What foods should people with pneumonia avoid?

When suffering from pneumonia, patients need to avoid the following foods to prevent the disease from getting worse.

Limit foods that increase phlegm and cough

Most people believe that increased phlegm and cough are a direct result of eating too much dairy. Although foods like milk, butter, and yogurt can thicken phlegm, they do not usually increase phlegm or cause more coughing. However, recent studies have shown that diets high in salt, meat, and starch are actually the cause of increased phlegm and cough.

In fact, people who eat a lot of meat, refined carbohydrates, and sodium are more likely to have a persistent cough than those who eat a lot of beans and fruit. Limiting these foods can help reduce chronic respiratory problems like cough and phlegm, along with other symptoms associated with lung disease.

Specifically, patients should limit eating these foods:

- Pork, fish, chicken, red meat or processed meat.

- Sweets and desserts.

- Fried foods.

- Noodle dishes, especially those containing white noodles.

- Processed foods.

- Refined grains

Eliminate foods that cause bloating

Cruciferous vegetables are delicious and nutritious, but at the same time they are the cause of bloating and flatulence. For people with lung-related diseases, bloating can also increase pressure on the diaphragm, making shortness of breath worse. You can add the following foods to limit bloating such as: broccoli, cabbage, kale, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts,...

Limit foods containing nitrates

Recent research has found that eating large amounts of nitrates (used to preserve canned meats) can worsen pneumonia symptoms and even cause exacerbations and hospitalizations. Nitrates are also known to worsen disease progression. Patients should eat in moderation and avoid foods high in nitrates.

Foods that contain high amounts of nitrates include:

- Sausage.

- Bacon.

- Cold cuts or other processed lunch foods.

- Ham

Beware of foods that cause allergies

Patients with allergic pneumonia are allergic to certain foods. These foods are associated with exacerbation of respiratory symptoms, such as cough, shortness of breath, wheezing, and bronchospasm.

If your symptoms get worse after eating, you should consider whether you are allergic to the following foods:

- Egg.

- Nuts.

- Wheat flour or grains containing gluten.

- Milk.

- Peanut.

- Tree nuts, such as chestnuts, walnuts or pecans.

- Soybeans.

- Crustaceans include shrimp, lobster, crab; mollusks such as snails, clams,...

Above are foods that pneumonia patients should avoid as much as possible to prevent the disease from getting worse.

According to VNN