Chicken soup: a small, plausible edge on a cold, and a salt question

The cold remedy has more behind it than folklore, though less than its reputation. A 2025 systematic review found 4 trials with 342 adults who had a respiratory infection, and in them soup, mostly chicken with vegetables and herbs, modestly eased symptoms and shortened the illness by 1 to 2.5 days. Those 4 trials were small and mixed randomized with non-randomized designs. The comparisons ranged from water to no treatment to another soup, so the authors could only describe the results and could not pool them into one number. Treat it as a reasonable thing to eat when you are ill. It is not a treatment. The test tube finding people quote, chicken soup slowing the movement of inflammatory white blood cells, was seen in a laboratory dish and was never measured in anyone with a cold.

The numbers, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

As people eat it, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

How much is actually in it

• In US national survey data, soups supplied 4.4% of all dietary sodium, one of the top four sources. — US population, NHANES 2017-2018 24 h recalls (n = 7081) Evidence C source
  Soups 4.4% of population sodium intake, after pizza, breads and cold cuts

What a real portion looks like

• A standard US serving of chicken soup is 1 cup, or 245 g, and a whole can of reduced-sodium chicken soup weighs 19 oz (525 g). — — Evidence E source
  1 cup = 245 g (FNDDS 28340660, 58403040); 1 can = 525 g, 1 container = 440 g (FNDDS 58403060)

What cooking and storage change

• UK data list dried chicken noodle soup at 3,740 mg sodium per 3.5 oz (100 g), falling to 220 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g) once made up with water. — — Evidence E source
  Sodium 3740 mg/100 g dried (code 17-850) vs 220 mg/100 g as served (code 17-714)

What it does to your health

• In a crossover trial in 60 normal-weight adults, eating a vegetable soup before lunch cut total meal energy intake by 20%, about 134 calories. — normal-weight men and women, lunch once a week for 5 weeks (n = 60) Evidence B source
  Meal energy intake minus 20% (134 +/- 25 calories) versus no soup; soup form made no difference
• Observational data link eating soup with lower odds of obesity: a meta-analysis of cross-sectional studies (n=45,292) found an odds ratio of 0.85. — 7 cross-sectional studies; pooled odds ratio data from 45,292 people (n = 45292) Evidence C source
  OR 0.85 (95% CI 0.79 to 0.91) for obesity with soup consumption
• In 35 women, adding MSG to chicken broth lowered hunger and desire to snack but did not change how much they ate at lunch. — normal-weight women aged 20 to 40, four sessions with chicken broth preloads (n = 35) Evidence C source
  Hunger and desire to snack lower with MSG (both P = 0.03); lunch energy intake unchanged; only fat-added broth reduced intake
• In 15 healthy volunteers, sipping hot chicken soup sped up nasal mucus flow from 6.9 to 9.2 mm per minute five minutes later, against 6.2 to 8.4 with hot water. — 15 healthy subjects, measurements 5 and 30 minutes after drinking (n = 15) Evidence C source
  Nasal mucus velocity 6.9 to 9.2 mm/min with hot chicken soup by sip; 6.2 to 8.4 with hot water; back to baseline at 30 min; no change in nasal airflow resistance
• In 30 people with a cold or flu, a hot fruit drink relieved runny nose, cough, sore throat and tiredness more than the same drink at room temperature, without changing measured airflow. — 30 subjects with common cold or flu (n = 30) Evidence C source
  Hot drink: relief of runny nose, cough, sneezing, sore throat, chilliness, tiredness; room-temperature drink: runny nose, cough, sneezing only; objective nasal airflow unchanged

