The origins of chicken soup go backthousands of years earlier， to ancientChina. Preparing a bowl of chicken soupfor a loved one when they’re sick hasbeen a common practice throughout theworld for centuries. Today， generationsfrom virtually every culture are greatbelievers in the benefits of chicken soup.But different cultures prepare the dish intheir own way.

So， it’s worth asking： Is there anyscience to back the belief that it helps？ Ordoes chicken soup serve as just a comforting1 thing， that is， providing psychological2 benefit while we’re sick，without an actual therapeutic3 benefit？

All that makes sense. Studies showthat taste， it turns out， is very important tothe healing properties4 of chicken soup.When we see patients with illnesses， we cannotice many of them are suddenly eatingless or not eating at all. This is becauseillnesses can decrease your appetite5. Notfeeling like eating means you’re unlikely toget the nutrition6 you need， which makes ithard to recover from illness.

雞湯的起源可以追溯到數(shù)千年前的古代中國(guó)。幾個(gè)世紀(jì)以來(lái)，親人生病時(shí)為他們準(zhǔn)備一碗雞湯一直是全世界的普通做法。今天，幾乎所有文化的世代都對(duì)雞湯的好處深信不疑。但不同文化會(huì)用自己的方式來(lái)準(zhǔn)備這道菜。

因此，值得一問(wèn)的是：是否有科學(xué)依據(jù)證明雞湯有幫助？還是說(shuō)雞湯只是一種安慰性的東西，即在我們生病時(shí)提供心理上的益處，而沒(méi)有實(shí)際治療上的益處？

所有這些都是有道理的。研究表明，味道對(duì)雞湯的療效至關(guān)重要。當(dāng)我們看到病患時(shí)，我們可以注意到他們中的許多人突然少吃或根本不吃東西。這是因?yàn)榧膊?huì)降低食欲。不想吃飯意味著你不太可能獲得所需的營(yíng)養(yǎng)，這使你很難從疾病中康復(fù)。

But some research suggests that the umami7 taste in chicken soup may help spur8 a bigger appetite. People in one studysaid they felt hungrier after their taste of asoup with umami flavor.

Other studies say umami may alsoimprove nutrient9 digestion10. Once our brainssense umami through our tongues， our bodiesprepareto absorb11 protein more easily.

Inflammation12 is part of the body’snatural response to injuryor illness. And interes -tingly， research shows thatchicken soup can in facthelp reduce inflammation.

To truly understandthe soothing and healingeffects of chicken soup， it’simportant to consider the soup’s ingre -dients13. Not all chicken soups are packedwith nutritious healing properties. Forexample， the canned versions of chickensoup， lack many of the antioxidants14 foundin homemade versions. Most canned versionsof chicken soup are nearly without vegetables.The core nutrients in homemade versions ofthe soup are different from canned versions.Chicken provides the body with a completesource of protein to fight the illness whilevegetables supply a wide array of vitaminsand antioxidants.

但一些研究表明，雞湯中的鮮味可能有助于激起食欲。一項(xiàng)研究中的人們表示，他們嘗到有鮮味的湯后，感覺(jué)更餓了。

其他研究表明鮮味也可以改善營(yíng)養(yǎng)物質(zhì)的消化。一旦我們的大腦通過(guò)舌頭感受到鮮味，我們的身體就更容易準(zhǔn)備好吸收蛋白質(zhì)。

炎癥是身體對(duì)傷病的自然反應(yīng)的一部分。有趣的是，研究表明，雞湯實(shí)際上有助于減少炎癥。

要想真正了解雞湯的舒緩和治愈作用，重要的是要考慮雞湯的成分。并不是所有的雞湯都有營(yíng)養(yǎng)豐富的治療功效。例如，罐裝雞湯都缺乏自家做的雞湯中的許多抗氧化劑。大多數(shù)罐裝雞湯里幾乎沒(méi)有蔬菜。自制雞湯的核心營(yíng)養(yǎng)成分與罐裝雞湯不同。雞肉為身體提供了豐富的蛋白質(zhì)來(lái)對(duì)抗疾病，而蔬菜提供了多種維生素和抗氧化劑。

Even the warmth of chicken soupcan help. Drinking it increase thetemperature of nose and throat passages，which loosens15 the thick mucus16 thatoften caused by illnesses. Comparedwith hot water alone， studies showchicken soup is more effective atloosening mucus. The spices sometimesused in chicken soup， such as pepperand garlic， also loosen mucus.

In short， the latest science suggeststhat chicken soup—though not an outand-out cure for the illnesses such ascolds and flu—really helps with healing.Looks like Grandma was right again.

即使是雞湯的溫度也會(huì)有所幫助。喝雞湯會(huì)提高鼻腔和喉嚨的溫度，從而稀釋通常因疾病產(chǎn)生的粘稠粘液。研究表明，與單獨(dú)的熱水相比，雞湯更能有效地化痰。雞湯中有時(shí)使用的香料，如胡椒和大蒜，也可以化痰。

簡(jiǎn)而言之，最新的科學(xué)表明，雞湯雖然不能徹底治愈感冒和流感之類的疾病，但確實(shí)有助于治愈?？磥?lái)奶奶又對(duì)了。

（英語(yǔ)原文選自：recipes.howstuffworks.com）