Question of the Day!!

I won't be the only one who will tell you that my beer drinking is never odd. 6 packs, and cases always go down in the common denominator of 2. I for one believed that I was never going to make it more than a year after surgery. I saw no point in saving anything. If I wanted a pizza and a pitcher I got it. I bought nothing new. Hell I have said that if I owned a 3 piece suit, I would wear it to mow the lawn. Now that I know that I will be here a while, I should reconsider. Others are so good about their nutrition. (I'm sure Nano will chime in.) But for me, I don't abuse myself, but I pretty much live like I did before my diagnosis. I would be motivated to change if my blood work didn't always come back awesome! I hate to change my lifestyle and jinx myself.

Dave Ferraty sp? had been drinking heavily. About 2 liters of Irish whiskey a day. His Dr. saw his problem and told him he needed help. David looked back and responded "I'm doing fine drinking it all by myself."

Eims,

Tex summed it up quite well.  But if you want to delve a bit deeper...

I have prepared a 60+ page .pdf file that explains the science and rationale for what I call a "proper" diet and "appropriate" supplements for cancer sufferers. It is something that I personally follow.

I have been taking the maximum dosage of Sutent (50mg/day - 4wks on/1 week off) since this past August when mets were discovered on my sacrum (base of my spine) and my left femur (thigh/hip).  I also had an 11cm tumor in my left kidney removed back in May 2010.

In all this time I have had no significant side effects while taking Sutent (plus Xgeva for my bone health).  And the last full body nuclear bone scan showed that my sacrum now "looks normal" (quote from my bone cancer specialist) and the lesions on my left femur are only showing "dramatic" new bone growth.

I attribute my lack of side effects primarily to the diet and the supplements I take.  Much of what I am doing is based on the book "Life Over Cancer" by Dr. Keith I. Block.  I also consult with him - although he is not my primary oncologist.

If you are interested in a detailed explanation of what I have been doing, please email me at: n.feldman@videopost.com and will be happy to email you a copy.

-NanoSecond (Neil)

todd121 said:

Diet Changes

I made quite a few changes after I had my surgery. I enjoyed ice tea with sugar 1-2 times a day and strong coffee with cream and sugar in the morning. All gone. I don't like it without the sugar and fat, so, gone. The coffee has started to creep back, but it will be gone when I'm back from vacation. I cut back on meat drastically, particularly beef. I stick to fish, chicken or lean pork (in small amounts), and increased veggies and legumes. I wasn't a big fruit fan, but have been forcing myself to eat some every day. I now eat oatmeal most mornings with some fresh fruit and walnuts (maybe some prunes or dates). If I want to sweeten something, I'm using honey.

I'm eating more whole grains, and almost no rice, potatoes or white bread (I over ate these before).

Sodas are gone. Not just because of the sugar, but the phosphorous in the form of phosphoric acid. Too much phosphorous is bad for your kidneys and bad for your bones. Also, carbonic acid, also found in sodas, is bad for your bones. I want to keep my bones strong now that I'm concerned about RCC spreading to them. Anyways, I haven't been a big fan of sodas for a long time, so this was pretty easy.

I was eating a lot of bananas before, but have cut back (practically eliminated) because of the potassium.

Salt is gone. I salt nothing now, whereas I used to salt everything before I tasted it. Salted popcorn? Gone. I used to eat it buttered and salted to excess.

I've switched to cooking only with olive oil, whereas I used to use vegetable oil.

I've almost eliminated processed meats, where I used to eat quite a bit of ham or similar sandwich meats.

I cut back/nearly eliminated alcohol. I did this because the wine I was drinking was giving me a lot of empty calories, which I don't need, and I can't seem to drink wine without eating cheeses or nuts to excess. Another reason I gave it up, is it interferes with my sleep. I have sleep apnea and already have serious sleep issues, and I notice alcohol makes them worse. I will have a glass of wine or a beer or a martini now and then, but rarely these days.

I love cheese, but I gave it up. I'm too heavy, and the stuff is just too high in salt and fat. I've lost about 15 pounds since my surgery. I want to keep that going, but this vacation home to Oklahoma definitely set me back. My mom and sister cooked all my favorites loaded with sugar, fat, and salt. I indulged some, but I don't feel too badly about it. I did better than I've ever done, so I'm pretty happy with myself. When I get home tomorrow, I'll be back in the driver's seat on my diet and it will be easier to accomplish my goals. I'm still reading up on nutrition and cancer, and I hope with more knowledge I'll make better choices and lose some more weight.

Todd

Forgot to mention, I'm forcing myself to drink water. I have to make myself do it. I don't know why, but I've always been a chronic under drinker of water. I just hate the stuff.

Now, for example, if I do have the coffee, I make myself drink a couple of cups of water afterwards. I never would have done this before. Similarly with that martini or glass of wine.

