Foods to Fight Your Cold

This year, you wanted to avoid the dreaded seasonal cold. You wanted to be healthy and germ-free. But over the past few days, you've been coughing, sniffling, and bleary-eyed; despite your best efforts, a cold is clearly on its way. Luckily, you can reduce the severity of your sickness simply by eating these key "power" foods rich in immunity-boosting vitamins and symptom-treating properties:

Oranges/Tangerines
Packed with immune-building vitamin C, oranges and tangerines make a simple, tasty snack that has been clinically proven to help fight your cold virus. Personally, I prefer to eat oranges and tangerines in fruit-form, but you can get the same basic benefits by drinking 100% fruit juice. Eat one or two of these fruits daily as soon as you feel a cold coming on, and you'll be on your way back to health in no time. Note: If you have diabetes, limit consumption of oranges and tangerines, as they are extremely high in sugar.

Hot Tea/Coffee
Hot drinks such as coffee and tea can be tremendously soothing on your sore throat, and the warmth also clears up all that nasty mucus stuck in your lungs. The caffeine in coffee and tea will also give you a nice energy boost, which will help offset the exhaustion you're feeling from being sick.

Spicy Food
Nothing clears out the sinuses like pure wasabi, but if you're not ready for that kind of intense spice, have a big bowl of spicy tortilla soup or your favorite dish with a little hot sauce. Spicy food is probably the most effective food fix for temporary congestion relief; you will be head-clear for at least a couple hours if you're brave enough to swallow a little wasabi.

Hard Candy

Hard candy usually isn't good for you, but when you have a terribly sore and tickly throat, candy can be the best cure around. By constantly sucking on hard candy, lifesavers, or cough drops, you'll coat your throat from the painful dryness and post-nasal drip that coughing and congestion bring. Sugarless or sugar-free hard candy is available now, too, if you're trying to stay away from too much sugar.

Plenty of Water

Probably the most important thing you can consume to quickly cure your cold is lots and lots of water. H20 helps hydrate your body, improving your immune system and energy levels. Also, drinking plenty of water thins out that thick, disgusting, painful mucus stuck at the back of your throat to a painlessly thin consistency.

If you eat these cold-fighting foods and drinks, get plenty of sleep, and give yourself a much-deserved rest from stress, you're cold will soon be on its way. Remember, Vitamin C, hot foods, both in temperature and spice, hard candy, plenty of water and rest can help you get over a cold quickly and painlessly. Feel better soon!