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What to Eat When Congested

Congestion can make you feel like you've got a 10-pound weight on your chest, making your daily routines challenging and exhausting. While medicine can help clear up congestion, certain foods can also be utilized to help get you breathe easily. If you are suffering a bout of congestion, whether it be from illness or allergies, learn what foods you can dine on to help alleviate your congestion and clear you up.

  1. Spice It Up

    • Spicy foods are one go-to treatment for clearing up congestion in the throat, nose and chest. Spicy foods will aid in breaking apart congestion thus helping you to expel it. Avoid spicy foods that are greasy or heavy in fat as these foods can increase congestion. You could also try adding cayenne pepper to foods or even consuming a few hot peppers on their own.

    Soothing Honey

    • Honey is another food that can help when you are faced with congestion. Along with helping to lessen congestion, honey is a soothing component for your throat which can be an added benefit if you are having soreness there. Try adding some honey to tea or hot water or swallow a tablespoon of it. To get the full benefits use raw, un-processed honey which is also naturally sweeter without the added sugars processed honey carries.

    Soups

    • Soup is a good food for many ailments and congestion is just one of them. The heat of a soup will help open up your passages in the nasal cavity, throat and chest. Stick with soups that aren't too creamy or heavy and opt for water-based broths that have cut up veggies or pieces of meat. To add even more congestion-fighting benefits sprinkle a little cayenne or crushed red pepper in your soup.

    Healing Horseradish

    • Horseradish is one flavorful food that can be consumed in times of congestion. The pungent and strong flavor of horseradish can help knock out some of that congestion and it also has antibacterial properties that can help fight germs in your throat. Eat it on its own, have a light sandwich topped with some veggies, a little meat and horseradish or use it as an alternative to salad dressing. You could also add it as a topping for soups too.

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