What to Eat When You’re Sick and Have No Appetite

Why do I lose my appetite when sick?

Generally, I'm not a picky eater, and I'm rarely hungry (I'm one of those persons that wakes up ravenous and lives for midnight trips to the diner). When I'm sick, however, it's as if a switch within my stomach flips, and I'm perfectly content to live off Lipton tea and saltine crackers. Unfortunately, even if your appetite disappears when you're sick, your body requires nutrition to aid in the healing process.

As a result, it's always a good idea to stock up on the best foods to eat when you're ill but not hungry just in case, because even if you never expect to get sick, if you know you're picky when you do, having a source of nutrition can help you get through the day.

Again for the record, when you're unwell, it's not uncommon to lose all feeling of appetite. It's strange because your body requires nutrients and water to be hydrated — especially if you're suffering from a stomach ailment that causes you to lose fluids — but your body's regular hunger cues are absent. In fact, Amy Gorin, MS, RDN, owner of Amy Gorin Nutrition in the New York City region and a spokesperson for KIND, tells Elite Daily that fighting the common cold might cause you to lose your appetite.

"Once you get a cold, your immune system generates chemicals that make you weary and make you not want to eat," Gorin adds. "However, eating specific meals that are hydrated and rich of immune-supporting vitamins and minerals may help you feel better," she says.

 So, even if you don't want to eat, your body will most likely benefit from your making an effort. Even if your hunger is practically non-existent, here are the greatest meals to consume while you're sick.

Electrolytes can be replenished by eating a bowl of soup.

Chicken noodle soup, it turns out, isn't just good for the soul; it's also a great meal to consume when you're sick and don't feel like eating. Electrolytes, such as sodium, potassium, and magnesium, all of which can be found in a good ol' bowl of soup, Gorin adds, will aid your health, particularly if you're dealing with digestive difficulties.

"there's a reason that chicken noodle soup is a go-to for feeling better," but she prefers a vegetarian version. "I'll use a low-sodium broth with potassium, another electrolyte," she says, adding that she'll toss diced firm tofu, veggies like sliced bell peppers, diced onions, halved grape or cherry tomatoes, and sliced mushrooms, as well as seasonings like black pepper and garlic powder, into the broth for flavor. She claims that the soup is hydrating in addition to delivering electrolytes.

Boost Your Immune System With Vitamin C-rich Snacks

Vitamin C is one of those necessary vitamins that everybody knows they need, but you may not realize how beneficial it is to their health. Gorin explains it thus way: Vitamin C is a nutrient that your body cannot make on its own. As a result, it's critical to take vitamin C-rich meals because it helps your immune system perform at its best, according to Gorin.

"A Cochrane review found that taking at least 200 milligrams of vitamin C daily could reduce the duration of a typical cold."

Once you're unwell, I'm sure the last thing you want to do is take another pill or supplement. Fortunately, there are many of foods high in vitamin C, such as oranges, papaya, and, if you're really lazy or don't have the energy to cut up fruit, Pressed by KIND's Mango Apple Chia Bar can suffice.

"Because vitamin C is a beneficial ingredient that helps your body's immune system, having a grab-and-go food on hand, like a Pressed by KIND Mango Apple Chia Bar on hand can be beneficial," Gorin tells Elite Daily. "The bar contains 25% of the daily vitamin C requirement as well as two servings of fruit."

Smoothies are high in nutrients and hydrate the body.

Attempting to eat when you have a sore throat is just as difficult as trying to keep food down when you have an upset stomach. When your throat is dry and scratchy, swallowing might be difficult, but Gorin says that sipping on a chilled smoothie will feel wonderful and be good for you.

"A smoothie can feel comforting to a sore throat and the major ingredient in most smoothies — fruit — is hydrating." "I prefer to make a berry smoothie with frozen strawberries, which are high in vitamin C and can aid with immunity."

Yogurt contains probiotics that help to strengthen the immune system.

Dr. Elizabeth Trattner, a Chinese medicine integrative medicine expert, that while dairy may be a no-no if your stomach already doesn't agree with it, if you're fighting a sore throat or cold and flu symptoms, you should snack on yogurt to reap the advantages of probiotics. (And if your body doesn't tolerate dairy, don't worry: almond milk yogurt exists.)

The digestive system, according to Dr. Trattner, is the body's first line of defense for the immune system, and probiotics are little bacteria that dwell inside the digestive system. Dr. Trattner notes that taking a probiotic supplement or eating a probiotic-rich food, such as yogurt, can "raise natural killer cells" and "maintain immune system activity," which helps the body respond more swiftly to new infections.

Hot Tea

When you're feeling under the weather, a hot cup of tea with a little honey or ginger, according to Brianna Harris, a registered dietitian, and chef vitamin officer of wellness beverage brand Vita Cup, is definitely a beverage to keep refilling.

To begin, herbal, black, and green teas all have "excellent therapeutic capabilities" and "are filled with polyphenols and antioxidants," which can both boost your health when you're sick?

"Honey can aid due to its antibacterial and cough-suppressing benefits," Harris explains, while ginger "can give your tea an extra burst of antioxidant or help if you're queasy."

Tea, like smoothies, may relieve a sore throat while also acting as a natural decongestant, according to Harris, who drinks VitaCup's green tea mix when she's sick.

I really enjoy Vita Cup's Green Tea. "Vita Cup Green Tea contains matcha, moringa, antioxidants, and our distinctive vitamin blend of B1, B5, B6, B9, B12, and D3," she explains.

Vitamins and minerals are abundant in cold-pressed juices.

Even if the last thing you want to eat is a salad, fruits and vegetables are always the way to go when you're feeling under the weather. Fresh juice, on the other hand, packs a lot of nutrients into one delightful drink that you can drink all day.

"Fruit and veg are filled with tremendous advantages due to their high vitamin, mineral, and antioxidant characteristics," Harris adds, but she recommends "a cold-pressed juice to help preserve all the nutrients" if you're going to drink them.