Short Stuff: Feed A Cold, Starve a Fever

Summary

Podcast Summary: Stuff You Should Know – "Short Stuff: Feed A Cold, Starve a Fever"

Release Date: December 18, 2024
Hosts: Chuck Bryant and Josh Clark
Produced by: iHeartPodcasts

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Introduction to the Old Wives' Tale

In this episode of Stuff You Should Know, hosts Chuck Bryant and Josh Clark delve into the age-old adage: "Feed a cold, starve a fever." This saying has been widely circulated for centuries, but what’s the truth behind it? Is there any scientific merit to this traditional advice, or is it simply a myth passed down through generations?

Historical Context and Origins

Chuck begins by exploring the historical roots of the phrase. According to the Cleveland Clinic, the adage can be traced back to 1574. In a dictionary compiled by John Withals, it was suggested that "fasting is a great remedy of fever," laying the groundwork for the second part of the saying: "Starve a fever." Furthermore, Chuck mentions that the concept can be linked even further back to Hippocrates, the ancient Greek physician, who advocated for an "exquisitely slender diet" during severe illnesses ([00:34]).

Notable Quote:
Chuck Bryant ([00:56]): “Our friends at the Cleveland Clinic... trace this back at least half a millennium to 1574.”

Evolution of the Adage

Josh adds that the current interpretation of "Feed a cold, starve a fever" became more prevalent in the 18th century, particularly around 1853, when discussions about feeding during colds and fasting during fevers became more standardized ([01:53]). This period solidified the saying's place in popular culture, despite its ambiguous punctuation—which Chuck humorously attributes to a lack of sophistication in historical language use ([02:11]).

Analyzing the Adage: Warning or Advice?

Chuck offers a different perspective, suggesting the phrase was originally a warning rather than straightforward advice. The ambiguity, stemming from the comma placement, implies that feeding a cold could lead to developing a fever, which would then require fasting ([02:36]). Josh humorously remarks on the logic behind this interpretation, indicating skepticism about its original intent ([02:45]).

Medical Perspective: Debunking the Myth

Transitioning from historical context, Chuck asserts that the medical community today disapproves of the advice encapsulated in the adage ([03:05]). He emphasizes that both parts of the saying—feeding a cold and starving a fever—are considered bad advice in modern medicine. The hosts agree to explore why this traditional wisdom doesn't hold up under scientific scrutiny ([03:25]).

Dutch Study on Feeding vs. Fasting During Illness

Chuck introduces a pivotal 2002 study conducted by Dutch researchers, aiming to determine the effects of feeding versus fasting on individuals with colds and fevers ([09:03]). Participants were divided into two groups: one that continued to eat ("cold feeders") and another that fasted ("fever starvers") for 24 hours. Following this period:

• Interferon Gamma Levels: The cold feeders experienced a 450% increase in interferon gamma, an immune protein vital for regulating responses to infections ([10:15]).

  Notable Quote:
  Josh Clark ([10:10]): “They starved. Well, I guess fasted. Same thing.”

• Interleukin 4 Levels: Surprisingly, the fasting group saw an 83% decrease in interferon gamma but a significant 400% increase in interleukin 4, another crucial immune component dealing with the body’s innate response ([11:17]).

Implications of the Study

The contrasting results highlight that while feeding boosts specific immune responses (interferon gamma), fasting inadvertently enhances others (interleukin 4). Chuck explains that this doesn't translate to a straightforward benefit, as the immune system requires a balanced approach rather than selective stimulation ([11:50]).

Notable Quote:
Chuck Bryant ([12:15]): “Especially when people rewind and listen a couple times. I hope so.”

Conclusions: Why Eating When Sick is Beneficial

Both hosts concur that modern medical advice strongly recommends eating if hungry during illness. The body's metabolism ramps up during a fever to combat infections, necessitating adequate nutrient and calorie intake ([06:25]). Starving oneself can undermine the immune response, depriving the body of essential resources needed to fight off pathogens.

Practical Advice:

• Stay Hydrated: Regardless of appetite, maintaining fluid intake is crucial. Options include water, electrolyte-rich sports drinks, and nutrient-dense broths.

• Listen to Your Body: If you feel hungry, it’s beneficial to eat. Forced feeding when not hungry is unnecessary, but ignoring hunger signals can be detrimental.

Notable Quote:
Chuck Bryant ([07:06]): “Fevers are no fun. But I love when I... feel good about it.”

Final Thoughts

Chuck and Josh wrap up the discussion by reinforcing that the "Feed a cold, starve a fever" adage lacks scientific backing and that proper nutrition and hydration are essential for effective immune function. They encourage listeners to follow contemporary medical guidelines over traditional sayings when managing illnesses.

