Orange · guava · amla
Lungs get most of their help from air and movement, not from a “lung cleanse.” Colourful fruit and vegetables supply vitamin C and other ordinary nutrients that support general fitness. Ginger soup and tulsi water can soothe a dry throat. They do not treat pneumonia, tuberculosis, or asthma.
If you cook on a smoky stove, open a window or step outside when you can. Second-hand smoke at home is still smoke. Walk at a talking pace if your clinician has not limited you. A cough lasting more than three weeks, blood in sputum, or breathlessness with fever belongs in a clinic, not in a juice glass.
Best foods
Tomato · bell peppers
Broccoli · spinach · carrot
Garlic · ginger
Walnuts · flaxseed
Fish
Simple kitchen options
Ginger soup
Simmer mixed vegetables with crushed ginger. Sip warm. Comfort food — not a treatment for infection.
Tomato–carrot
A simple tomato and carrot soup. Colour on the plate, not a lung medicine.
Whole fruit
Amla, guava, or orange as whole fruit keeps fibre that juice throws away.
Dal greens
Dal with leafy vegetables, or fish with vegetables if you eat fish — an ordinary lunch, not a cleanse.
Most important for lungs
- No smoking
- Avoid second-hand smoke
- Exercise regularly
- Avoid heavy pollution when possible
Regular physical activity makes the heart and lungs work harder and can improve cardiovascular and respiratory fitness.
At home
- Open a window. Cook with as little smoke as you can.
- Warm water with ginger or tulsi when the throat feels dry.
- Walk at a talking pace if a doctor has not limited you.
If you smoke, ask a clinic for help to stop. Willpower alone is often not enough.
See a clinician
A cough longer than three weeks, blood in sputum, wheeze that will not settle, or fever with breathlessness needs a doctor.