Safety, limits and interactions

• A single case report describes exercise-induced anaphylaxis where skin tests were negative to chicken soup base but positive to the combined seafood noodle broth. — one 33-year-old woman with exercise-induced anaphylaxis, 8 controls for the broth skin test (n = 1) Evidence D source
  5 to 6 mm wheal to the whole broth; negative to chicken soup base, shrimp and wheat
• The same Cochrane review notes that some observational studies suggest extra fluids may cause harm in lower respiratory tract infections such as pneumonia. — people with lower respiratory tract infections in observational studies Evidence A source
  Possible harm (increased anti-diuretic hormone secretion); no trial data
• In US national survey data, soups supplied 4.4% of all dietary sodium, one of the top four sources, which matters for people limiting salt. — US population, NHANES 2017-2018 24 h recalls (n = 7081) Evidence C source
  Soups 4.4% of population sodium intake, after pizza, breads and cold cuts
• UK data list dried chicken noodle soup at 3,740 mg sodium per 3.5 oz (100 g), or 220 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g) once made up with water. — — Evidence E source
  Sodium 3740 mg/100 g dried (code 17-850) vs 220 mg/100 g as served (code 17-714)

What people believe that the data does not support

• A 2025 systematic review found 4 small trials (n=342) where soup, mostly chicken-based, modestly eased cold and flu symptoms and shortened illness by 1 to 2.5 days. — adults with acute respiratory tract infections in 4 trials, 342 participants in total (n = 342) Evidence B source
  Illness duration shorter by 1 to 2.5 days; two studies reported lower IL-6, TNF-alpha, CRP; no pooled estimate (narrative synthesis)
• The EU did not authorize the claims that soups give a feeling of satiety or delay the onset of hunger. — — Evidence E source
  Status non-authorized
• The EU also refused the claims that soups help control body weight or work in weight management programs. — — Evidence E source
  Status non-authorized

Who this works differently for

• In 9 trained men cycling in the heat, 12 fl oz (355 ml) of chicken noodle soup before exercise raised voluntary water intake to 1,435 g versus 1,163 g after water. — trained men aged about 25, 90 min cycling at 50% VO2peak in the heat (n = 9) Evidence B source
  Ad libitum water intake 1,435 +/- 593 vs 1,163 +/- 427 g (p<.03); physical performance not different

What is still unknown

• Lab data suggest chicken soup slows the migration of white blood cells linked to inflammation, but only in a dish and not in people with colds. — human neutrophils in a Boyden chemotaxis chamber assay Evidence D source
  Concentration-dependent inhibition of neutrophil migration; commercial soups varied greatly
• A 2025 systematic review found only 4 small studies (342 people) of soup, mostly chicken-based, for colds and flu, with modest reductions in symptom severity and illness 1 to 2.5 days shorter. — children, adults and older adults with acute respiratory tract infections in 4 trials (n = 342) Evidence A source
  Illness duration shorter by 1 to 2.5 days (1 study); lower symptom severity in 3 studies; IL-6, TNF-alpha, CRP lower in 2 studies; no pooled estimate
• A Cochrane review found no randomized trials at all testing whether drinking more fluids helps people with colds or other respiratory infections. — people with acute respiratory infections; searches of CENTRAL, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL to December 2010 (n = 0 trials) Evidence A source
  No RCTs found; no evidence for or against advice to increase fluids
• A Cochrane review of 6 trials with 387 people found it uncertain whether breathing warm, moist air relieves cold symptoms. Quality was rated low. — people with natural or experimentally induced common cold inhaling heated water vapour (n = 387) Evidence A source
  Symptom relief OR 0.30 (95% CI 0.16 to 0.56) fixed effect, OR 0.22 (0.03 to 1.95) random effects; 2 studies, 149 participants
• In a randomized trial of 160 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, a Persian diet regimen that included chicken and barley soup made a significant difference in myalgia, weakness, headache and cough, but CRP was lower in the control group. — adults hospitalized with confirmed COVID-19 in Tehran, 5-day treatment (n = 160) Evidence B source
  Significant differences in myalgia, weakness, headache and cough (p<0.05); CRP significantly lower in the control group
• Lab data suggest chicken soup slows the migration of white blood cells linked to inflammation, but this was seen in a dish, not in people with colds. — human neutrophils in a Boyden chemotaxis chamber assay Evidence D source
  Concentration-dependent inhibition of neutrophil migration; commercial soups varied greatly

