what to eat and what not to

I am finding that my body is just not bouncing back after a tumor was removed via colon cancer surgery almost three months ago and now I am going through chemo. Three tumors in liver and three in lungs. Chemo is working in the right direction. Trying to balance what I eat. My colon is still healing and now with the chemo I am having major bowel problems. It seems that I can't eat anything with out it coming out of me seemingly on fire, my bowel movements burn and hurt. Any suggestions for a diet that is not going to counteract my chemo and give me nutrition that won't wreek havok going through my body.

Thanks

  Hi,

   So sorry to hear what you are going through, to help healing process you need to have as much protein as you can, if you can eat chciken and cut it up in small pieces, alsoif you cant, you can by protein drinks, I bought protein powder (choc) and mixed with milk. Also  Ensure is a good drink, its a meal in itself,  Your veg you can  mash up to eat to make sure you get nutrients. Also make sure you drink lots and lots of water so imprtant to do that.

  Try and keep away from processed foods ..  keep away from pork as it takes digestive system ages to digest.... check out on google  ..cancer and diet...

 Do you take a good multi vitimin as  you need every day, most imprtant to keep immune system high, also make sure you get plenty of VIT C as your body cannott store Vit C  SO  our body needs it every day.

    eat as many small meals you can each day,,,,

 Have you many side effects with  chemo?  If you need any more advice please dont hestitate to ask, as I have studied the body, cancer and diet over 7yrs...

 Wishing You All the Best,,, make sure you stay positive and keep going ... and always be proactive ...

      BEST WISHES .....Rob

Hi itsmelissa .........Please research the ingredients in Ensure before considering using this product. Sugar feeds cancer and you will find when you read the ingredient list that following water, ingredients number two, three and four are all sugars. If you go to this link ...... http://ensure.com/products/ ........ and click on "ingredients" I think you will understand why I would suggest no one use the product.......Nutrition plays such an important role in cancer treatment and recovery you are very wise to be looking for information on the subject. I have a Regimen that I have followed since my diagnosis in early 2004 and will gladly send you a copy of that if you like.....In the meantime I have several links to websites that I trust implicitly that offer excellent info on nutrition.... http://www.mnwelldir.org/docs/nutrition/sugar.htm ..... Follow the TABLE OF CONTENTS at this next link for a very thorough education regarding nutrition and cancer. ......... http://www.mnwelldir.org/docs/nutrition/diet.htm ....... this too is a respected reliable site ............. http://clem.mscd.edu/~boettner/CancerTutor/index.html ....... Hope this is helpful for you......Sheila ______________________________________________________________

On 9/11/2009 itsmelissa wrote:

I am finding that my body is just not bouncing back after a tumor was removed via colon cancer surgery almost three months ago and now I am going through chemo. Three tumors in liver and three in lungs. Chemo is working in the right direction. Trying to balance what I eat. My colon is still healing and now with the chemo I am having major bowel problems. It seems that I can't eat anything with out it coming out of me seemingly on fire, my bowel movements burn and hurt. Any suggestions for a diet that is not going to counteract my chemo and give me nutrition that won't wreek havok going through my body.

Thanks

Melissa,

Do you take any medications to counteract the diarrhea?  I have a prescription for Lomotil and it works very well for me. 

Also, make sure that you are drinking plenty of water around your infusion day(s).  Water will flush the chemo out of your system faster and reduce side effects. 

Unfortunately the best cancer-fighting diets aren't the best anti-diarrheal diets.  Foods like broccoli, asparagus, etc can contribute to diarrhea.  My oncologist didn't care what I ate while on chemo.   I'm not sure that is the best approach, but I lost 57 pounds and he was more concerned about me maintaining my weight.

Jack

I will be 5 yrs cancer free in Feb 2010.  I was stage 3. After my surgery and chemo, I constantly had diarrhea.  My cousin is a homeopathic dietician and she gave me tests for gluten and dairy intolerance.  It came back positive.  This was after 2 yrs of diarrhea that I thought was the result of surgery.  Since I have stopped eating gluten and dairy, the diarrhea has stopped!!! I eat fish, chicken, lots of veggies (raw and cooked), and fruit.  I have found gluten free bread and use rice pasta.  What a difference this has made in my health.  It is hard at first as you will be surprised at how gluten is in so many things.  Do away with all processed foods....and eat red meat only occassionally if at all. My cousin tells me (along with her doctor husband) that cancer is from inflamation in the body.  To get rid of the inflamation, you MUST EAT PROPERLY.  I hope this helps you. If you decide to try a gluten and dairy free diet, and it helps, let us know here on the board!!  Remember, read all labels.....oh and no sugar or artificial sweetners except for stevia, which is a natural sweetner. There is a lot of info on the Internet on gluten and dairy intolerance. Good luck!!! Barbara119

I had the same bowel problems after my surgery as it sounds like you are having. What helped me alot was cooked white rice with peas mixed in it. No medical break through here, my body just seemed to crave it and I ate it for weeks. It definately helped me but did eliminate the problem totally but certainly helped. I also drank alot of V-8 juice and gatorade with it. Say away from any red meats.  A strong positive attitude is equally as important if not more so. Good luck, Hang tough  Ray