Diet Tips for Cancer Patients Jamaica Plain MA

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By Mitchell Gaynor, MD

Is it possible to put together a diet that supports your immune and detoxification systems while simultaneously boosting your antioxidant protection? Yes, and it is vital that we all do so. Today, we live in what can only be described as a toxic siege. I have seen thousands of cancer patients change the way they eat—and feel healthier for it. Here are some basic suggestions:

• Eat cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage, bok choy, and kale.

• Include omega-3 fatty acids from cold-water fish such as salmon, haddock, or cod once or twice weekly. Use ground flaxseeds on cereal occasionally.

• Eat at least six servings of vegetables every day. These should include umbelliferous vegetables, such as carrots, celery, and parsley. Also include legumes, such as peas and soybeans.

• Eat such natural cycloxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors as turmeric (which contains curcumin), red grapes (which contain resveratrol), propolis, cold-water fish, and rosemary (which contains carnosol).

• Lower your intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids and be especially wary of hydrogenated oils, including margarine.

• Avoid processed sugars and refined carbohydrates, such as white flour, cake, and candy

• Include soy in the form of soy milk, miso, and tofu in your daily diet.

• Drink at least two cups of green tea daily.

• Eat carotenoids, which are found in vegetables such as beets, carrots, kale, lettuce, seaweed, spinach, squash, sweet potatoes, Swiss chard, and tomatoes.

• Eat allium vegetables, such as onions, leeks, shallots, and garlic, as part of your daily diet.

• Include fruits daily, such as apples, avocados, cantaloupe, guavas, kiwis, mangoes, nectarines, raspberries, red grapes, strawberries, and watermelon.

• Eat natural, antibiotic-free, hormone-free meats and always remove the skin from fish, chicken, and turkey.

• Buy a juicer and create concoctions that include beet, carrot, watercress, parsley, apple, and ginger; this is a great way of achieving the six to eight servings of fruits and vegetables you need each day.

• Olive oil should be included in salads and dips or poured over vegetables after they are cooked; heating denatures the beneficial nutrients in olive oil.

• Eat organic. Organic food may be more expensive and difficult to find (though becoming less so day by day), but it is a crucial piece of the puzzle. Whey you buy nonorganic fruits and vegetables, you really have no idea how much pesticide and herbicide residue is left either on the produce or inside the produce. When using nonorganic produce, scrub and wash it thoroughly to remove as much contamination as possible. It is a good idea to wash organic food as well.

Dr. Gaynor is founder and president of Gaynor Integrative Oncology and assistant clinical professor of medicine at Weill College, affiliated with Cornell University and New York Hospital. He is also on this book’s advisory board.

Adapted from

Author: Mitchell Gaynor, MD

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