Which Home Remedies for Cold and Flu Work?

Dec. 11 -- As we suffer through cold and flu season many turn to home remedies ranging from the tried and true chicken soup to herbal remedies such as echinacea. But do any of them work?

Dr. Leo Galland, the author of Power Healing, is an internist and director of the Foundation for Integrated Medicine, whose purpose is to integrate, nutritional and environmental approaches with conventional medicine. He spoke to Good Morning America about a variety of home remedies, separating the good ones from those that are just old wives' tales.

Chicken Soup Magic: Chicken soup is a "folk remedy," but it does work, Galland said. There are a number of scientific studies that show that chicken soup actually increases the flow of mucous and relieves respiratory inflammation. Any hot liquid will help, but controlled scientific studies have shown that chicken soup somehow performed better than just hot water. It appears to have something to do with the soup's aroma, because the studies showed that the effect was not as great for those who drank the soup through a straw. It is better to drink it from a cup, or a bowl. The effect comes entirely from the broth, by the way, not from any pieces of chicken in the soup, the studies found.

Feed a Cold, Starve a Fever? Don't buy into the old adage, "feed a cold, starve a fever," Galland said. In old English, the expression actually translated into "Feed a cold, and die of fever." At the time, doctors thought that cold sufferers should eat less to get better. Over time, the language changed, and people jumbled up the meaning. Now, some people think it means that if you eat a lot you'll get rid of your cold, and if you don't eat, you can fight a fever. Neither statement is correct. Just eat according to your appetite, Galland said.