Nutrition for Cancer Patients: How to Fuel Your Body for the Fight

During and after cancer treatment, it is recommended that patients eat a good quality diet and consume plenty of water. In order to remove the drugs used during the treatment from the body as soon as possible, at least 3 liters of water should be consumed per day.

Water should be drunk at frequent intervals. Fluid intake can also be provided with tea, soup, buttermilk, and even yoghurt. It is also necessary to pay attention to the degree of hardness of the water consumed. Excessive calcareous waters can increase stomach pain, severity of peptic ulcer and gas complaints. Chlorinated, sealed or filtered city water is sufficient. It is necessary to stay away from saturated fats in nutrition and to have olive oil rich in Omega 3 on the table.

Experts say that simple carbohydrates and sugar should be avoided as a source of carbohydrates, and whole grain bread, legumes, vegetables and fruits should be consumed. Exercise is necessary to ensure that the body can make the most of all nutrients. To be healthy, it is necessary to exercise at least 30 minutes 3-4 times a week.

During chemotherapy treatment, it is necessary to pay attention to quality nutrition and quality protein intake. A diet rich in antioxidants, that is, frequent consumption of vegetables and fruits at every meal, is recommended. It is important to have small but frequent portions at meals and to avoid simple carbohydrates.

The Importance of Nutrition in Fighting Cancer

A healthy and balanced diet should be adopted at all times. Attention should be paid to the foods consumed for health, but more attention should be paid to nutrition in order to strengthen the immune system during the period of illness. Proper and adequate nutrition is very important for the cancer treatment process. Because in this process, conscious nutrition strengthens cells and muscles, repairs the immune system, which contributes to recovery in a shorter time.

In addition, it provides measures to be taken against important problems such as nausea, vomiting and loss of appetite that may develop in chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormone treatment applied in cancer treatment and weight loss as a result of these. There is no definite and clear nutritional rule in cancer treatment. However, it is possible to manage this process better by taking some precautions. You can read about these measures in our article.

Make Friend with Antioxidants

Fruits and vegetables; It contains antioxidants such as vitamins A, C and E, and selenium. Antioxidants also prevent free radicals that cause cancer from damaging normal cells. Take care to consume at least 3-4 servings of fruit and plenty of raw vegetables a day to increase antioxidant intake.

Eliminate the Side Effects of Chemotherapy with Water

One of the side effects of chemotherapy is skin dryness. Therefore, it is important to drink plenty of fluids during this process. Do not forget to consume at least 2.5-3 liters of water per day. In addition, diarrhea may develop as a side effect of chemotherapy. As a result, the body loses a lot of water. In order to compensate for this water loss, it is important to consume plenty of water.

Don’t Go Without Protein

Muscle destruction occurs due to some substances released from tumor cells during cancer, and the need for protein, which is a very important nutrient for cell renewal and repair, increases. That’s why it’s so important to include protein sources at every meal.

For example, eggs are a very high quality protein source. If the person does not have a health problem such as hypercholesterolemia, it should be consumed every day for breakfast. In addition, protein sources such as 1-2 slices of cheese in the morning, meat, chicken, fish or legumes should be included in at least one of the main meals. You can increase your daily protein intake by consuming 2-3 servings of milk and yogurt during the day.

Carbs for Energy

Starch and sugar belong to the group of carbohydrates found in foods. Starch; It is found in cereals, potatoes and legumes. Sugar is also found in fruit, milk and sweet foods. The main energy source of metabolism is carbohydrates. For this reason, 1-2 slices of whole grain bread should be consumed at each meal in order to meet the increased energy requirement during the cancer treatment process, and some other carbohydrate sources such as soup and pasta should be included in the meals.

Do Not Consume These Foods!

Proper nutrition during chemotherapy is vital. Grapefruit consumption is not recommended for people undergoing chemotherapy, as grapefruit will interact with chemotherapy drugs and reduce their effectiveness. In addition, acidic foods such as tomatoes, lemons and spicy spices should not be consumed, as excessive sensitivity may occur in the mouth during this process. Likewise, since swallowing difficulties may develop in this process, softer ones should be preferred instead of very hard foods.

How Should the Meals Be?

Cancerous cells secrete a substance that makes the body think it is not hungry. This may only last for a few days or may continue throughout the treatment. Therefore, in order not to be affected by loss of appetite and to get enough energy, eat little and often. Carry dried fruits such as dried apricots or dried figs, which you can consume practically, and snacks such as walnuts, hazelnuts and almonds that contain high energy in small volumes.

Anorexia Problem in Cancer Treatment

Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of cells in our body. Many cancers are treated with surgical methods, chemotherapy (drug therapy), radiotherapy (radiation therapy), hormone therapy and immunotherapy. These methods also cause the death of healthy cells in our body. In cancer patients, the side effects of treatment occur due to the killing of healthy cells.

Common Side Effects During and After Treatment

• Nausea,
• Vomiting,
• Anorexia,
• Weight gain or loss,
• Diarrhea,
• Constipation,
• Sores in the mouth and throat,
• Disruption of the sense of taste and smell,
• Occurrence of dental and gingival disorders.

