Chemotherapy has certain effects that mostly make the patients feel uncomfortable, such as vomiting, nausea, mouth sores, dry mouth, hair loss or even weight loss. When a patient is having chemotherapy as cancer treatment, they have to really pay attention to the food they eat. Avoiding some food might be helpful for patients to lessen the effects caused by chemotherapy.
Food to avoid during chemotherapy for breasts cancer
As stated before, patients undergoing chemotherapy treatment should really pay attention to the food they eat. Avoiding certain types of food might help them reducing the side effects of chemotherapy. Here are the lists of foods to avoid during chemotherapy for breast cancer.
1. Raw vegetables
Many people might think that raw vegetables are full of nutrients and minerals for their body, but in fact raw vegetables might make the effects of chemotherapy worse. Vegetables are best cooked so that it is safe to be consumed as it is free of food-borne illness.
According to Dr. Jennifer Sabol on website Breast Cancer, undergoing chemotherapy treatment reduce someone’s amount of white blood cells that results in lower immune system. Raw vegetables tend to be contaminated by bacteria than cooked vegetables. So, avoiding raw vegetables and consuming cooked vegetables are better for patients undergoing chemotherapy treatment for breasts cancer.
Raw vegetable is also one of the Foods to Avoid After Chemotherapy
2. Spicy food
There are some foods to avoid during chemotherapy for breast cancer. Though it does not have direct harmful effect to the patient’s health, it has significant role in the side effect of chemotherapy. Spicy food might lead to diarrhea after the treatments. Spicy food might also worsen the nausea and mouth sore.
You may also be interested to read Ways to Get Rid of Stomachache from Spicy Food.
3. Fried food
As chemotherapy’s side effect is weight loss, many people recommend patients to eat more fried food that is rich in calories to gain weight. It is totally wrong! High calories food, such as fried food will only cause discomfort for patients as it will worsen nausea and vomiting effect.
4. Citrus
Some kinds of citrus, such as oranges, grapefruits and tangerines are better to be avoided during chemotherapy as it might affect one of chemotherapy effects, which is mouth sores. Sour fruits will sting the sores and it must be very painful. Besides, citrus will also lead to constipation for some patients.
Surprisingly, citrus is one of the food that can help you treating rough skin face as elaborated in How To Smooth Rough Skin Face.
5. Sugary food
Sugary food has very little nutrients for chemotherapy patients. Sweet food might stimulate nausea sensation and increase the likelihood of vomiting. Besides, too much sugar will also bring negative effect on the metabolism and sap the body of energy. As a result, patients of breast cancer who undergoes chemotherapy will be easily fatigue and experiencing weight gain.
6. Raw fish (in sushi), oysters and shellfish
Raw fish might contain harmful pathogens. Cooking them will be better as it will kill the contaminants and make it safe to consume. Mostly fish should be cooked until the flesh look milky white and firm.
7. Water-packed tofu
It might contain bacteria as they love moisture that water-packed tofu has.
8. Rare meat
Similar with raw fish, raw meat are not recommended to be consumed during chemotherapy for breasts cancer. They might contain harmful bacteria that are supposed to be killed through cooking. That’s the foods to avoid during chemotherapy for breast cancer to stay healthy.
Best food to eat during chemotherapy for breasts cancer
Instead of consuming the food above, it is better to consume these following food as they will help you to feel better and even speed up the healing process after chemotherapy.
1. Carrots
It is the most common food consumed by cancer patients who go through chemotherapy. Many people believe that carrots will make the chemotherapy process be more effective as they stop the mechanism in the body that bothers the chemotherapy process.
To know more about the amazing effects of carrots, you may read How To Whiten Face With Carrots.
2. Gravy
Dry mouth is one of the effects of chemotherapy. To conquer this effect, you can use gravies to moisten your mouth. You can use sauce or low fat milk instead if you do not have any. Blend your food will also help you to swallow the food more easily.
3. Broccoli
It has a compound named sulforaphane that is very effective for reducing the number of breast cancer cells, according to the research done in University of Michigan. You can simply steam or stir fry the broccoli to get the most effect of it.
4. Plums and peaches
Plum and peaches are trusted for having high antioxidant level that can fight breast cancer cells.
5. Beans and lentils
They are very healthy as they contain less fat and protein. Beans and lentils are good source of food that should be consumed during chemotherapy for breast cancer. You can simply add lentils to your salad or dish with tomatoes with rice.
6. Fruits
Fruits are rich in antioxidants that are very good to boost energy. Almonds, cashew nuts and resins are good source of energy after undergoing chemotherapy.
Things to pay attention during chemotherapy for breasts cancer
Besides avoiding and preferring certain food to be consumed during chemotherapy for breasts cancer, there are some things needed to pay attention to get better cure for side effects of chemotherapy.
- Stay hydrated by consuming lot of water. It will help to relieve the mouth sore and aid digestion.
- Get enough calories. Eat regularly during the day and weigh yourself once or twice a week to monitor your calories intake.
- Focus on nutrients not the amount of food. Consume food that is rich in nutrients, such as vitamins and minerals. It will keep your body strong.
- Protein is a must. It helps you to maintain your body mass. You can simply find protein in mean, fish, seafood, eggs or beans.
Breasts cancer is a serious disease and you have to be very careful of maintaining your body health during chemotherapy treatment. Consult your doctor if you need further assistance of your food intake. Good luck on trying!
You may also be interested to read about other types of cancer, such as Characteristics of Oral Cancer and How to Prevent Ovarian Cancer.