Cancer Care and Nutrition

Cancer Care and Nutrition

HOW DO YOU PLAN THE DIET AND NUTRITION OF CANCER PATIENT?

Individual holistic diet and nutrition consultation

1. While the side effects of your cancer and treatment may be similar to those of others, no one responds exactly like you. Your experience of cancer is unique, which is why an individual nutrition consultation is often the best way to meet your needs.
2. You'll receive information tailored to your personal eating patterns and symptoms. You're welcome to bring a friend, relative or caregiver to listen, learn and ask questions with you.
3. An individual consultation usually last about 1 hour.
4. During the appointment, Dr. Mitali will interview you and analyse your eating patterns to determine how your diet measures up to what you need nutritionally.
5. This knowledge will be used to create a personalized plan for you.
6. She will then review your customized eating plan with you and explain your personal requirements, suggest specific foods and offer tips on how to follow the plan.
7. She can also answer any questions you may have, offer advice on symptoms that might interfere with your health and provide nutritional information sheets related to your needs.

WHAT IS THE RECOMMENDED DIET FOR A CANCER PATIENT?

1. I have observed that cancer patients often have faulty diet and nutrition patterns which have continued for many years often resulting in acidity or gastritis.
2. Making healthy dietary changes which help body immune system to destroy cancer cells is important.
3. ALKALINE DIET which is mainly vegetarian is useful for cancer
4. A diet made of 80% fresh vegetables and juice, whole grains, seeds, nuts and a little fruits help put the body into an alkaline environment.
5. About 20% can be from cooked food including beans.
6. Fresh vegetable juices provide live enzymes that are easily absorbed and reach down to cellular levels within 15 minutes to nourish and enhance growth of healthy cells.
7. To obtain live enzymes for building healthy cells try and drink fresh vegetable juice (most vegetables including bean sprouts) and eat some raw vegetables 2 times a day.
8. We need to consume raw diet as enzymes are destroyed at temperatures of 104 degrees F (40 degrees C). Hence by cooking we lose the enzymes essential for our body
9. Cancer cells are known to thrive and grow in acidic medium. Lemon water is a very effective drink which makes the blood alkaline. Put one thin slice of fresh lemon in 1 litre of water; drink this water instead of normal water.

ARE THERE ANY DIETARY RISTRICTIONS FOR CANCER PATIENTS?

1. Yes the diet that is most healing for cancer patients , which I myself have tried and tested during my own journey with cancer is as follows:
2. An effective way to battle cancer is to STARVE the cancer cells by not feeding it with foods it needs to multiple. What cancer cells feed on:

1. Sugar: It is a cancer-feeder. By cutting off sugar it cuts off one important food supply to the cancer cells. Note: Sugar substitutes like NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, etc. are made with Aspartame and it is harmful. A better natural substitute would be honey or jaggery but only in very small amounts.

2. Table salt: has a chemical added to make it white in colour. Additive colours and preservatives are carcinogenic. Better alternative is sea salt.

3. Milk: Milk causes the body to produce mucus, especially in the gastro-intestinal tract. Cancer feeds on mucus. By cutting off milk and substituting with unsweetened nut milk, cancer cells will be starved.

4. Meat Based diet: Cancer cells thrive in an acid environment. A meat-based diet is acidic and it is best to eat fish, and a little chicken rather than beef or pork. Meat also contains livestock antibiotics, growth hormones and parasites, which are all harmful, especially to people with cancer. Meat protein is difficult to digest and requires a lot of digestive enzymes. Undigested meat remaining in the intestines will become putrefied and leads to more toxic build-up. Cancer cell walls have a tough protein covering. By refraining from or eating less meat it frees more enzymes to attack the protein walls of cancer cells and allows the body's killer cells to destroy the cancer cells.

5. Refined Flour (Maida): which is the main ingredient in bread, burgers, pizzas, biscuits, cookies toast, Khari, etc. is harmful for digestion as the sticky consistency of refined flour coats the intestinal wall and makes absorption of digested food difficult. Thus essential nutrients and vitamins and minerals are lost from the body. Whole grains ( wheat ,ragi ,millet, jowar , bajra, oats) is a better substitute to refined flour.

6.Caffeine: Avoid coffee, tea, and chocolate, which have high caffeine. Green tea is a better alternative and has cancer-fighting properties.

7. Aerated cold drinks: These drinks are acidic in nature , which further add to the already acidic blood PH of a cancer patient, causing cancer cells to thrive and grow.

8. Water: avoid Tap water to protect yourself from known toxins and heavy metals in tap water. Always drink filtered or purified water .

DO CANCER PATIENTS NEED TO TAKE SUPPLEMENTS?

1. Supplements In the form of vitamins and minerals and antioxidants are very essential to combat cancer cells growth in the body. Supplements enable the body's own killer cells to destroy cancer cells.
2. Nutritional deficiencies such Vitamin B12, Vitamin D3 and Iron Deficiencies as are commonly associated with cancer. These needs to be treated with proper dietary changes and use of supplements in oral or injectable form
3. Vitamin C and Vitamin D3 boosts body’s ability to fight the rapid growth of cancer cells by enhancing the immune system.
4. Supplements like vitamin E are known to cause apoptosis, or programmed cell death, the body's normal method of disposing of damaged, unwanted, or unneeded cells. Vitamin E in regular doses of 400mg would help control growth of cancer cells