How Can Immune System be Built Up After Surgery?

So Worried
So Worried Member Posts: 111 Member
in Colorectal Cancer #1
Hi All,

My husband had colon surgery a couple of months ago. He is not doing chemo at Stage 2. What is the best way to build the immune system for someone who hates vegetables aside from peas and broccoli. (he is not able to eat broccoli due to bad gas pains) We might be going to a naturapath Dr. soon..but wondered what you all thought. I want to do everything possible so his cancer doesn't return. I'm worried beyond belief :(
Thank you so much for any information.

Comments

  • thxmiker
    thxmiker Member Posts: 1,278 Member
    #2
    Welcome to the CSN! We are
    Welcome to the CSN! We are sorry to hear about your husband and have been there before. Sending Good thoughts and Prayers your family's way.

    I switched to the Zone Diet. It is a balanced approach to food. Then I went to Juicing. Juicing made sense to me. The maximum food contact vs one's body having to break down veggies to get nutrition. From all of my reading Veggie diets are healthier and he will need a change of attitude towards food. (Hence the Zone Diet. It is more of an attitude about food then a strict diet.)

    The other thing I will add. My wife did not like her veggies previous to meeting me. Her family did not prepare food very well, and she found with good preparation a lot of food is pretty darn good.

    Best Always, mike
  • johnnybegood
    johnnybegood Member Posts: 1,117 Member
    #3
    thxmiker said:

    Welcome to the CSN! We are
    Welcome to the CSN! We are sorry to hear about your husband and have been there before. Sending Good thoughts and Prayers your family's way.

    I switched to the Zone Diet. It is a balanced approach to food. Then I went to Juicing. Juicing made sense to me. The maximum food contact vs one's body having to break down veggies to get nutrition. From all of my reading Veggie diets are healthier and he will need a change of attitude towards food. (Hence the Zone Diet. It is more of an attitude about food then a strict diet.)

    The other thing I will add. My wife did not like her veggies previous to meeting me. Her family did not prepare food very well, and she found with good preparation a lot of food is pretty darn good.

    Best Always, mike

    dont know if
    this will help you but it is just my opinoin.1 year ago i had a liver resection and i started drinking Ensure.they make all kinds now and i drank the one that will boost you up after surgeries.i liked the chocolate ones.they are quite expensive but they did help me...Godbless....johnnybegood
  • Lovekitties
    Lovekitties Member Posts: 3,364 Member
    #4
    Hi
    Has hubby tried Beano? I use it occasionally because I love broccoli.

    After surgery and some since I also use Boost with Protein. I favor the strawberry but it comes in other flavors.

    You might also check with his colon surgeon to see about a referral to a dietician who can help determine a healthful diet.

    Lots of choice for healthful eating/drinking but don't know of anything specifically known to boost the immune system.

    Marie who loves kitties
  • atlanticcanada
    atlanticcanada Member Posts: 74
    #5
    naturopath doctor
    go to naturopath doctor .he will give you lots of help.
  • pete43lost_at_sea
    pete43lost_at_sea Member Posts: 3,900 Member
    #6
    dear so worried
    with the benefit of hinesight i would have gone to germany 10 months ago.

    its possibly to late for your husband now, but getting a vaccine made from you tumour is an interesting idea.

    google genostics or any of the other labs doing ctc's analysis. its about $4000 usd, they do chemo and herbal testing for tumour stem cells.

    getting these lowered by supplement therapies is a strategy to minise recurrence risk. its a bit more scientific than diet and exercise and supplements, but alot more expensive.

    we live and learn.

    hugs,
    Pete

    ps so much to start boosting your immune, a naturopath is a good place to start.
    healing your gut and probiotics cannot hurt and may help.
  • John23
    John23 Member Posts: 2,122 Member
    #7
    So Worried -

    Re:
    "I want to do everything possible so his cancer doesn't return. "

    You do know, that no matter what we do, cancer can return or remain, right?

    Eating a well balanced diet might help..... or it might not. And taking all
    sorts of supplements may or may not do a thing...

    If the digestive tract isn't absorbing what it needs from the food that
    you're putting into it, then it's not going to matter much of your spending
    $1 for a burger, or $1,000 for daily naturopath remedies.

