The cold & flu season accounts for more doctor visits than any other illness. What exactly makes this sickness so tricky to overcome?

The viruses that cause the common cold don’t respond to antibiotics, and common over-the-counter cold treatments don’t shorten or prevent the symptoms. While there are no foolproof cold treatments, including folklore, family recipes, and the famous chicken soup, the menu for treating colds has become quite diverse.

Chicken soup has been hailed as a cold remedy since the time of the ancient Greeks. A well-known study done at the Nebraska Medical Center researched whether chicken soup works as a remedy to fight the common cold. The study found that chicken soup contains a number of substances with healing effects and the researchers concluded that chicken soup actually does work.

“Unfortunately, cold viruses are very contagious, and even the healthiest of individuals can contract a cold,”  says Karen Gibson, RD, a dietitian at the University of Texas Medical School in Houston. She recommends a diet rich in the antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables. Keep an eye out for the most colorful ones such as red, orange, yellow, dark green, and purple. “This means tomatoes, bell peppers, squash, spinach, blueberries, and eggplant, to name a few,” says Gibson.

That being said, the top ten cold remedy foods are: 100% orange juice, avocado, spinach, tomatoes, bell peppers, broccoli, garlic, grapefruit, lean meat & yogurt. Avoiding dairy products completely & turning to water as a beverage would also be a safe route to take.