Here are dietary suggestions that can help improve nutritional status in cancer patients, especially those experiencing chemotherapy or radiation side effects.
- Eat small frequent meals, rather than larger meals less often.
- Stay well hydrated and drink 18 – 24 ounces of fresh vegetable juice daily. The juice can be taken with food, or better yet, take a mid-morning juice break. Raw juicing is best and avoid bottled juices, especially the sugary fruit juices.
- Drink a high-protein (whey only) smoothie once or twice daily. Smoothies can take the place of breakfast or be a mid-afternoon snack. This is great for those going through radiation or chemotherapy who may have a difficult time keeping food on the stomach.
- Try the herb, Ginger or Peppermint as a tea or in rice to reduce nausea and vomiting.
- Use extra seasonings, spices, and flavorings to improve food’s taste appeal. Avoid those with sodium in them as sodium causes a damp condition in the body, an environment cancer cells thrive in.
- Avoid flavorings that are very sweet or very bitter.
- Avoid refined sugar as sugar feeds cancer cells. Use Stevia or Xylitol as natural, safe replacements. NO Equal or Nutrasweet or Splenda as these may cause cancer (according to certain available data) and reduce the function of the immune system.
- Take small bites and chew completely.
- Take enough fish oil capsules to provide 3,000mg of your Omega 3s each day. Using Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega will give you Fish Liver oil. These provide one with the proper amounts of the Omega 3 essential fatty acids.