    Don't get me wrong, eating a well rounded diet can go a long way for
    helping re-build the immune system. Some have tried "juicing", and
    have found great benefit from it. As long as whatever you do doesn't
    make you worse and doesn't break your bank account, it certainly
    can't be all bad!

    I use a Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner for all medical
    concerns, and use western medicine for tests and surgery.

    Our TCM doc provides his diagnosis of what our health deficiency
    is, that is generating the symptoms I might have, and prescribes
    herbal compounds to resolve the problem.

    Even with a "short bowel" and high output Ileostomy.... and even
    though I continue eating the garbage foods that I've always eaten,
    my blood work is almost always 100%, and my immune system
    appears to be doing fine. To that, I give thanks to TCM..

    With TCM, you do not take herbal remedies forever, as you would
    with western medicine. The herbs are taken until the problem is
    resolved, and not needed when that is accomplished.

    TCM is a fraction of the cost of "naturopathic" treatments, thanks
    to the short term it is needed.

    If you're concerned with building the immune system, try researching
    about Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM); it's well worth your
    time to do so!

    Better health wishes for you and yours,

    John
  • pete43lost_at_sea
    pete43lost_at_sea Member Posts: 3,900 Member
    #8
    John23 said:

    So Worried -

    Re:
    "I want to do everything possible so his cancer doesn't return. "

    You do know, that no matter what we do, cancer can return or remain, right?

    Eating a well balanced diet might help..... or it might not. And taking all
    sorts of supplements may or may not do a thing...

    If the digestive tract isn't absorbing what it needs from the food that
    you're putting into it, then it's not going to matter much of your spending
    $1 for a burger, or $1,000 for daily naturopath remedies.

    Don't get me wrong, eating a well rounded diet can go a long way for
    helping re-build the immune system. Some have tried "juicing", and
    have found great benefit from it. As long as whatever you do doesn't
    make you worse and doesn't break your bank account, it certainly
    can't be all bad!

    I use a Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner for all medical
    concerns, and use western medicine for tests and surgery.

    Our TCM doc provides his diagnosis of what our health deficiency
    is, that is generating the symptoms I might have, and prescribes
    herbal compounds to resolve the problem.

    Even with a "short bowel" and high output Ileostomy.... and even
    though I continue eating the garbage foods that I've always eaten,
    my blood work is almost always 100%, and my immune system
    appears to be doing fine. To that, I give thanks to TCM..

    With TCM, you do not take herbal remedies forever, as you would
    with western medicine. The herbs are taken until the problem is
    resolved, and not needed when that is accomplished.

    TCM is a fraction of the cost of "naturopathic" treatments, thanks
    to the short term it is needed.

    If you're concerned with building the immune system, try researching
    about Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM); it's well worth your
    time to do so!

    Better health wishes for you and yours,

    John

    i never disagree with john
    he is a smart friend, and the gut well, its my number one priority, even more so then these tumour cells. sounds strange. tcm is a central part of my healing.

    tcm also has potential to cause gut issues, can also be addressed by tcm or naturopathic.

    my gut gutting feeling, sorry about the pun is that the naturopath's have helped where tcm did not. so instead of changing tcm mix due to gut issues, the tcm stayed on the anticancer focus.

    hugs,
    pete
  • abackhou
    abackhou Member Posts: 77 Member
    #9
    Blend it
    I used to hate just having veggies on their own but after buying a good "VITAMIX " food blender and making lots of fruit or vegetable smoothies I reckon thats the way to go. You can, or better still get your husband to mix the veggies with fruit, tastes great. Fresh Fruit smoothies with ice cream or yoghurt are yummy. The Vitamix makes hot soups and even hot scrambled eggs. Also like someone else has said, having those Ensure drinks are excellent especialy the berry ensure even the chocolate ones are good for you, they are expensive but worth it.

    Lots of small snacks also helps with plenty of fresh fruit and exercise. Thats my opinion. Good luck.

    Andrew Backhouse
  • suzywingnut
    suzywingnut Member Posts: 10
    #10
    immune help
    I had a long recovery due to open incision. I used egg or whey protein and increased intake by 40 extra grams a day. It took about 6 months before my system could eat many things. Boost with ice cream was good as a shake. I still rarely feel hungry but try to est mostly veggies and when fatigued I know I need extra protein. It has been almost two years for me.

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