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Transcript

[Chuck Bryant]

Banking with Capital One helps you keep more money in your wallet with no fees or minimums on checking accounts and no overdraft fees. Just ask the Capital One bank guy. It's pretty much all he talks about in a good way. He'd also tell you that this podcast is his favorite podcast too. Thanks. Capital One Bank Guy. What's in your wallet? Terms apply. See capital1.com Bank Capital One NA Member FDIC hey, and welcome to the Short Stuff. There's Chuck and I'm Josh. And Jerry's here too, sitting here for Dave. So this is Short Stuff.

[Josh Clark]

That's right. Call it Old Wives Tale Edition because this is about feeding a cold and starving a fever, which is the old wives tale that when you have a cold, you should and originally started out as stuff a cold, like eat as much as you can and then if you have a fever, you should try and not eat very much at all.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, I think most people have heard that. Right? That's a pretty, pretty widespread adage. Our friends at the Cleveland Clinic, not normally known for their etymology resources, but they trace this back at least half of it to 1574. There's a dictionary that was compiled by a guy named John Withols, and Withols said that fasting is a great remedy of fever. So you got the second part right there. Starve a fever. Right. It's as far back as anyone's traced it. Although if you kind of want to expand your definition of what's being discussed here, you can trace it all the way back to Hippocrates. Right?

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, I'm not sure about this one. He said the most exquisitely slender diet you should have when the disease is very sharp. So not quite sure what disease he's talking about there. So I'm not sure if that counts.

[Chuck Bryant]

No, but I mean just the phrase most exquisitely slender diet sounds awesome. So I thought it was worth putting in there.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, for sure. If you look at the current use of the term as we know and love it, it came about in the 18th century, pretty late in 18. Well, I guess kind of mid in 1853. That's when they were talking about feed and starve. As far as cold and fever go.

[Chuck Bryant]

What's weird, Chuck, is I saw that it was this whole adage that we. That is like basically encouragement. It's taken as an encouragement or advice. Today was originally taken as like a warning that if you feed a cold, that cold will turn into a fever and then you'll have to starve the fever. Like, and that the reason that it was ambiguous is because of that comma in the middle.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. You know, that is proof to me that people back then were dumb a little bit. I don't get that one, but sure. Okay.

[Chuck Bryant]

But. Well, what was the whole point? I mean, like, if the. What was the idea there was based on, I guess then, yeah, I guess.

[Josh Clark]

They were basing it on if you have a fever, then you don't want to eat hot food. I guess they didn't eat a lot of cold foods back then.

[Chuck Bryant]

I guess not.

[Josh Clark]

And if you're cold, you want to warm yourself up because there was only hot food available.

[Chuck Bryant]

Sure. That was, I think, what they think the whole thing was based on. And regardless of how you slice it, though, how you take it as a warning or anything like that, it's pretty much generally viewed as not good advice by the medical community today. I say we take a break and come back and talk about how this is not really good advice. How about that?

[Josh Clark]

All right, let's do it.

[Chuck Bryant]

Banking with Capital One helps you keep more money in your wallet with no fees or minimums on checking accounts and no overdraft fees. Just ask the Capital One bank guy. It's pretty much all he talks about in a good way. He'd also tell you that this podcast is his favorite podcast too. Thanks, Capital One Bank Guy. What's in your wallet? Terms apply. See capital1.com bank capital1na member FDIC.

[Jerry]

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[Chuck Bryant]

I'm thirsty.

[Jerry]

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[Josh Clark]

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[Jerry]

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[Josh Clark]

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[Jerry]

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[Josh Clark]

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[Chuck Bryant]

K K.

[Josh Clark]

Okay, so people have basically Always said that this was a bad idea. There was a writer in Gentleman's magazine in 1785 that said it was perhaps more destructive to mankind than the plague itself. This advice, which is definitely overstating things, but people these days say, no, that's not good advice. First of all, if you have a cold, you may not want to eat very much. You may not be very hungry. So, like, for God's sake, don't just make someone stuff themselves full just because they're sick with a cold. It's not going to do anything for you now.

[Chuck Bryant]

And that's bad enough, but the actual harm is in the second part, starving. A fever. Because pretty much everybody in the medical community agrees that if you feel hungry while you're sick, you should go ahead and eat, because your appetite can come and go and it can be so thin you want to take advantage of it when it does show up. And even more to the point, if you starve yourself on purpose while you have a fever, you're robbing yourself of some really much needed nutrients and calories that your body really needs, specifically when you have a fever.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. If your metabolism is kicking in in a substantial way, it's going to. If you're just laying around in bed, that'll make you eat up more of your calories and nutrients in you that you have in your body. So you're going to want as much as you can. So if you're hungry, cold, fever or whatever, by God, eat something or drink something. You definitely need to stay hydrated even if you're not hungry. There are plenty of ways to get nutrients and liquid into you.

[Chuck Bryant]

Right. And the reason that your metabolism would jack up when you have a fever is because your body's literally raising your core temperature to try to cook out the virus that's got you in its grips. Yeah, pretty neat.

