# Starve a cold and feed a fever

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starve-a-cold-and-feed-a-fever/457002>\
**Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\
**Created:** [July 18, 2008, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starve-a-cold-and-feed-a-fever/457002 "2008-07-18T23:10:52Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Yu\_Lin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/5fc32e/32.png) [@Yu\_Lin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yu_Lin)\
**Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starve-a-cold-and-feed-a-fever/457002/1 "2008-07-18T23:10:52Z")

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FYI -

Some years ago I had a friend who researched sayings like this, and what I heard from her went as follows:

The modern form of the saying is “starve a cold and feed a fever”.

The original version of this saying was “if you starve a cold, you will be feeding a fever”.

In other words, if you do not get proper nutrition when you have a cold, then you could get even more sick (will be feeding a fever).

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**Author:** ![tim314](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim314/32/3468_2.png) [@tim314](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tim314)\
**Post date:** [July 18, 2008, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starve-a-cold-and-feed-a-fever/457002/2 "2008-07-18T23:43:16Z")

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Hi, **Yu Lin**. The custom here when starting a thread on a column is to include a link. Like this:  
[Is it “feed a cold, starve a fever” or vice versa? And should you?](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a5_154b.html)

Personally, I always thought the point was a fever makes it hard to keep anything down, so it’s better to just starve it. But I probably made that explanation up out of my own imagination.

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**Author:** ![Clamwacker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f475e1/32.png) [@Clamwacker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clamwacker)\
**Post date:** [July 23, 2008, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starve-a-cold-and-feed-a-fever/457002/3 "2008-07-23T06:34:43Z")

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I’ve always thought the phrase was more metaphorical. “Starve a cold” means to stay warm, and “feed a fever” means the same.

I suppose trying to stay warm during a fever might not always be the best advice, though.

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**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\
**Post date:** [July 23, 2008, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starve-a-cold-and-feed-a-fever/457002/4 "2008-07-23T13:26:35Z")

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[QUOTE=Yu Lin]  
FYI -

Some years ago I had a friend who researched sayings like this, and what I heard from her went as follows:

The modern form of the saying is “starve a cold and feed a fever”.

The original version of this saying was “if you starve a cold, you will be feeding a fever”.

In other words, if you do not get proper nutrition when you have a cold, then you could get even more sick (will be feeding a fever).  
[/QUOTE]  
Did your friend happen to mention where she got the information about the original phrase?

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**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\
**Post date:** [July 24, 2008, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/starve-a-cold-and-feed-a-fever/457002/5 "2008-07-24T01:05:20Z")

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[QUOTE=Yu Lin]  
FYI -

Some years ago I had a friend who researched sayings like this, and what I heard from her went as follows:

The modern form of the saying is “starve a cold and feed a fever”.

[/QUOTE]  
But it isn’t. Show me where this is the modern form.