Does a person need more calories when sick?

I was wondering this too actually. Because my mum is going into hospital for an op soon and I was wondering if she would be able to stick to a low calorie limit without it affecting her recovery. x

That's a good question... I've heard of "feed a fever" or "feed a cold", whichever it is...

I hope someone has the answer!

I'd say you probably don't ''need'' more, but if you are that sick, it's likely that your appetite is pretty suppressed so you may eat less...if that makes sense??

Lots of liquid, and vitamin c might help.

Good question, I always wonder too...

You will need to eat less calories. Giving your digestive system a break allows your body to use the energy in other places. In your case the energy can be used for healing. Eat foods that are low on the digestive scale. Fruits, soups, smoothies... etc. When you eat foods that take longer to digest your body sometimes borrows energy from other systems to help process the food. So just be mindful of that. I hope that you start to feel better. Also load up on Vitamin C. Also not consuming diary (because it causes mucus) can also help you heal faster.

That's a good question... I've heard of "feed a fever" or "feed a cold", whichever it is...

I hope someone has the answer!

The saying is “feed a fever, starve a cold” however it comes from a phrase in the 1500’s that advocated the opposite, FEED A COLD – not sure why that’s the saying if its wrong, weird. Apparently it stems from the fact that eating boots immune response needed to fight off the common cold.

I guess that negates my above comment, LOL! Still, you are extra sedentary so technically you need less but that still doesn’t mean you should be eating 300’ish cals. If you can get to 1000+ cals that’s a good plan.

I would eat the calorie amount that you should eat just to keep you going when you are staying put . The calorie amount you are given here is lower than that so that you should loose weight by just sticking to it. I wouldn't worry about not losing weight when sick. I'd rather give my body what it needs to make sure you're not stressing your body or lacking in nutrients when healing. Then when you're well again you can go back to exercising or just stick with the calorie deficient plan.

You do burn more calories getting better, than you do, doing nothing..
So your bmr will be higher...
but if you normally have a active lifestyle, then being bed ridden will mean you should eat less calories..
I think it just depends on ur life style!

The saying is "feed a cold, starve a fever" but I don't think that necessarily means you need to eat more, just that you need to eat. I actually found this interesting article about what to eat when you're sick with a cold or the flu: http://health.infoniac.com/top_foods__eat_during_cold_and_flu.html

ETA: I found "yogurt" to be the most interesting item on that list. I've started eating Greek yogurt on a fairly regular basis and my last cold was much easier and shorter than usual. I also didn't get the last cold my husband and son both had two weeks ago and I was liberally sharing water bottles, etc. with my husband while he had it. I have to wonder if the yogurt wasn't a factor.

Last time I was sick my BodyMedia Fit readouts didn't show any increase in my normal calories burned while sitting/laying around than when I'm healthy. So the old theory that your body is burning more calories while working to get you healthy doesn't seem very likely. I also experienced the same non-change in numbers while recovering from injury. (another time folks like to say your body is workin harder) I haven't had any major surgeries or anything like that, so I can say if it burns higher or the same at those times.

But overall, it would seem that whatever your body normally burns when you're healthy is what it burns when you're sick. The only thing to account for is likely being more sedentary than usual. So if you have your MFP settings to anything but sedentary, you could probably eat a little lower than that and be fine. If you're already set to sedentary, I'd say eat based on that and on what your body tells you it wants or needs. And, as folks above said, keep the focus on healthy, non-dairy foods. (if you don't have any throat/chest symptoms a little dairy is probably okay, but keep it low still)

You don't need more, but you should focus on eating more micronutrient rich foods. The more you eat while you're sick, the more energy your body will have to put to digesting it instead of healing your illness (at least that's always what my doctor's have told me through the years). Get lots of fluids and rest.

Also remember your body needs calories for basic life. During a cold or flu your body is building a defence against invading viruses and bacteria. That means cell production is in overdrive. You are stationary but that doesn't mean your body isn't working hard. Think about how much kids eat when they grow. They are producing cells then too..

I don't think you need to eat more but should eat more nutrient dense foods to help your body fight off the illness. Rest and lots of fluids.

In the UK the saying is "Starve a fever, feed a cold" but given that you can often get a fever when you have a cold it's all a bit contradictory, as well as being non-scientifically based advice.
Last week I ate all kinds of rubbish and did very little exercise because I had a cold (read felt sorry for myself). I put on 2 lbs.
Now I have a sinus infection so I can do very little exercise without seriously hurting my face. My advice would be boost the vitamin-rich foods, get yourself on a vit c or mulitivitamin tablet for a little while and drink plenty of hot tea/infusions - don't make my mistakes!

Get well soon

When you eat a nutritional, well-balanced diet, many other factors fall in place that keep your body functioning optimally. Foods that are rich in nutrients help fight infections and may help to prevent illness.