During Rosh Hashana dinner (which I lovingly refer to as Jewish Thanksgiving) it turned out one of the guests was that new diet guy on all the TV shows mum...note to file, dining companions like this will immediately curb your calorie intake. So of course we analysed everything we ate, why it was wrong, etc...a lovely evening.
I do tend to believe that if something is green and not tasty that its good for you. But the more I Google, I wonder, and I anticipate this group will provide opinions based on literature: Does a diet high in antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables that limits garbage foods have an effect on nonoccurrence and offer all the cell regeneration/self healing professed?
While a healthy diet can't hurt, there are zero diets (including the famous anti-cancer diet) that clinical trials show prevent cancer from coming back. There are studies showing that there are very bad diets that can encourage cancer like lots of red meat and sugar. here is a link to the major studies on antioxidants from the National Cancer Institute
Antioxidant fact sheet The reason to go on a healthy diet is to improve your vitality and your health and prevent obesity. It it makes you or your dad feel better to believe that a healthy diet will prevent cancer from coming back that's a bonus but not a guarantee.
Oh, I almost forgot, taking antioxidants or an antioxidant diet during treatment HELPS the cancer tumor so don't start until you get the all clear from your doctorCharm
Charm, anticipated a much more colorful response from you and disappointed that I missed the toned version ;o) Hope you are doing well!! AND your response has been my thinking as well.
During my SIL final stage of BC, she went off to one of those clinics where they fill blenders with kale and other bitter garden stuff. I drank it with her daily --only for her, like a buddy-- as I didn't buy their claims. But...
There are studies showing the connections of cultures/low fat diets/low cancer rates, and the garbage in our food supply indeed is toxic. So where's some truth about this? Every CCC Dr. I've asked agrees that the literature does not support anticancer diet claims, yet pick up a "health" mag, including "Cure" and antioxidants abound.
And great point about antioxidants during tx being a no no.
Caco
The truth is that unfortunately Cancer is not rickets. It's not caused by a dietary deficiency. Even the anti cancer diet guru admits in his book that his cancer was caused by chemicals in his childhood in his native France. The hope of all these diets is that they will "supercharge" our immune systems so that the other toxins are overcome. I do think that it is different for heart disease where studies show that as the culture changes to a Western junk diet, heart disease & obesity skyrocket. I believe there are indeed "heart healthy diets". I also still believe in eating healthy but no longer that it will protect from cancer.
I can't tell you how disappointed my wife and I have been that over 25 years of no sugar or sugar versions, zero sodas or soft drinks not even the diet kind, eating every type of green leafy vegetables, seaweed, tofu, lentils, other beans, exercising, yoga did not help me in the least to avoid this cancer. None of the "health" magazines or diets face up to the facts that at least for most oral cancer cases, this is a VIRAL infection from HPV and not a lifestyle issue.
Charm
Appx 3 weeks Post Tx when I started eating solid foods I ate everything that tasted good and had gravy or syrup. I forgot a lifetime of adult good eating habits. The more saturated fat and calories the better as far as I was concerned. Now I'm back to the boring "good" stuff.