Chicken soup and skin health claims examined
What it found
One clinical study in people found that eating chicken soup increased skin elasticity and reduced facial pigmentation.
The authors say more research is needed to confirm these benefits.
What they found
Studies in people
Skin elasticity and pigmentation
One clinical study found that people who ate chicken soup had increased skin elasticity and decreased facial pigmentation.
Other findings
Collagen and hyaluronic acid
Chicken soup is claimed to promote healthy skin because it is rich in collagen and hyaluronic acid.
Folk medicine uses
Chicken soup is used worldwide in folk medicine to treat respiratory infections, and in ancient and medieval times it was used to treat leprosy.
What the authors conclude
“More research is needed to confirm these benefits and better define the role chicken soup consumption might have in promoting healthy, youthful skin.”
Also in their conclusions
- They say more research is needed to confirm these benefits.
- They call for better definition of the role chicken soup consumption might have in promoting healthy, youthful skin.
How it was done
Chicken soup is used in folk medicine for respiratory infections and was used in ancient and medieval times to treat leprosy. It is claimed anecdotally to promote healthy skin because it is rich in collagen and hyaluronic acid.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- The paper reports only one clinical study, so the skin benefits have not been confirmed in more people.
- It is not clear from this text how long people ate chicken soup or how much they ate.
Who paid
- Conflicts
- Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
The paper
- Title
- Chicken soup for the skin!
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Hoenig LJ (2022). Chicken soup for the skin!. Clinics in dermatology. doi:10.1016/j.clindermatol.2022.09.002PubMed 36122880DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error