Good Nutrition During Treatment

You know that it is important to follow your doctor’s instructions and take your medications regularly, exactly as prescribed. What you may not know is that, along with taking your medications, nutrition is an important part of cancer treatment. Use the guidelines below, along with our Symptom Support information and Recipes for Eating Well During Treatment to help yourself get the nutrition you need.

Maintain Your Weight

Eating right during treatment is something you can do to help yourself. Eating well is important because your body needs energy from the food you eat to rebuild and repair itself. And even if you are overweight, losing weight during treatment is not healthy. Maintaining your weight can help you finish your treatments on time, heal faster, and feel better.

Not everyone loses weight during cancer treatment, but some people find that food does not taste as good. They do not feel much like eating. If this happens to you, it is important to pick the right food so that you get the nutrition you need. Even when your appetite is not good, you can pack a lot of nutrition into your day. Be sure to discuss with your doctor what type of nutrition plan is best for you.

Treat Food Like Medication

Taking care of your food and nutrition needs can help you regain a sense of control. Plus, making smart nutrition choices can make your journey through cancer treatment a little easier. The right nutrition before, during, and after treatment will get you on track for faster healing and long-term wellness. So,treat food like medication. Set times to eat, such as every one-half to 1 hour. Then be sure to have at least one or two bites of food at each “medication” time. Quantity of food is less important. Eating often is more important.

Enlist Friends and Family

You may find that your family and friends are worried about you if you are having trouble eating. They may even try to "force-feed" you. Let them know that you appreciate their help with food and meals. Do your best to explain to them that you will eat when you can. Stress at mealtimes will not help you eat well. You may even try to enlist their help with food-related tasks other than meals. For example, make up a grocery list of quick and easy foods that you know you can prepare for youself, such as oatmeal, soup, or yogurt. Have family and friends run to the store for you to pick up these essentials. This will allow them to care for you in a supportive way, but it will help relieve the stress and anxiety around mealtimes.

Eating Well, Even When You Do Not Feel Well

Use the following tips and hints to make sure you are giving your body enough nourishment to help the healing process.

• Instead of trying to consume three large meals a day, eat five or six small meals and snacks each day. This will take some work if you are used to eating just a couple of times each day. Any food can be a snack. Do not worry about how much you eat, just focus on eating often.
• Keep snacks handy. Hunger may only last a few minutes. Try convenient food, such as granola bars; fruit; nuts; yogurt; pudding; pretzels or crackers; single serving sizes of canned fruit, tuna, or chicken; trail mix; power bars; oatmeal; hard-boiled eggs; and Popsicles.
• Focus on high-calorie food, such as nuts and peanut butter. A small handful of nuts contains about 200 calories. This is a lot of nutrition for a small amount of food. Plus the fat in nuts is healthy fat.
• Eat your favorite food any time of day. For example, if you like breakfast food, eat it for dinner or for a snack. Pancakes at 3 o’clock in the afternoon are fine, if that is what you want.
• Eat every one-half to 1 hour. Do not wait until you are hungry. Even a couple of bites of food at a time can be helpful.
• Try a bowl of warm, nourishing and tasty soup for a nutrition-packed and soothing snack or small meal. Try our Nourishing Squash Soup.
• Drink liquids between meals, rather than with meals. For example, separate liquids from solids by at least a few minutes. Drink just enough of a beverage to swallow your food comfortably. Avoid “loading” up on fluids—such as water and coffee—with your meals, which can make you feel fuller.

Look at Food in a New and Different Way

Finally, one of the most important things you can do to help yourself is to look at food as fuel. During treatment, it may be difficult to get the enjoyment out of eating that is normal for you. You don't feel well and many foods don't sound appealing.

Instead of looking to food for enjoyment, it is important that you see food as fuel. And food is the fuel that will put you on the path to healing both during and after your treatment.

For most people, the lack of interest in food is temporary. Keep in mind that after you have completed treatment, you will begin to enjoy food more again.