The Mental Challenge Cancer Patients Face

When people are sick, they tend to fall back into habits of comfort foods like macaroni and cheese, hot dogs, mashed potatoes, and other sugar-laden junk. A large part of Liz’s job is providing the resources they need to make healthier versions of those comfort foods or to adapt recipes to their current preferences.

Patients often quickly lose interest in smoothies and shakes, but freezing them into little smoothie pops is effective for someone craving cold foods and can be very soothing for mouth sores.

If a patient is doing better with hot foods, we have dozens of hearty soup recipes we can suggest. We also provide cooking classes at the Block Center where we might take classic comfort food or junk food and make a healthy version such as crispy eggplant pizza, tempeh gyros, or BBQ jackfruit sliders. I think it is really useful for patients and their loved ones to see how easy it is to make healthy foods that are delicious.

Foods Cancer Patients Should Avoid

While Liz has shared why and how they create healthy meals for patients at the Block Center, let’s chat about the certain foods you should avoid if you’re being treated for cancer.

Spicy Foods + Acidic Foods

Many people undergoing cancer treatment struggle with mouth sores and/or difficulty swallowing and sore throats. To ease discomfort, stick to soft foods when possible and avoid spicy and acidic foods that will further irritate your digestive tract.

Ditch the Dairy Products

You need to avoid unpasteurized milk, undercooked eggs, and cheese (Brie, feta, queso fresco/blanco, etc) to lower your risk of contracting foodborne illnesses. Another reason to avoid dairy is because it can be highly inflammatory.

Raw or Undercooked Meat

The American Cancer Society Guideline for Diet and Physical Activity recommends cutting back—and we would recommend eliminating—processed meats and red meat. This also means cutting out raw fish or raw meat (like you’d have in sushi).

Why does it matter? Diets high in red meats have been found to increase cancer risk of colorectal cancer.

Meat is also inflammatory, and Liz states you should instead try to focus on plant-based proteins (and there are plenty of high protein foods that are vegetables).

Cut Out Processed Foods

Some other foods to avoid would be anything that is processed that include:

• Chips
• Baked goods
• Deli meats
• Fried foods
• Artificial ingredients

You should also avoid alcohol and energy drinks because they contain zero nutritional value. Whole foods are always best, but if you have to buy something in a bag or box, now would be a good time to start paying attention to labels and looking out for hydrogenated fats, refined sugars, and artificial additives. They have little nutritional value and cause spikes in blood sugar.

Limit Your Use of Sugar

Speaking of sugar, although it’s vegan-friendly, excess sugar can harm your health and cause unnecessary weight gain. Limit food and drinks that are high in sugar, including honey, molasses, brown sugar, etc.

Foods Cancer Patients Should Eat

Now that we’ve covered what you should avoid, what should you eat more of to support your health?

Incorporate More Vegetables into Your Diet

Liz emphasizes that the most important thing you can do is eat more vegetables. Every meal should consist of mostly vegetables with a serving of some whole grains and a bit of fruit.

Eat More Healthy Carbs

Make sure your diet contains healthy carbs such as whole grain brown rice, nuts and seeds, bran, and oats. Opt for foods with soluble fiber (which help keep the poop train on schedule!). Eating high-fiber foods can help you combat constipation if you’re dealing with that pesky side effect.

Add in Healthy Fats

Choose foods that are high in omega-3 fatty acids (which help combat inflammation) whenever possible. Omega-3 fatty acids can be found in avocados, walnuts, olive oil, and grapeseed oil.

Focus on Plant-Based Protein

There are plenty of options to get plant-based protein in your diet like beans, peas, whole soy foods like tempeh or edamame, and lentils.

Prevent Dehydration

Make sure you drink plenty of water throughout the day to avoid dehydration. Clear liquids like vegetable broth, sports drinks, fruit juice, and water are best.

Embrace Dairy Alternatives

I also suggest switching to dairy alternatives like oat, almond, or cashew-based products. There are plenty of cheese alternatives that are healthier for you, too, like nutritional yeast.

Recipe Ideas for Patients and Caregivers

Nutrient-Dense Smoothies

Here’s a basic template for a nutrient-dense smoothie:

• Healthy fats like MCT oil, unsweetened almond butter, or avocado
• Dark leafy greens
• Healthy proteins like a good pea protein powder and some soy* milk or cashew milk
• A handful of berries (Other raw fruits or frozen fruit work well too)
• 1/2 banana on the green side (good prebiotic)

*Soy WHAT? If you’re not so sure about soy,check out this article.

It is also OK to open up supplements and add them to the smoothie, especially if they’re difficult to take. Multivitamins, vitamin D, curcumin, and vitamin C are good choices for added nutrients and support for healing and detoxification.

Savory Soups

As I said earlier, vegetable and pureed soups are excellent options. The easiest thing to do is start with a ratio of 2:1:1 of onions, celery, and carrots (known as mirepoix). Chop and saute those ingredients for a bit, then add garlic and any other spices you like. Cook for a bit, then add vegetable broth. From there, you can add anything from beans to kale to red potatoes to parsley to cilantro.

I make most of my soups up as I go along and they turn out just fine. I buy a few good spices, like garam masala or curry powder, and decide on the fly depending on my mood (or the mood of my patients if I am making it for them).

Butternut squash is about the easiest thing to make and it is so comforting. Just take that same mirepoix and saute it along with cubed butternut squash (you can buy this at Trader Joe’s conveniently cut up for you!). After about 5 minutes, pour in some vegetable broth and cook covered until the butternut squash is soft. Let it cool, then blend it with a little bit of nutmeg, almond milk, and cinnamon and you’re good to go. Yum!

Kick Cancer’s Butt

Liz emphasizes that the power of healing is often dependent on three things: It is partly in the heart, partly in the mind, and partly in the body—and you really need to go after it on all three fronts. It is so important to have hope in your heart and courage and strength in your mind. And you have to be good to your body by giving it what it needs to be able to fight its biggest battle.

Liz is one of the most helpful, holistically-minded people I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. I just love how her philosophy focuses on strengthening the immune system with small, manageable shifts in our diet and lifestyle choices. Liz truly exemplifies what it means to empower patients through an uplifting, non-judgmental approach.

Are you or a loved one living with cancer? I collaborated with experts I’ve met through my experience with cancer, and compiled a modern-day guide for navigating cancer with courage, clarity, and confidence. Whether you’re a cancer patient, survivor, thriver, caregiver or you’re interested in prevention, Your Cancer Guide was created with your needs in mind. Learn how this 7-step roadmap for prevention and recovery can help you in your cancer journey here.