Thank you Jillian for sharing your knowledge.
The battle against cancer is a long, hard road for many people.
Often times, the therapies that are used to treat cancer, and even the cancer
itself, can affect your ability to take in adequate nutrition. This makes
cancer even harder to deal with, because the mind and body both suffer from a
poor diet. Not getting the nutrition you need could also hinder your body's
ability to resist cancer.
Starting a nutritious diet is essential regardless of your health
status, but it can make a particularly significant impact when you have cancer.
Studies have found that cancer patients who maintained a healthy diet have more
energy and enjoy improved moods, better overall health and fewer side effects.
Good nutrition has also been shown to improve the effectiveness of cancer
treatment--even treatments for mesothelioma. Here are some of the ways that you
can enhance your nutrition to improve your quality of life.
Limit Processed Foods
While there's nothing wrong with occasionally indulging in
less-than-healthy foods, they are far from ideal as a part of your regular
diet. They contain little in the way of meaningful nutrition and are instead
loaded with chemicals, sugar, sodium and unhealthy fats. You're better off
rebuilding your diet to only include fresh foods and meals you've made from
scratch. This way, you can control what goes into your food as well as what you
get out of it.
Use More Spices
Without spices; most foods would be quite bland. However, spices
do more than just make food palatable. Many possess the ability to enhance
digestion, which has the added benefit of increasing nutrient absorption.
Numerous spices also contain high levels of certain vitamins and minerals,
making them even better for you. Adding more spices to your diet could even
help your body win the fight against cancer, according to some studies. Common
seasonings like turmeric, cayenne, basil, oregano and cumin have been shown to
kill cancerous cells and stimulate the immune system.
Fermented Foods
Fermentation is one of the original methods of preserving food for
later use. Within the last several years, people have begun rediscovering the
joys of home fermentation. Vegetables like radishes, cabbage, tomatoes and
cucumbers are placed into brine and left to ferment naturally. After a few days
to a few weeks depending on the vegetables, methods and conditions used, you
will have fresh and healthy fermented food. The good bacteria, also called
probiotics, colonize your digestive system where they fulfill several important
roles:
- Aid digestion and the secretion of digestive juices
- Improve nutrient absorption
- Convert dietary fiber into usable vitamins
- Produce serotonin in the gut
- Keep populations of harmful bacteria in check
- Train the immune system to better recognize threats
Eating fermented foods at least once per day can make a dramatic
impact on your health and well-being. If you don't want to wait for the
fermentation process, taking a quality probiotic supplement is recommended.
Avoid Refined Sugar
Eating refined sugars is one of the worst things that someone with
cancer can do to their health. Sugar not only causes blood sugar problems and
weight gain but also inflammation and immune suppression. Researchers have discovered that consuming
sugar results in a weakening of the immune system that can last as long as five
hours. Sugar also depletes the nutrients from your body much the same way
alcohol does. Some good alternatives to sugar include apple juice concentrate,
stevia, fresh fruit or raw honey.
Reorganize Mealtime
A lot of people like to have something to drink with their meals,
but this may not be a good idea if you're battling cancer. People with cancer often
suffer a lack of appetite due to their illness or its treatments. If this is a
problem for you, then the nutritional content of everything you eat matters.
Try to avoid liquids with meals, as they take up room in your stomach that
could be used for more substantial nourishment.
Avoid Excessive Alcohol
While occasional drinking is normally okay, those suffering from
cancer should keep their consumption to a minimum. Even in healthy people,
alcohol strains the body by slowing down metabolism, hindering thyroid
production and raising cortisol levels. It also depletes your body of vitamins
and minerals, most notably magnesium, calcium, phosphorous, sodium, zinc and
the B vitamins.
Nutritional Supplements
Studies have confirmed that commercially grown food isn't as
nutritious as it was 60 years ago, mostly because of modern agriculture and
farming practices that put profits over people. Sadly, this means that it's not
as easy to get enough nutrition purely from food sources. This is especially
true for people who have increased nutritional needs, such as cancer patients.
In order to make sure you're staying as healthy as possible, it may be helpful
to begin a supplement regimen.
Written by Jillian McKee, Outreach Coordinator at Mesothelima Cancer Alliance in New York. http://www.mesothelioma.com/blog/authors/jillian/.