Eating and maintaining an adequate diet can be difficult both during and after cancer treatment. The duration of treatment may be prolonged and many factors affect nutrition.

Recommendations Against Anorexia in Cancer Treatment

Decreased appetite is very common in people undergoing cancer treatment. When the person wants to eat, they should prefer high-calorie foods with sufficient protein. These help prevent the deterioration of tissues in the body and help repair tissues damaged by disease.

Anorexia is the most common problem during and sometimes after treatment. This is because the disease can also cause a feeling of satiety. During treatment, the person’s appetite decreases in cases such as nausea, vomiting, different smells or tastes of food.

Tips for Decreased Appetite

• Choose the foods you love.
• Eat little, often.
• It is observed that people generally have better appetite in the morning. Therefore, pay attention to breakfast in the morning. For breakfast, especially cheese, eggs, consume milk.
• If the loss of appetite continues in the morning, choose foods that can be consumed as liquid. These can be freshly squeezed juices or milk.
• Sometimes it is observed that people with anorexia can tolerate cold foods more easily. In this case, choose foods such as yogurt, milk desserts, ice cream.
• Whether you prefer nutritious foods high in calories or increase the calorie content of your food; molasses, honey, hazelnuts, walnuts, almonds on your fruits or desserts; You can add cheese and walnuts on your pasta or salads.

• Sometimes changing the presentation of foods can make them more appetizing. For example, if you have difficulty consuming the fruit as a whole, you can try to take it as fruit juice, fruit puree, compote, compote or fruit dessert.
• You can prepare a healthy snack by adding bananas, walnuts and honey to your milk.
• Try not to drink too much liquid during meals. Try to get more nutrients at mealtimes by consuming water between meals.
• When you feel like you can’t eat, try to eat a liquid-based diet. These can be freshly squeezed fruit juices, compote or compote, herbal teas with honey added, milk, ayran, soups.
• Even if you don’t have a meal time, if you feel hungry, eat something right away.
• Keep foods such as salty biscuits, crackers, cakes, dried fruits, and roasted chickpeas with you.
• Do not choose very spicy and sour foods.
• Try to spend your mealtimes as calm and pleasant as possible.
• Try to eat something before going to bed. So at the next meal you will see that your appetite has become a little better.

Many people undergoing oncology treatment experience weight loss before and during treatment. Therefore, what needs to be done is to increase protein consumption along with calories.

You Can Make These Suggestions To Increase Calorie And Protein Consumption In The Nutrition Plan

• Preferences for the main meal can be animal-based, quality protein sources such as lean meat, skinless chicken, turkey, and fish. Use grilling, boiling or baking methods when cooking them. Enrich them with aromatic herbs and spices.
• Foods such as yoghurt, ayran and kefir to be used in the main meal are protein sources. You can increase the amount of protein you consume by choosing one of these with the meal you consume vegetables.
• If you add walnuts and olives along with tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, greens to your cheese sandwich, which you will prepare by spreading strained yogurt on your bread during the day, you will enrich it in terms of calories and protein.
• You should definitely choose eggs as they are a very high quality protein source. If it cannot be used as boiled for breakfast, you can consume it by preparing it as a cheese omelet or menemen.
• The cheese you usually prefer to use for breakfast; You can add it to salads, soups, pastas.

• While cooking vegetable dishes and soups, you can increase the nutritional value by adding minced meat or chicken. If you do not have the opportunity to add animal-derived protein such as ground beef or chicken, you can add foods such as green lentils and chickpeas, which are vegetable sources of protein, to your vegetable dishes or soups.
• In main meals, foods from the bread group should be preferred. Especially pasta and rice varieties with higher energy content can be consumed earlier. To increase the energy and protein content, it can be prepared with rice meat, pasta with minced meat and cheese.
• It will be healthier to use your bread preference for multi-grain breads.
• By adding foods such as walnuts, almonds, cheese to salads that you will use in meals, you can increase the calories taken and consume healthy fats.
• By adding olive oil to the salads you have prepared, you will both increase the calories and get the fat-soluble vitamins. This strengthens your immune system.
• Choose foods high in protein and energy, such as dried fruit and cakes with added walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, cookies, ashura, milk desserts, as a snack.
• One of the best choices to increase your daily energy needs is foods such as honey, jam and molasses. You can consume these foods by spreading them on bread or pancakes, or you can add them to foods such as milk, fruit, yogurt, and cake.

How to Eat to Avoid Gaining Excess Weight in Cancer Treatment

Those with cancer problems may gain weight due to the treatment applied. If you have gained too much weight during the treatment, you should apply to your doctor and dietitian and follow your healthy eating plan.

If you have started to gain extra weight, you can follow these suggestions:

• Increase your consumption of vegetables and fruits.
• Choose foods high in fiber, such as multigrain, rye, oats, fortified breads.
• Choose meats with reduced saturated fat.
• Choose low-fat dairy products.
• Prefer grilling, baking or boiling instead of fried foods.
• Limit sugar and sugary foods consumption.
• Consume low-calorie foods, such as fruit, between meals.
• Start an exercise or walking program with your doctor.
• Make sure to drink plenty of water.