As is often the case with home remedies, opinions differ: Should you avoid milk when you have a cold – or does hot honey milk really help? An ENT doctor explains things.
Cough, runny nose, hoarseness – typical symptoms of a cold. While one person thinks that a home remedy like hot honey milk works wonders, the other claims that milk only makes everything more muddy.
Now what’s true? Ear, nose and throat doctor Bernhard Junge-Hülsing from Starnberg explains this in a short interview. He is the Bavarian state chairman of the German Professional Association of Ear, Nose and Throat Doctors.
Is milk harmful when you have a cold?
Runny nose and mucus: Can drinking milk when you have a cold make this effect worse?
Bernhard Junge-Hülsing: No, it can’t. There’s an Australian study that says it makes no difference whether you drink milk during a cold or not. This means that cold symptoms are not made worse. When you have a cold, it can actually feel more pleasant to drink something cold, including cold milk.
Of course, things are different if you have milk protein sensitization or lactose intolerance. Then you shouldn’t drink milk with or without a cold.
So: having to skip milk when you have a cold is a myth that has not been proven.
Hot milk with honey – really helpful?
Some people swear by hot honey milk for sore throats. Does it actually help?
Junge-Hülsing: If a home remedy from childhood has a positive connotation, it already helps through the placebo effect. Objectively speaking, honey milk doesn’t do any harm, but it doesn’t necessarily do any good either. Honey, if it is natural and not industrial, can be a healthy food. Some studies show its antibacterial properties.
The milk here is probably just the carrier of the honey. Perhaps this is because milk was once considered a high-quality food. You treated yourself to them when you were sick. However, there is no evidence that it has a healing effect on colds.
However, you should not mix the honey in milk that is too hot, but rather in lukewarm milk. Otherwise the structure of the helpful ingredients will be destroyed. And: As I said, it can even be pleasant to drink something cold when you have a cold.
Cough drops are often bad, as is too much coffee and tea
Are there foods that are more likely to be harmful when you have a cold?
Junge-Hülsing: Yes, sugar is not good for a cold. The sugar changes the oral flora to promote bacterial growth and more stomach acid is produced. Industrial sugar also damages the intestinal flora – and we need a functioning intestinal flora for a good defense system. That’s why throat lozenges and lozenges aren’t all that good because they’re often sugary.
Also, don’t drink too much coffee and tea, both of which also stimulate acid production in the body. Even when it comes to cold teas, you should exercise moderation. Essential oils can initially kill viruses, but in excess they attack the mucous membranes. An exception is sage tea, which nourishes the mucous membranes. So: A tea every now and then is good. But the best thing to do when you have a cold is to drink still water.
Note: The interview was conducted by Christina Bachmann from dpa.
Read more on Techzle\.com:
- 8 common cold mistakes you should avoid
- Cold myths: Vitamin C, turning up your nose and exercise – which myths are true?
- Ventilate properly when you have a cold: 2 things that really matter
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