immune System
A large number of research studies have found that certain nutrients are crucial for your immune system. When you’re deficient in these nutrients, your body’s ability to fight off infection, allergy, and cancer can be impaired. Let’s look at some of these important immune nutrients.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C plays several important roles in your immune function:
- It removes dangerous illness-causing free-radical chemicals from your body
- It’s needed for proper wound healing
- It helps your body form a barrier against viruses
- It increases production of antiviral agents known as interferons
- It helps your immune system produce antibodies
Like all other vitamins, your body can’t produce this important nutrient, so you must get it from your diet. Adding vitamin C-rich foods to your soup is a great way to do so. Soup-friendly foods rich in vitamin C include:
- Bell peppers
- Potatoes
- Citrus fruit
- Broccoli
- Cauliflower
- Chili peppers
- Parsley
- Tomatoes
Vitamin A
Vitamin A is also important for your immunity, as it regulates your immune response. It’s also involved in producing some of the cells the immune system needs to fight infection. People deficient in vitamin A are more susceptible to illness. Soup-friendly foods rich in vitamin A include:
- Leafy greens
- Carrots
- Sweet potatoes
- Squash
- Beans
B Vitamins
B vitamins―particularly thiamin (B1), riboflavin (B2), niacin (B3), and cobalamin (B12)―play a complex role in immune function. They are especially important for anti-inflammatory and anti-virus activity. Soup foods rich in these vitamins include:
- Meat and fish
- Beans
- Lentils
- Leafy greens
Vitamin D
Vitamin D is an important anti-inflammatory and anti-virus nutrient. Vitamin D is abundant in these soupy foods:
- Red meat
- Mushrooms
Zinc and Selenium
These minerals help your immune system function optimally. As well, zinc is directly toxic to infectious agents, such as bacteria. Together, zinc and selenium have been shown to play a protective role against COVID-19. Foods rich in these minerals include:
- Red meats and poultry
- Peas
- Beans
Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs)
These are the omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids that you may have heard of. They play many important roles in your overall health, including your immunity. They’re important for regulating your immune response to infection and for making sure that your body can maintain its immune response long enough to rid yourself of illness. Soup-appropriate foods rich in PUFAs include:
- Plant-based oils
- Red meats and poultry
- Soybeans and tofu
Making Immunity-Boosting Soups
The key to getting the most medicine from your soup is to include as many immune-boosting nutrients as possible. That’s not difficult, because some ingredients are good sources of a number of important nutrients. Here are a few suggested recipes.
Red Lentil and Vegetable Soup
This recipe from I Heart Vegetables incorporates many of the nutrients that we discussed above. It’s especially attractive because it includes olive oil, a rich source of PUFAs, and kale, a leafy green. It also includes spices that may have antimicrobial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory effects.
This soup is thick and filling, so it will help crush those winter appetites. The soup can be made even more nutritious and filling by adding chicken or turkey.
Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup with Kale
This gem of an immune-boosting soup recipe from EatingWell combines orzo pasta with a number of nutrient-rich ingredients. It includes olive oil and chicken breast for those all-important PUFAs. The recipe is especially rich in vitamins A and C and incorporates leafy greens for B vitamins. You may wish to add mushrooms to ensure that vitamin D is included in every bite.
Immunity Noodle Soup
This interesting and tasty soup recipe from FromMyBowl incorporates tofu for its healthy PUFA content. If tofu isn’t your thing, equally healthy substitutes are suggested.
Take-Home Message
Nutrients found in certain foods are needed for optimal immune function and can boost your immunity. This is important during cold and flu season, especially in the post-pandemic world. Try our suggested soup recipes, or make your own signature immune-boosting soup simply by starting with a vegetable or chicken stock and adding nutrient-rich ingredients to your taste.
