Warming up to a bowl of soup

CEBU, Philippines - In my younger years every time I fell ill, my grandmother would make me some warm chicken soup. And on healthier times, my mother would not stop badgering me to eat a bowl of her malunggay soup or what we would call utan bisaya. I hated it so much, because back then, as with all children my age, I never considered vegetables as food. But I guess they had a reason for asking me to sip this icky and sometimes bitter concoction and as they would say, it’s for my health.

Soups, especially the clear ones, are actually an infusion of herbs and vegetables. The liquid part is just as nutritious and beneficial as the solids. Its benefits, however, would depend on the ingredients put into it, because it’s the qualities and medicinal properties of these ingredients that give the soup its added health benefits.

This is why most canned soups and especially powdered soups may not be as beneficial as freshly prepared ones with fresh ingredients. So, if you plan to use those ready-to-mix soup powders which you can get from the supermarket shelves, make sure that you add some fresh vegetables into it to make the broth extra nutritious.

Here are a few benefits that can be had from sipping that bowl of soup:

1. Soups help control weight.

Sipping soup before a meal gives you the feeling of fullness. We can credit this to the water content of the dish, so, basically it’s like drinking water before a meal. The water in the dish also gives it lower calorie content. In an article by Kathy Stemke for Helium.com, she said that “the protein in hearty soups help satisfy hunger and the nutrient-rich liquid is digested rapidly and signals your brain that you are full.” Because of this, you’ll likely eat less of the calorie-rich food served on the table.

2. Soups are a rich source of fiber and nutrients.

Home-made stews are still the best as opposed to pre-mixed powdered or canned soup, which is loaded with sodium and preservatives. If you make your own soup, you would have more control of the ingredients that you put in. You can add more vegetables to ensure that you will be getting enough fiber on your diet, not to mention the many health benefits that can be had from it. The secret here is not to overcook the vegetables, especially the greens. So, it would be preferable that you add in the greens only after you have removed the pot from the fire.

3. Some soups have anti-inflammatory property.

A 2000 study by B.O. Rennard, et. al. of Nebraska Medical Center, revealed that chicken soup has mild anti-inflammatory properties that could help alleviate the symptoms of respiratory tract infections (i.e. colds). So, grandma’s cold remedy does have scientific basis after all. A traditional Filipino chicken soup (nilat-ang manok) recipe would have as ingredients, chicken, malunggay, green papaya, chayote, ginger, lemongrass, onion, garlic, and greens like chili leaves. Do you want your soup to have a little Korean taste? Add some ginseng root to it. Ginseng, by the way, is known to be beneficial for men with erectile dysfunction.

4. Soups boost the immune system.

Recently, the health benefits of malunggay or moringga for preventive therapy have become vital attracting many pharmaceutical and wellness companies to cash in on these small wonders. Today, we see a variety of moringga-based or laced products ranging from food supplements to cosmeceuticals promising to enhance one’s beauty and over-all wellness. But aside from malunggay, other greens that may be in your soup would most likely be loaded with phytochemicals that would help boost one’s immune system. Some of these are chlorophyll (protects the body against environmental pollutants), beta carotene (boosts the immune system), and zeathanthine (a carotenoid and helps with your eyesight).

5. Soups comfort the soul.

Soups are also a comfort for the troubled soul perhaps that could be the reason why a famous series of inspirational books was named after a soup. The comfort and warmth that a bowl of soup invokes brings in a sense of security and satisfaction that in itself contributes to one’s inner healing. On a cold rainy day, a bowl of warm broth not only warms the body, but also the heart. So, if you need a little comforting, head on to the kitchen and stir some thick broth to bring back your enthusiasm. It never fails for me.