need healthy nutrition ideas

I was diagnosed with stage 4 renal cell cancer with mets to bones. My doc wants me to eat a lot of protein especially fish. I have never liked any kind of fish & can't even think of bringing it to my lips. My daily diet consists of a cup of decaffienated coffee, a banana, either oatmeal or farina for breakfast, turkey & swiss sandwich for lunch & dinner is meat I eat a lot of chicken, fresh or frozen veggie & a starch. Snack at night is usually 2 celery stalks with peanut butter. If I'm hungry inbetween meals I'll drink a chocolate protein drink. I've maintained a healthy weight for a few months now so I guess I'm doing something right.

I was on Sutent & couldn't tolerate any dairy & had decreased appetite. I recently started Afinitor & my appetite has increased & I'm slowly reintroducing dairy into my diet.

I love to cook but many recipies call for alcohol to be added which I can't have. Is there anything I can substitute for the alcohol without changing the outcome of the taste? Also are there any good sites that offer high protein healthy recipies.

I am also anemic from the medication. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Donna

  

Does your oncologist recommend lots of protein to keep weight on? Too much protein can be just as bad as too little, I've read

The kidneys and liver filter out excess protein and have read that excess protein consumption is a major risk factor for developing renal cancer. It seems backwards to recommend eating lots of protein, and put more burden on the kidneys?

Excess protein also cancels out the absorption of calcium. When we eat too much protein and not able to absorb calcium, the body needs to get it from somewhere, so it pulls it out of the bones, creating weak bones. With mets to bones,  would think you'd want to keep them as strong as possible? 

Might be a good idea to ask a nutrition expert. Maybe someone who deals with C patients frequently. Oncologists and MD's rarely have advanced education in nutrition, or any at all

For optimal nutrition while going thru treatment, it's hard to beat juicing fresh veg's such as kale, watercress, carrots, spinach/romaine, apples, wheat grass. For bulk and satisfying appetite, don't think there's anything wrong with starches such as potatoes, brown rice, whole grain pasta, and beans(in moderation, due to protein). For healthy fat when dealing with C, flaxseed oil is really good. Mixed in cottage cheese, this is the main part of the Budwig diet. For cooking, extra virgin coconut oil is supposed to be the heathiest oil on earth  

Recommend referring to the work and books of Dr John McDougall, or Colin Campbell, PhD

good luck

 

 

On Feb 10, 2011 5:55 PM andy73 wrote:

  

Does your oncologist recommend lots of protein to keep weight on? Too much protein can be just as bad as too little, I've read

The kidneys and liver filter out excess protein and have read that excess protein consumption is a major risk factor for developing renal cancer. It seems backwards to recommend eating lots of protein, and put more burden on the kidneys?

Excess protein also cancels out the absorption of calcium. When we eat too much protein and not able to absorb calcium, the body needs to get it from somewhere, so it pulls it out of the bones, creating weak bones. With mets to bones,  would think you'd want to keep them as strong as possible? 

Might be a good idea to ask a nutrition expert. Maybe someone who deals with C patients frequently. Oncologists and MD's rarely have advanced education in nutrition, or any at all

For optimal nutrition while going thru treatment, it's hard to beat juicing fresh veg's such as kale, watercress, carrots, spinach/romaine, apples, wheat grass. For bulk and satisfying appetite, don't think there's anything wrong with starches such as potatoes, brown rice, whole grain pasta, and beans(in moderation, due to protein). For healthy fat when dealing with C, flaxseed oil is really good. Mixed in cottage cheese, this is the main part of the Budwig diet. For cooking, extra virgin coconut oil is supposed to be the heathiest oil on earth  

Recommend referring to the work and books of Dr John McDougall, or Colin Campbell, PhD

good luck

 

 

Hi Andy,

Yes my oncologist recommended I increase my protein  based on blood work results. My weight is no longer an issue & seems to be stable at this time.

I just wanted to make sure I was eating the right foods & getting the proper nourishment.

Thanks for your input, Donna

I agree with "my friend" on the nutrition thing...  Check into the work and books of Dr John McDougall and Colin Campbell, PhD and Dr. Gabriel Cousens and Dr. Joel Fuhrman and Dr. Loraine Day and the list goes on and on.

Protein is highly over rated and likely a REALLY BAD idea.  Most doctors have about 2-3 hours of nutrition classes so typically I would bet my life on their knowledge when it comes to that.

Just so you know, I am the wife of a 7 year & 9 month (today) survivor of "terminal" brain cancer.  He had a GBM.  Look it up, it isn't pretty.  We didn't listen to everyone else, we did our own research and my husband has been cancer free since December of 2003.

I hope that helps! 

Healthy Blessings,

Lauren

You got cancer eating what you like, what you've been eating, processed sweet grainy stuff. Now you dislike your cancer doctor's diet instructions, and are looking for a workaround .....partially based on insisting on eating what gave you cancer, and partially because you don't like the food your doctor told you to eat. If you continue doing what gave you cancer then you will continue to have cancer. My relative died of cancer, eating like you eat. If I'm looking for diet advice for avoiding cancer? .......thanks, I'll pass on your tastes and eat what your doctor recommended ......even if I don't like it. You are choosing death because you don't like eating what will keep you alive. Have you considered that your tastes could be .......I dunno .......wrong? You need animal protein and animal fat ....saturated fat and fish oil. And you need green veggies like broccoli and asparagus. You should stop eating anything which tastes sweet, including fruit. You should stop eating grassy grains (wheat, barley, rye and oats), legumes (peanuts, beans and peas), and stop eating nightshades (tomatoes, potatoes and peppers). These are the foods which cause inflammation, autoimmunity and cancer. Tell me, why do you think opioid blocking drugs like low dose naltrexone are effective against autoimmune disease and cancer? There's solid science behind these concepts. PM me if interested.

