Say what?: An apple a day keeps the doctor away. / Feed a cold and starve a fever.
Today, with a little help from our Sentinel friends, we're looking at two food-oriented sayings.
An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
The earliest known example of this in print says it is a Welsh proverb. In the February 1866 edition of Notes and Queries magazine you will find this:
"A Pembrokeshire proverb. Eat an apple on going to bed,
And you'll keep the doctor from earning his bread."
A number of variants of the rhyme were in circulation around the turn of the 20th century. Writing in 'Rustic Speech and Folk-lore' in 1913, Elizabeth Wright recorded a Devonian dialect version as well as the first known mention of the version we use now.
"Ait a happle avore gwain to bed, An' you'll make the doctor beg his bread; or as the more popular version runs: An apple a day keeps the doctor away."
Certainly, apples are good for you. They contain Vitamin C, and phenols, which reduce cholesterol. They also reduce tooth decay by helping to clean teeth and kill bacteria. Originally, though, the word didn't necessarily refer to the fruit we now call 'apple'. In Old English the word 'aeppel' was used to describe any round fruit that grew on a tree.
"You really need to eat more fruit," Blair nagged.
"Why?" Jim asked.
"Because it helps give you a balanced diet," Blair said. "Keeps you healthy. You know the old saying - 'An apple a day keeps the doctor away'."
Jim looked at him thoughtfully. "Didn't you once tell me that a long time ago, the word 'apple' meant any round fruit growing in an orchard?"
"Well... yes."
"I don't think one cherry would do much to keep a doctor away, would it?"
Feed a cold and starve a fever.
Nobody's sure of the actual origin of this saying.
Perceived 'wisdom' like this typically dates back many years, but feed a cold, starve a fever may be the oldest maxim around. The original phrase might even have been, "Feed a cold, stave a fever" - as in 'stave off' 'keep away' or 'prevent' a fever. In Middle English (from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, end of the fourteenth century) the phrase was "Fede a cold and starb ob feber", which translates as "feed a cold and die of fever". This could be why some people claim that the saying really means "If you feed a cold, you'll then have to starve a fever." Indeed, that was what I thought it meant when I was a child, because that was how my mother always worded it.
This saying has also been traced to a 1574 dictionary compiled by John Withals, which claimed that "fasting is a great remedy of fever". At that time it was believed that there were two kinds of illnesses; one kind caused by low temperatures (colds and chills) and the other caused by high temperatures (fever). If you had a cold, eating could help the body keep warm; if you had a fever, your body was already very warm, so not eating could help it cool down.
Recent medical science, however, is taking a fresh look at the subject; today it says that the proverb should actually be 'feed a cold, feed a fever'.
When your body fights an illness like a cold it needs energy, and healthy, nourishing food can supply that. Simple.
The reasons to eat if you have a fever are more interesting. Fever is part of the immune system's attempt to beat germs and viruses. It raises one's body temperature, which increases one's metabolism. This means more calories are being burned; it's important to replace those calories.
Drinking is important too, of course. Fever makes you sweat, and replacing the fluid that is lost through sweating is vital. Even with a cold, it's recommended that you drink a lot, even though you might not feel like drinking much.
"Come on, Jim - you really should eat something," Blair said.
"Not hungry," Jim muttered. "Anyway, you know what they say - 'Feed a cold and starve a fever'. I'm so hot, I must have a fever. So I shouldn't eat anything."
"No, no, that's old-fashioned thinking!" Blair said. "Doctors nowadays say that you need to eat when you have a fever to keep your strength up. And more than that, you need to drink - so stop arguing and eat your soup!"
Speaking of soup, what about the idea that when you're ill, soup (especially chicken soup) is good for you? Well, it's not a cure-all, but it's easily consumed and nourishing, as well as providing those all-important liquids.
An apple a day might help you keep you from getting ill, but eating when you are ill will keep your strength up and help you recover.
Sources
Apple a day
Feed a cold
Feed a fever
An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
The earliest known example of this in print says it is a Welsh proverb. In the February 1866 edition of Notes and Queries magazine you will find this:
"A Pembrokeshire proverb. Eat an apple on going to bed,
And you'll keep the doctor from earning his bread."
A number of variants of the rhyme were in circulation around the turn of the 20th century. Writing in 'Rustic Speech and Folk-lore' in 1913, Elizabeth Wright recorded a Devonian dialect version as well as the first known mention of the version we use now.
"Ait a happle avore gwain to bed, An' you'll make the doctor beg his bread; or as the more popular version runs: An apple a day keeps the doctor away."
Certainly, apples are good for you. They contain Vitamin C, and phenols, which reduce cholesterol. They also reduce tooth decay by helping to clean teeth and kill bacteria. Originally, though, the word didn't necessarily refer to the fruit we now call 'apple'. In Old English the word 'aeppel' was used to describe any round fruit that grew on a tree.
"You really need to eat more fruit," Blair nagged.
"Why?" Jim asked.
"Because it helps give you a balanced diet," Blair said. "Keeps you healthy. You know the old saying - 'An apple a day keeps the doctor away'."
Jim looked at him thoughtfully. "Didn't you once tell me that a long time ago, the word 'apple' meant any round fruit growing in an orchard?"
"Well... yes."
"I don't think one cherry would do much to keep a doctor away, would it?"
Feed a cold and starve a fever.
Nobody's sure of the actual origin of this saying.
Perceived 'wisdom' like this typically dates back many years, but feed a cold, starve a fever may be the oldest maxim around. The original phrase might even have been, "Feed a cold, stave a fever" - as in 'stave off' 'keep away' or 'prevent' a fever. In Middle English (from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, end of the fourteenth century) the phrase was "Fede a cold and starb ob feber", which translates as "feed a cold and die of fever". This could be why some people claim that the saying really means "If you feed a cold, you'll then have to starve a fever." Indeed, that was what I thought it meant when I was a child, because that was how my mother always worded it.
This saying has also been traced to a 1574 dictionary compiled by John Withals, which claimed that "fasting is a great remedy of fever". At that time it was believed that there were two kinds of illnesses; one kind caused by low temperatures (colds and chills) and the other caused by high temperatures (fever). If you had a cold, eating could help the body keep warm; if you had a fever, your body was already very warm, so not eating could help it cool down.
Recent medical science, however, is taking a fresh look at the subject; today it says that the proverb should actually be 'feed a cold, feed a fever'.
When your body fights an illness like a cold it needs energy, and healthy, nourishing food can supply that. Simple.
The reasons to eat if you have a fever are more interesting. Fever is part of the immune system's attempt to beat germs and viruses. It raises one's body temperature, which increases one's metabolism. This means more calories are being burned; it's important to replace those calories.
Drinking is important too, of course. Fever makes you sweat, and replacing the fluid that is lost through sweating is vital. Even with a cold, it's recommended that you drink a lot, even though you might not feel like drinking much.
"Come on, Jim - you really should eat something," Blair said.
"Not hungry," Jim muttered. "Anyway, you know what they say - 'Feed a cold and starve a fever'. I'm so hot, I must have a fever. So I shouldn't eat anything."
"No, no, that's old-fashioned thinking!" Blair said. "Doctors nowadays say that you need to eat when you have a fever to keep your strength up. And more than that, you need to drink - so stop arguing and eat your soup!"
Speaking of soup, what about the idea that when you're ill, soup (especially chicken soup) is good for you? Well, it's not a cure-all, but it's easily consumed and nourishing, as well as providing those all-important liquids.
An apple a day might help you keep you from getting ill, but eating when you are ill will keep your strength up and help you recover.
Sources
Apple a day
Feed a cold
Feed a fever