When it's cold, do children with coughs need to abstain from beef?

Some opinions say that when children have a cough, they need to avoid many foods, including familiar foods such as beef, oranges, tangerines, bananas...

Children coughing and having runny noses when the weather turns cold is a constant fear for parents. In addition to taking their children to see a doctor for medication, mothers are told to abstain from and not to let their children eat a lot of foods such as shrimp, crab, fish, beef, nutritious foods and fruits such as oranges, tangerines, bananas, etc.

However, the authenticity of this information is something that parents need to pay attention to. Because if not careful, excessive abstinence from ice cream can cause other consequences for children's health. Many diseases arise because the body lacks important micronutrients for too long.

According to Dr. Le Quang Hao, National Institute of Nutrition, in fact, there is no need to abstain from too many foods like that. Because if you abstain too much, your child will not ensure enough nutrition, making the body's resistance weaker and the disease will become more severe.

Medical experts say that the ideal foods for children with coughs are foods that are high in water, easy to digest, and full of nutrients, such as thin soups, porridge, milk, etc.

Children with coughs do not need to abstain from beef. Illustration photo

For easy visualization, parents should note the following food groups to use when children have a cough:

- Foods rich in vitamin A, zinc and iron such as beef, pork, green and red vegetables are very good foods for children when they have a cough. There is information that eating beef when coughing will make the cough worse, but this information is unverified and unreliable.

- Some articles also say that when children have a cough, they need to abstain from eating oranges, tangerines, bananas, etc., which is also incorrect. In fact, foods containing vitamin C (oranges, lemons, grapefruits, guavas, apples, mangoes, pineapples, etc.) increase the ability to detoxify, eliminate substances that cause cough reactions, and increase resistance to help the body fight off disease. Natural vitamin C is better than pharmaceutical vitamin C or functional foods.

Although there is no need to abstain from eating citrus fruits, mothers should note that they should not let their children drink orange juice within 1 hour of a milk meal. These two foods are incompatible, so if they are drunk together or too close to a meal, it will cause the child to vomit.

- Zinc (found in clams, mussels, white radishes) increases resistance.

- Honey is very good for people with coughs and sore throats. Every morning, eat a small spoonful of pure honey or drink a cup of honey and lemon juice, which is very good for antibacterial, cough prevention, and sore throat relief.

- Mint candy helps clear mucous membranes that secrete fluid when coughing, coughing with phlegm, sore throat with itching, runny nose (not suitable for people with sore throat in the red, painful stage).

- Apple cider vinegar is very good for people with coughs and sore throats because it kills bacteria, stimulates immune growth, and prevents secondary infections.

- Papaya juice is effective in treating coughs: 15g male papaya flower, 10g lemon leaves, 30g rock sugar. Wash and chop male papaya flower and lemon leaves, put them in a bowl with rock sugar and steam. When the papaya flower and lemon leaves are cooked, use a thin cloth to squeeze out the juice and discard the pulp. Drink 4 teaspoons each time, every 2 hours, for 4-5 consecutive days.

- Children with coughs are treated with hairy dream leaf water: 20g hairy dream leaf, 10g fresh tangerine peel, 1 teaspoon honey. Wash hairy dream leaf, crush tangerine peel, filter with boiled water to cool, take 200ml of medicine, add honey and stir well, divide into 3 doses to drink during the day, need to drink continuously for 3-5 days.

- Marigold flower water to treat cough in children: 20g marigold flowers, 5g dried tangerine peel, 20g rock sugar. Finely chop the dried tangerine peel and put it in a bowl with the marigold flowers and rock sugar, steam. When the sugar is completely dissolved and the chrysanthemum flowers are cooked, use a towel to squeeze out the water, discard the residue. Drink 1 teaspoon each time, 4-5 times a day away from meals. Need to drink continuously for 3-5 days.

- Children with cough should steam duck eggs: 3 duck eggs, 10g chives, 20g rock sugar. Wash chives, chop finely, put in a large bowl with rock sugar, crack eggs in, stir well, steam until cooked. Eat once a day on an empty stomach in the morning. Need to eat for 3-5 days.

- Perilla porridge also has the effect of treating cough: 20g fresh perilla leaves, 2g fresh ginger, 20g rock sugar, 50g rice. Wash and chop perilla leaves, wash and crush ginger. Wash rice and cook porridge, when the porridge is cooked, add perilla, ginger, rock sugar, stir well, boil again, divide into 2 meals a day when hungry, eat continuously for 3-5 days.

- Children who cough a lot may vomit the food they have just eaten along with a lot of phlegm, so before feeding them, give them a few spoons of water, then let them lie on their stomachs and pat their backs to help the phlegm not stay in their throats. This helps children cough less and vomit less. Normally, children can eat 6 times a day (including cereal and milk meals), but when children cough, it can increase to 8-10 times a day, each time eating a little, so you can feed them about 2 hours apart.

- Absolutely do not force children to eat or drink because this can cause children to inhale food or drink into their bronchi, leading to choking, foreign object aspiration, and possibly death if not treated promptly.

According to Gia dinh.net