Hi Donna

If I was in your shoes, I'd ask my oncologist how eating protein is going to improve my blood. Do I need more iron? If so, there are safer ways, that don't burden the kidneys

Dr Lodi talking about protein-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j46XgrQDrZg

Hi Donna,

While I love fish, I can understand how someone else might have an aversion to it on account of the smell, or texture. You can opt to take fish oil supplements as an alternative to consuming fish to get some of the same benefits.

To help with your anemia, you want to consume foods high in iron. Iron-rich foods fall into two different categories, heme type from animal protein, and non-heme type from vegetables and fruits. The heme type of iron is the more ideal as it is more readily absorbed by the body, whereas the non-heme type needs other nutrients to help the body to absorb the iron benefits these foods provide. Foods high in vitamin C such as tomatoes, fruits, red/green peppers are good sources.

Iron-rich non-heme type foods : Spinach, Veggies such as Broccoli, Kale, Bok Choy, Tomatoes, Pumpkin, Raisins and Apricots, some spices such as cinnamon & tumeric, oatmeal and ready to eat cereals that are fortified with iron and vitamins, beans, lentils. 

Iron-rich heme type foods : chicken, beef, liver, egg yolks, turkey

Regarding the recipes you are used to making that contain alcohol, if you would like to list some of your favorites, perhaps I can come up with some ideas for you.

Hope this helps.

I found this interesting link, thought i would share.

Why Plants Are (Usually) Better Than Drugs

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/andrew-weil-md/why-plants-are-

"Expensive as it is to the consumer, this faith in "single-agent" drugs would be acceptable if they actually yielded better results. But the fact is, the natural, whole plant often has both benefits and safety that put the isolated compounds to shame."

I presume fish was recomended to you not just because of the protein but also because of its healthy fatty acids and fat-soluble vitamins A and D?  (Fatty) fish is one of the few diet sources for natural Vitamin D. This is different and a lot better than the fortified version of Vitamin D you can find in milk. But you said you dont care much for dairy anyway. I would suggest that you do give different fish recipes a shot as there are really some yummy ones out there and since I didnt use to like fish myself either but now am an aboslute fish lover I assure you it takes just a bit of "practice" and experiencing the benefits. :) 

Alternative sources of protein I can think of are nuts (almonds, macadamia,etc), tofu and avocado. Latter is sooo good... :)

On Aug 27, 2011 5:30 AM jpearson472 wrote:

Veggie,  I just got to say, with comments like you made, you are a piece3 of shit.  You think we need to be blamed for us having cancer. Yep thats right, I had a steak last night so i could catch cancer.  You are an idiot.  go push your death drug therapy some where else

josh

 

Gee, I was under the impression the plan here was to give your opinion on the subject or the question, and move along. I think you're a piece of shit, too.

If you continue doing what you've been doing, you'll continue getting what you've gotten. For some of us, that's cancer. Cancer doesn't fool around. Sugar coat it all you want. Making judgement errors for most of life's problems leads to bad consequences. Making judgement errors for cancer leads to death.

Odonna said her overall health has improved while taking Afinitor. She said responding to this change with a beneficial diet is the reason for her question. Do you know what Afinitor does?

Afinitor is an mTOR inhibitor. mTOR is the scavenging protein which cells send out into the extracellular matrix (ECM) to scout for free glutamine. If free glutamine in the ECM becomes too concentrated, the cell absorbs it and uses it for fuel. Glutamine redirects the Krebs cycle, the cycle which provides normal cell metabolism. The Krebs cycle produces energy from fat and glucose. In the presence of high blood glucose concentration, the glutamine cycle tends to create mutated tissue .....cancer.

mTOR attempts to prevent cells from importing free glutamine by keeping them from knowing of its existence. Increased energy, like Odonna reported, can be a sign that cells are producing energy in Krebs cycle mode, and not producing mutated tissue in glutamine cycle mode. Afinitor seems to work on her.

Glutamine is bound into the extracellular matrix (ECM) by a cross-linking protein called tissue transglutaminase (tTg). Why does the extracellular matrix get excess free glutamine? It happens when the immune system attacks and removes tTg. This tTg attack is the hallmark of autoimmune diseases and autoimmune conditions.

Recent research at the University of Maryland shows that all autoimmune disease results from ingestion of lectin proteins, and the resulting porosity they cause in the lining of the small intestines. The mechanism which causes this "leaky gut syndrome" is molecular mimicry.

The host ingests sugar. The sugar grows harmful microorganisms. The microorganisms attach to the tTg on the lining of the small intestines.

Let me repeat it here. This pathway is proven.

The immune system learns to recognize the microorganisms by their proteins. The immune system attacks the microorganisms and the tTg. Then we ingest foods which contain lectin proteins. These proteins are identical to proteins in the harmful microorganisms. The immune system starts attacking our tTg whenever we ingest the lectins.

The leaky gut places the lectins into the bloodstream, and the tTg attack spreads throughout the body. Ultimately the result is cancer.

The obvious requirements here are:
1. Stop ingesting sugar
2. Stop ingesting lectin proteins
3. Replace them with animal fat and animal protein

What? You refuse to eat anything except sugar and lectins? Then your problem is insurmountable. You can learn not to be that way, or you can suffer the ultimate consequence of cancer, death.