The bottom line

Soup before a meal does seem to make people eat less at that meal. In a crossover trial in 60 normal-weight adults, a low-energy vegetable soup before lunch cut total meal energy by 20%, about 134 calories, measured at single lunches with no follow-up on weight. Chicken soup itself was never the test food there. With chicken broth, adding MSG lowered hunger and the urge to snack in 35 women and left lunch intake unchanged, in a short laboratory study whose abstract does not say it was randomized. Across 7 cross-sectional studies with 45,292 people, eating soup went with lower odds of obesity, an odds ratio of 0.85 (95% CI 0.79 to 0.91). That design cannot tell which came first, and it is odds, not risk. The EU has refused to authorize claims that soup keeps hunger away or helps control weight. The real caution is salt. In US national survey data, soups of every kind supplied 4.4% of all sodium people ate, one of the four biggest sources. A dried chicken noodle soup in UK tables holds 3,740 mg of sodium per 3.5 oz (100 g) of powder and 220 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g) once made up with water. A US serving is 1 cup, 245 g, and a whole can of the reduced-sodium kind is 525 g. Allergy data here amount to one case of exercise-induced anaphylaxis where the skin test was negative to the chicken soup base and positive to a mixed seafood noodle broth. We found no evidence on chicken soup in pregnancy, in children or alongside medicines. One more small trial fits people who sweat a lot: 9 trained men who drank 12 fl oz (355 ml) of chicken noodle soup before cycling in the heat later drank more water, 1,435 g against 1,163 g, with no change in performance.