[Josh Clark]

Fevers are no fun. But I love when I. When I'm sick and I get a fever and the fever happens, I'm like, okay. Like, this is my body doing its thing, so I feel good about it.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, yeah. It is kind of weird. It's like almost giving it, like a grudging salute. Like, way to go, body.

[Josh Clark]

Exactly. It doesn't feel great, but, oh, there's no better feeling than, like, breaking that fever, you know?

[Chuck Bryant]

Oh, for sure. The worst is when the fever comes on in the morning and you've got fever all through the night. Fever.

[Josh Clark]

Is that okay? So just want to make sure that.

[Chuck Bryant]

Wasn'T an accident, you said. Can you imagine the coincidence? Like, what Would the odds be of that? I don't know.

[Josh Clark]

It'd make you a natural songwriter, I guess.

[Chuck Bryant]

So you said that you want to drink, especially if, like, you can't eat solid foods. At least try to drink things that have calories. Like a sports drink with electrolytes, like they had an idiocracy. Or like thin broths, like a chicken broth can have a bunch of calories in it. Even vegetable broths have some calories. So you want to get it wherever you can. The key here is this. Even if you don't want to eat at all, that's okay. Like, most people, especially in the developed world, aren't on the edge of nutrition. We all have some reserves that can last us the few days we're not hungry while we're sick. What we don't have is a reserve enough of fluids to keep us going for very long. So you have to. It's not a choice. You have to stay hydrated one way or another.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah, that same article from Gentleman's Magazine from way back when suggested some other things of the time. Barley water, which sounds not too bad. Small beer. You ever seen those little baby beers that are like 8 ounces or whatever?

[Chuck Bryant]

Yeah, I looked that up. So they call that for low alcohol beer. Like, I guess session beers basically would be a small beer, right?

[Josh Clark]

Well, I don't know, but that makes sense.

[Chuck Bryant]

Small beer. Yeah, small beer.

[Josh Clark]

We called. Me and my friends Eddie and Allison called those tiny beers queets. I don't know. I think Alison made up the word and it just kind of stuck. And the fun thing about drinking those is you look like Andre the Giant.

[Chuck Bryant]

Yes, I know exactly what you mean. I love doing that, too.

[Josh Clark]

What else? Apple water, Linseed tea. Toast in water. That may be the toast in water. Remember that?

[Chuck Bryant]

I'm pretty sure that's what it is.

[Josh Clark]

I bet it is.

[Chuck Bryant]

Water gruel sweetened with honey. Yeah. So I looked all over to see if anybody had conducted a study on whether this was true or not. And thank God our friends over in the Netherlands did. In 2002, a group of Dutch researchers conducted a study, and they wanted to see whether feeding or calorie restriction has any effect on whether you have a cold or a fever or anything like that. And what's astounding is that they found that it actually does have an effect, like on the level of your immune system with the types of cells that are produced.

[Josh Clark]

That's right. They starved. Well, I guess fasted. Same thing.

[Chuck Bryant]

Sure.

[Josh Clark]

For both groups for 24 hours. And then the cold feeders, they gave a meal replacement drink. So not hot food in this case. And so after they had this sustenance, I guess, their blood levels of an immune protein called Interferon gamma went really, really sky high. Average increase of 450%. And interferon plays a role in regulating our response to infections in our immune system. So you would think, like, hey, eating is, like, exactly what you want to do.

[Chuck Bryant]

Right. And then kind of as expected, the other group, the group that had to fast, their interferon gamma levels actually went down by about 83%. So they lost some robustness to their immune response because they weren't eating. So so far, you're kind of like, all right, this. This makes sense. For sure. The surprise came with a different kind of immune cell called Interleukin 4, which they found actually rose in the group that was fasting.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. By an average of almost 400% compared to the 450 for the other. And I think there was one patient whose fasting levels rose more than 1,100%.

[Chuck Bryant]

Wow.

[Josh Clark]

And this is also an important part of our immune response, but it's different kinds of immune responses. So if you're thinking like, well, hey, if I starve myself, then this one's going to go up. Like, you don't know which cells you need. So it's not sort of a roulette game you should try and play by starving yourself?

[Chuck Bryant]

No, for sure. That Interferon that helps produce antibodies, like, for specifically targeted to an infection. And the interleukin uses our body's, like, innate response, like sicken cytokines that you normally have laying around in your body on it. So, yeah, you can't game the whole thing. So that's why doctors across pretty much the board say, if you're sick and you feel like you can eat, like you're hungry, eat something. For sure.

[Josh Clark]

Yeah. Because what you want is a little bit of both and ideally more of both, but not a whole lot of one and a lot less of the other.

[Chuck Bryant]

Well put. Especially when people rewind and listen a couple times.

[Josh Clark]

I hope so.

[Chuck Bryant]

Well, Chuck said he hopes so, which means everybody's short stuff is out.

[Jerry]

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