Cancer Nutrition

This page is for those that are living with or beyond a diagnosis of cancer and are keen to ensure that they are eating and drinking in a way that is healthy, sustainable and in line with evidence based guidelines.

The management of cancer and the field of nutrition are both well known for multiple and what can seem like conflicting advice. With so many forms of cancer, different treatments and individual differences such as activity level, nutritional status and body weight, it is hard to give advice suited to all. It is also the case that advice can be drawn from research of varying quality and nature. Many organisations advocate that those with cancer are largely representative of the wider population and that the greatest benefits would be gained by striving to achieve the standard nutritional guidelines (i.e. reduce salt, eat more veg and fruit, eat more oily fish etc).

We hope these resources are of some use in negotiating the area of nutrition and cancer and our advice would be to work towards a balanced, sustained “diet” with any deviations from this being based on sound, widely reviewed evidence.

 

Fruit and vegetables are full of fibre and water yet are low in calories so can help reduce feelings of hunger.  They also contain multiple nutrients and phytochemicals related to cancer reduction.
There is inconclusive evidence as to whether pesticides found in or on foods can be harmful but fruit should be washed prior to consumption where possible and it has been suggested that some fruits are more susceptible to the influence of pesticides.
Some have suggested that nutrient quality can vary between organic and inorganic fruit and vegetables but a 50 year systematic review of the evidence suggested there was no difference (Dangour et al, 2009).
For tips on how to get your 5 a day visit the change4life website. As a useful comparison it’s also worth noting that in Australia the recommendation is for 2+5.

Dehydration can easily occur in those undergoing chemotherapy or radiation treatments. Similarly those undertaking increased amounts of physical activity should consider their intake of fluids.  Fatigue, light-headedness and nausea are all associated with both cancer treatment and inadequate intake of fluids so some may find a review of their own intake even more important.  Signs of dehydration can include dark yellow urine, reduced urination or rapid weight loss and guidelines suggest taking around 1ml of fluids for every kcal of estimated need (i.e if you are on a diet of around 2000kcals you should consume 2L of fluids, ideally water).

Evidence suggests that alcohol can have both negative and positive benefits. Consuming up to 1 or 2 drinks per day (women and men, respectively) can lower the risk of heart disease, but higher levels do not offer additional benefit and may increase the risk of developing specific cancers. Excess alcohol is linked to increased weight which also has negative implications for cancer survivors. (Rock et al, 2012)
More advice on guidelines and on how to drink healthily can be found on the change4life website

Heat causes chemical reactions in proteins and carbohydrates that might have adverse effects. when starchy carbohydrates are fried at high temperatures they can produce significant quantities of acrylamide, a known carcinogen.  The charring of meat on barbecues and burning of toast has also been shown to produce substances such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons which have been shown to have carcinogenic potential in animal studies and suspected as playing a role in humans too. Whilst evidence is still being developed in this area, advice is to take reasonable precautions in avoiding excess intake of these foods.

Much of the advice given above will be known by the reader already. The real trick with nutrition is to review your current intake, and then to continue to have an increased awareness of your dietary intake while you make any appropriate changes.

• Review your current diet.
• Plan for changes if needed (plan meals, write shopping lists, give away unwanted foods).
• Make changes with someone else, support is key.
• Make sustainable changes.
• Hang in there, this is not a quick fix this is for the long term
• More on changing behaviour here

 

MyFitnessPal

A web platform and app that allows you to track your food intake.

References & Further Reading