Sources

1. chsp-r4-05 · cross-sectional survey
   More than 50% of US population-level dietary sodium intake was contributed by: pizza (5.3%); breads, rolls and buns (4.7%); cold cuts and cured meats (4.6%); soups (4.4%)
   Nutrients, 2023 · checked 2026-09-29
2. chsp-r4-12 · food portion data
   FNDDS 28340660 Soup, chicken (fdc 2707134) | 1 cup | 245 g || FNDDS 58403040 Soup, chicken noodle (fdc 2709149) | 1 cup | 245 g || FNDDS 58403060 Soup, chicken, canned, reduced sodium (fdc 2709150) | 1 can | 525 g ; 1 individual container | 440 g
   FNDDS 2021-2023, USDA, codes 28340660, 58403040, 58403060 · checked 2026-09-29
3. chsp-r4-11 · food composition data
   CoFID 17-850 Soup, chicken noodle, dried | Sodium (mg) | 3740 per 100 g || CoFID 17-714 Soup, chicken noodle, dried, as served | Sodium (mg) | 220 per 100 g
   CoFID 2021, Public Health England, codes 17-850 and 17-714 (OGL v3.0) · checked 2026-09-29
4. chsp-r4-02 · randomized crossover trial
   When soup was consumed, subjects reduced meal energy intake by 20% (134+/-25 kcal; 561+/-105 kJ). The type of soup had no significant effect on test meal intake or total meal energy intake.
   Appetite, 2007 · checked 2026-09-29
5. chsp-r4-04 · meta-analysis of observational studies
   soup consumption is significantly related to lower odds ratio of obesity in combined data (n=45292, OR: 0.85, 95% CI: 0.79-0.91, p<0.0001)
   Physiol Behav, 2020 · checked 2026-09-29
6. chsp-r4-06 · controlled crossover trial
   The addition of MSG to chicken broth did not increase energy intakes at lunch or affect motivational ratings over the entire testing session. Both hunger and desire to snack between the second preload exposure and the test meal were significantly reduced in the MSG condition relative to the base broth condition (both, P = 0.03).
   Br J Nutr, 2011 · checked 2026-09-29
7. ev-csc-06 · controlled crossover study
   Hot water by sip increased nasal mucus velocity from 6.2 to 8.4 mm per min, hot chicken soup by sip from 6.9 to 9.2 mm per min, and chicken soup by straw from 6.4 to 7.8 mm per min five minutes after administration.
   Chest, 1978 · checked 2026-10-07
8. ev-csc-07 · controlled trial
   The hot drink provided immediate and sustained relief from symptoms of runny nose, cough, sneezing, sore throat, chilliness and tiredness, whereas the same drink at room temperature only provided relief from symptoms of runny nose, cough and sneezing.
   Rhinology, 2008 · checked 2026-10-07
9. chsp-r4-08 · case report
   Prick skin tests were negative for shrimp, wheat, and chicken soup base, but were positive at 5 to 6 mm (wheal diameter) to the whole broth after it had been combined with the other ingredients.
   Ann Allergy, 1993 · checked 2026-09-29
10. ev-csc-03 · Cochrane systematic review
    Some non-experimental (observational) studies report that increasing fluid intake in acute respiratory infections of the lower respiratory tract may cause harm.
    Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2011 · checked 2026-10-07
11. ev-csc-09 · cross-sectional survey
    More than 50% of US population-level dietary sodium intake was contributed by: pizza (5.3%); breads, rolls and buns (4.7%); cold cuts and cured meats (4.6%); soups (4.4%)
    Nutrients, 2023 · checked 2026-10-07
12. ev-csc-10 · food composition data
    CoFID 17-850 Soup, chicken noodle, dried | Sodium (mg) | 3740 per 100 g || CoFID 17-714 Soup, chicken noodle, dried, as served | Sodium (mg) | 220 per 100 g
    CoFID 2021, Public Health England, codes 17-850 and 17-714 (OGL v3.0) · checked 2026-10-07
13. chsp-r4-01 · systematic review
    Four studies (n = 342) met inclusion criteria. Interventions commonly included chicken-based soups with vegetables and herbs. Comparators varied (e.g., no treatment, water, or alternative soup). Findings showed modest reductions in symptom severity and illness duration (by 1-2.5 days).
    Nutrients, 2025 · checked 2026-09-29
14. chsp-r4-09 · regulatory decision
    POL-HC-7953 Soups -soups gives you a feeling of satiety; -soups will help to fill you up; -soups can delay the onset of hunger; -soups consumed as a starter that are low in energy density and high in volume have an affect on satiety/ satiation. Non-authorised
    EU Register on nutrition and health claims, claim POL-HC-7953, snapshot 2026-09-21 · checked 2026-09-29
15. chsp-r4-10 · regulatory decision
    POL-HC-7952 Soups -soups fit in a weight maintenance programme; -soups help to control your body weight; -soups, which are low in energy density and high in volume, are useful as part of a weight management diet; -the inclusion of soups into the daily diet are effective in weight management programmes. Non-authorised
    EU Register on nutrition and health claims, claim POL-HC-7952, snapshot 2026-09-21 · checked 2026-09-29
16. chsp-r4-03 · randomized crossover trial
    Ad libitum water intake throughout steady-state exercise was greater in SOUP than with WATER (1,435 ± 593 vs. 1,163 ± 427 g, respectively; p < .03).
    Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab, 2013 · checked 2026-09-29
17. chsp-r4-07 · in vitro study
    Chicken soup significantly inhibited neutrophil migration and did so in a concentration-dependent manner.
    Chest, 2000 · checked 2026-09-29
18. ev-csc-01 · systematic review
    Findings showed modest reductions in symptom severity and illness duration (by 1-2.5 days).
    Nutrients, 2025 · checked 2026-10-07
19. ev-csc-02 · Cochrane systematic review
    No RCTs assessing the effect of increasing fluid intake in acute respiratory infections were found.
    Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2011 · checked 2026-10-07
20. ev-csc-04 · Cochrane systematic review
    It was uncertain whether heated, humidified air provides symptomatic relief for the common cold, as the fixed-effect analysis showed evidence of an effect (odds ratio (OR) 0.30, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.16 to 0.56; 2 studies, 149 participants), but the random-effects analysis showed no significant difference in the results (OR 0.22, 95% CI 0.03 to 1.95).
    Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2017 · checked 2026-10-07
21. ev-csc-05 · randomized controlled trial
    Using SPSS software version 22, statistical analysis revealed a significant difference in four symptoms: myalgia, weakness, headache, and cough (p<0.05). During the 5-day treatment period, the control group had significantly lower C-reactive protein (p<0.05).
    Eur J Integr Med, 2022 · checked 2026-10-07
22. ev-csc-08 · in vitro study
    Chicken soup significantly inhibited neutrophil migration and did so in a concentration-dependent manner.
    Chest, 2000 · checked 2026-10-07