A guide to get well foods.
Run down? Feeling rotten? Sometimes the last thing you want to do is eat. However, there comes a point in your misery when your body needs sustenance. It requires food to convert to to energy so that it can try and heal itself, to gain strength, to make you better. But what to eat? What will help you and will only make things worse?
According to Health.com, here are the good things and the bad things to eat for when you’re under the weather. Experts weigh in on a symptom by symptom case:
1. Diarrhea
You’ve got a stomach bug and you’re living on the toilet. Or maybe you just ate something that did not agree with you. What should you eat that is not going to literally run right through you? What should you avoid in order to minimize your toilet time?
Well, the BRAT diet is the first step: bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast. You might also consider oatmeal, saltine crackers, boiled potatoes, and baked chicken or turkey without the skin. These are simple, blander foods that won’t rock the boat.
You’ll want to avoid sugarless candy and gum, or anything with artificial sweeteners. The sweeteners can’t be digested and will trigger more diarrhea. Onions, apples, broccoli, cabbages, and beans will also cause gas and bloating. On top of that, caffeine, alcohol, and dairy may all aggravate diarrhea.
2. Constipation
If you do not include enough fiber-rich whole grains, fruits, and/or vegetables in your diet, you may find yourself constipated. “Adults need between 25 and 30 grams of fiber a day,” says Dr. Lee, MD, gastroenterologist with St. Joseph Hospital in Orange, California.
The best foods to eat are high-fiber whole grain breads, nuts, beans, prunes, oatmeal, flaxseed, broccoli, pears, and apples. Drinking six to eight glasses of water a day is also ideal to keep things moving naturally.
The worst things you can eat when constipated are chocolate, dairy products, iron supplements, narcotics (pain medications) and some blood and anti-depression medications. These may worsen constipation.
3. Nausea
When you feel sick to your stomach like this, eating anything at all does not sound desirable. According to Lee, the right foods can ease symptoms by calming stomach acids. “In general, keep food portions small and odors to a minimum,” says Lee.
Lee says that saltine crackers or pretzels can help. So can small quantities of toast or cereal. Ginger or lemon tea, fresh or frozen lemon slices, and peppermint also work.
The worst things you can put in your stomach are greasy, spicy, or oily foods, caffeine, alcohol, and carbonated drinks. These can make nausea worse.
4. Sore throat
Your throat is on fire. It hurts to swallow. Lauren Slayton, RD, says that there are several foods that can coat your throat and soothe the pain.
Combine lukewarm peppermint tea (which has analgesic and anesthetic effects) and Manuka honey (known for its wound-healing properties). Soft, creamy foods such as cream soups, mashed potatoes, yogurt, scrambled eggs, and custards are also soothing things for your aching throat.
Stay away from hot liquids and hard, scratchy foods like potato chips, nuts, and granola. The acidic juices in raw fruits and vegetables, as well as orange juice, grape juice, and lemonade can also irritate your sore throat.
5. Body aches
You feel like you’ve just been trampled under the running of the bulls. “For general muscle aches, food containing magnesium or calcium may help ease soreness,” says Kristine Arthur, MD, internist at Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center in Fountain Valley, California.
Foods high in magnesium include nuts, bananas, beans, leafy greens, and avocados. Foods high in calcium such as canned salmon, yogurt, dark-green leafy greens, and orange juice fortified with calcium help reduce muscle cramping and pain.
Arthur suggests staying away from anything that may dehydrate you, particularly alcohol and caffeine. These will worsen muscle aches.
6. Headaches
Dehydration is the leading cause of headaches, says Dr. Arthur. So it’s best to treat that first as that is most likely why you have a headache in the first place.
The best thing you can do is drink plenty of fluids. “Drink a bottle of water and wait 20 minutes to see if you feel better,” says Arthur. While you may be wary of caffeine as it is known for causing dehydration in the first place, it can actually help in small doses. “But for each cup of tea or coffee, drink an equal amount of water to avoid dehydration,” says Arthur.
You want to avoid headache-triggering foods like those that contain artificial sweeteners, MSG , aged cheeses (blue, stilton) that contain tyramine, chocolate, red wine, hot dogs, deli meats, and dried fruit.
7. Runny nose
You have a cold and you cant help that miserable drip and constant nasal flow. A steamy shower is a great first start.
Slayton also recommends wakaya ginger tea. Ginger contains antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that may help clear up a cold faster. “Apple cider and lemon in water works well, too,” says Slayton.
Spicy foods, on the other hand, may cause an instant runny nose, or just make things worse. Alcohol may also do the same.
There you have it – you are what you eat takes on a different meaning when you’re feeling wretched. In this case, you feel what you eat (or drink). Pay attention to what you put into your body. It may be the very thing that puts you on the fast road to recovery.
Joe McGee/Pazoo