Chicken noodle soup is regarded as a therapeutic dish in several cultures, including Jewish-American and Chinese communities where traditional medicine is practised.

Although researchers have not been able to determine what causes the alleged positive effects of the comforting broth, several studies have confirmed it helps to unblock congested noses and throats.

Here, writing for The Conversation, Dr Juliane Schlag, of the University of Hull, describes the broth's rich history, and the efforts to prove it really can ease illness and warm the soul...

Archaeological evidence shows people started using poultry to make soups soon after they discovered how to boil water.

The earliest recorded evidence of chicken soup being used as a therapeutic dish dates back to Chinese antiquity. 

In the second century BC, the Chinese medical text, Huangdi Neijing, declared chicken soup is a 'yang food' – a warming dish – to which different therapeutic herbs can be added to cure various diseases.

In China, chicken soup is given to women after pregnancy and to elderly people. 

Both groups are considered to be in need of energy-giving yang food, which is believed to transport 'energy' around the body and have an invigorating effect.

One of the earliest recipes for Chinese noodles, 'lamian', dates back to the second century AD. 

In Chinese culture, noodles represent a long life. Traditionally they were combined with chicken soup to emphasise the well-being of the family. 

During the Song Dynasty (960-1279), noodle shops became widespread and chicken noodle soup was a popular dish. Recipes for chicken noodle soup were also exchanged with other parts of Asia.

The Jewish folklore about chicken soup is closely tied to the central European medical history of chicken soup. 

The Greek physician Galen, in the second century AD, recommended chicken soup as a cure for migraine, leprosy, constipation and fever.

A few centuries later, in the Babylonian Talmud, a story refers to the chicken of Rabbi Abba (175–247) which, when cooked, served him as a general remedy.

Towards the end of the Middle Ages, the Jewish philosopher and physician, Moses Maimonides (1135-1204), recommended chicken soup for the weak and the sick. 

But chicken soup remained an infrequently eaten dish until the 15th century. It was only then that a revival of raising chickens started to compensate for other meat shortages and people began to eat chicken soup regularly.

Here is what we do know about chicken soup's curative properties:

  • Marvin Sackner, in 1978, conducted a study showing that drinking chicken soup was significantly better at clearing up congestion in the nose than drinking hot or cold water.
  • In 1980, Irwin Ziment showed that chicken broth helps to thin mucus in the lungs - with a better effect being achieved when the broth was spiced. 
  • His study was followed up in 2000 by Stephen Rennard, who argued that chicken soup, by reducing mucus in the lungs, supported the white blood cells in fighting a cold.
  • Generally, the calcium content of the soup increases with the duration of cooking and, depending on the composition, can have a mild anti-inflammatory effect.
  • Chicken soup is also said to have a calming effect, which has led some to claim it can also heal the soul.