Benefits of Good Nutrition with cancer problems

Good nutrition is especially important for people with cancer because the illness itself, as well as its treatments, can affect your appetite. Cancer and cancer treatments can also alter your body's ability to tolerate certain foods and to use nutrients. The nutrient needs of people with cancer vary from person to person. Your doctor, nurses, and dietitian can help you identify your nutrition goals and plan ways to help you meet them.

Eating well while can help you to:
feel better
keep up your strength and energy
keep up your weight and your bodyfat store of nutrients
tolerate treatment-related side effects
decrease your risk of infection
heal and recover quickly

Eating well means eating a variety of foods that provide the nutrients you need to maintain your health while fighting cancer. These nutrients include protein, carbohydrates, fat, water, vitamins, and minerals. Nutrients Protein: Protein is needed for growth, to repair body tissue, and to maintain a healthy immune system. Without enough protein, the body takes longer to recover from illness and has lower resistance to infection.

People with cancer often need more protein than usual. Following surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation therapy, additional protein is usually needed to heal tissues and to help prevent infection. Good sources of protein include lean meat, fish, poultry, dairy products, nuts, dried beans, peas and lentils, and soy foods. Fats: Fats play an important role in nutrition. Fats and oils provide a concentrated source of energy for the body. They are used to store energy, insulate body tissues, and transport fat soluble vitamins through the blood. They also play an important role in food preparation by enhancing food flavor, making baked products tender, and conducting heat during cooking. You may have heard that some fats are better for you than others. When considering the effects of fats on your heart and cholesterol, choose the unsaturated fats.

Types of fats include:

Monounsaturated fats are found mainly in vegetable oils such as canola, olive, and peanut oils.
They are liquid at room temperature.

Polyunsaturated fats are found mainly in vegetable oils such as safflower, sunflower, corn, flaxseed, and canola oils. Polyunsaturated fats are also the main fats found in seafood. They are liquid or soft at room temperature. Specific polyunsaturated fatty acids, such as linoleic acid and alpha-linolenic acid, are called essential fatty acids. They are necessary for cell structure and making hormones. Essential fatty acids must be obtained from foods we choose.

Saturated fats (or saturated fatty acids) are found chiefly in animal sources such as meat and poultry, whole or reduced-fat milk, and butter. Some vegetable oils like coconut, palm kernel oil, and palm oil are saturated. Saturated fats are usually solid at room temperature.

Trans fatty acids are formed when vegetable oils are processed into margarine or shortening. Sources of trans fats in the diet include snack foods and baked goods made with "partially hydrogenated vegetable oil" or "vegetable shortening." Trans fats also occur naturally in some animal products such as dairy products.

Carbohydrates: Carbohydrates provide the body with the fuel it needs for physical activity and for proper organ function. There are also good and bad sources of carbohydrates. The best sources of carbohydrates -- fruits, vegetables, and whole grains -- deliver essential vitamins and minerals, fiber, and phytonutrients to the body cells. Other sources of carbohydrates include bread, potatoes, spaghetti, pasta, cereals, dried beans, corn, peas, beans, and many others. Sweets as a source of carbohydrates provide very few nutrients. Water: Water and fluids are vital to our health. All body cells need water to function. If you do not take in enough fluids or if you are vomiting or have diarrhea, you may become dehydrated. In general, a person should drink about 8 glasses of water or clear liquid each day to be sure that all the body cells get the fluid they need. Vitamins and minerals: Vitamins and minerals are needed for proper growth and development. In addition, they allow the body to use the energy (calories) supplied in foods.

A person who eats a balanced diet with enough calories and protein usually gets plenty of vitamins and minerals. However, eating a balanced diet can be challenging when you are receiving cancer treatment and have treatment side effects that persist for long periods of time. When that is the case, your doctor or dietitian may suggest a daily multivitamin and mineral supplement. If you are thinking of taking a vitamin or supplement, be sure to discuss this with your doctor first. Some people with cancer take large amounts of vitamins, minerals, and other dietary supplements in an effort to enhance their immune system or even destroy cancer cells.

Some of these substances can be harmful, especially when taken in large doses. In fact, large doses of some vitamins and minerals may reduce the effectiveness of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. During treatment, it may be best to choose one with no more than the Daily Value (DV) for all nutrients and one without iron, unless your doctor thinks that you need iron. Again, discuss this with your doctor first. Antioxidants: Antioxidants are substances that protect the body's cells from damage caused by free radicals (by-products of the body normal processes). Examples of antioxidants include vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin A (beta carotene), and selenium. If you want to take in more antioxidants, health experts recommend eating a variety of fruits and vegetables, which are good sources of antioxidants. Taking large doses of antioxidant supplements is usually not recommended while having chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Talk with your doctor to determine the best time to take antioxidant supplements.

Herbs:
Herbs have been used to treat disease for hundreds of years. Today, herbs are found in a variety of products such as pills, liquid extracts, teas, and ointments. While many of these products are harmless and safe to use, others can cause severe and harmful side effects and interfere with proven cancer therapies, including chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and recovery from surgery. If you are interested in using products containing herbs, talk about it with your doctor or nurse first.

Safety considerations:
Many people believe that if a pill or supplement is found on store shelves, then it is safe and effective. At this time, there are no regulations controlling the safety, content, and quality or dose recommendations for these products. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) does not require manufacturers of these products to print possible side effects on their labels. The FDA cannot pull a dietary supplement or herbal product from the market unless it can prove that the product is unsafe. Tell your health care team about any herbal products and supplements that you are using or are thinking about using. Bring the bottle(s) of the supplement to your doctor for approval of the dose and to ensure that the ingredients do not interfere with your health or cancer treatments.

Some other safety tips:
Ask your doctor or nurses for reliable information on dietary supplements.
Check the product labels for both the quantity and concentration of active ingredients contained in each product.
Stop taking the product immediately and call your doctor if you experience side effects such as wheezing, itching, numbness, or tingling in your limbs.

Some people with cancer take large amounts of vitamins, minerals, and other dietary supplements in an effort to enhance their immune systems or even destroy cancer cells. Some of these substances can be harmful. In fact, large doses of some vitamins and minerals may reduce the effectiveness of chemotherapy and radiation therapy due to the quality of the product.

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