And I used to over-use antihistamines and decongestants due to my seasonal allergies, and now I'm using absolutely the minimum or none at all.

Todd

todd121 said:

Diet Changes

I made quite a few changes after I had my surgery. I enjoyed ice tea with sugar 1-2 times a day and strong coffee with cream and sugar in the morning. All gone. I don't like it without the sugar and fat, so, gone. The coffee has started to creep back, but it will be gone when I'm back from vacation. I cut back on meat drastically, particularly beef. I stick to fish, chicken or lean pork (in small amounts), and increased veggies and legumes. I wasn't a big fruit fan, but have been forcing myself to eat some every day. I now eat oatmeal most mornings with some fresh fruit and walnuts (maybe some prunes or dates). If I want to sweeten something, I'm using honey.

I'm eating more whole grains, and almost no rice, potatoes or white bread (I over ate these before).

Sodas are gone. Not just because of the sugar, but the phosphorous in the form of phosphoric acid. Too much phosphorous is bad for your kidneys and bad for your bones. Also, carbonic acid, also found in sodas, is bad for your bones. I want to keep my bones strong now that I'm concerned about RCC spreading to them. Anyways, I haven't been a big fan of sodas for a long time, so this was pretty easy.

I was eating a lot of bananas before, but have cut back (practically eliminated) because of the potassium.

Salt is gone. I salt nothing now, whereas I used to salt everything before I tasted it. Salted popcorn? Gone. I used to eat it buttered and salted to excess.

I've switched to cooking only with olive oil, whereas I used to use vegetable oil.

I've almost eliminated processed meats, where I used to eat quite a bit of ham or similar sandwich meats.

I cut back/nearly eliminated alcohol. I did this because the wine I was drinking was giving me a lot of empty calories, which I don't need, and I can't seem to drink wine without eating cheeses or nuts to excess. Another reason I gave it up, is it interferes with my sleep. I have sleep apnea and already have serious sleep issues, and I notice alcohol makes them worse. I will have a glass of wine or a beer or a martini now and then, but rarely these days.

I love cheese, but I gave it up. I'm too heavy, and the stuff is just too high in salt and fat. I've lost about 15 pounds since my surgery. I want to keep that going, but this vacation home to Oklahoma definitely set me back. My mom and sister cooked all my favorites loaded with sugar, fat, and salt. I indulged some, but I don't feel too badly about it. I did better than I've ever done, so I'm pretty happy with myself. When I get home tomorrow, I'll be back in the driver's seat on my diet and it will be easier to accomplish my goals. I'm still reading up on nutrition and cancer, and I hope with more knowledge I'll make better choices and lose some more weight.

Todd

Hi Todd,

I agree with virtually all the changes you have made to your diet.  I predict that within about one month (if not sooner) you will really feel a difference in "well-being".  I didn't expect that when I adopted a very similar diet months ago - but for me it was almost like coming out of a fog.  I have not felt so good in decades.  This is completely ridiculous considering that I am stage IV and on the maximum dosage of a drug (Sutent) that so many other folks "dread" due to its notorious side effects.

Two small nit-picks:

1.  Olive oil (extra virgin cold-pressed is preferred - it is the least refined) is a wonderful thing to put on or in anything you like - as long as you don't cook in it.  All vegatable oils, when cooked, can easily become "damaged".  That is, they no longer can convey oxygen "properly".  This makes them the equivalent of "trans-fats".  The body does not understand that these fatty acids are damaged - so it goes ahead and tries to metabolize them.  This, in turn, may lead to a lack of sufficient oxygen getting into the cell - and that is the very thing one should avoid at all costs.  So, contrary to what you may have read all these years, cook with in saturated fat instead.  Since I refuse to consume any dairy products anymore I cook in coconut oil.  However, if you have not given up dairy, go ahead and cook in butter or ghee (although I still strongly recommend against all dairy products for several other reasons).  The bottom line is that the very latest science shows that saturated fats have been "demonized" far too much all these years.*

2.  It is still probably OK to very quickly sautee in olive oil if you would like to.

-Neil

*Guide to fats:

Fat is the collective shorthand name given to any large collection of smaller units called “fatty acids”.  There are three families of fatty acids of interest: saturated fatty acids, mono-unsaturated fatty acids, and poly-unsaturated fatty acids (also called PUFA’s).  What makes one fatty acid “saturated” and another “unsaturated” has to do with its molecular architecture and composition. In particular it has to do with the number of chemical double bonds that exist in its molecular chains. Saturated fats do not contain any double-bonded carbon atoms. Mono-unsaturated fats have one double bond while poly-unsaturated fats have more than one.

Saturated fats are primarily found in animal foods (meat, dairy products, eggs, etc.) and, less often, in certain plant foods such as coconut, coconut oil, and palm oil.  They tend to be solid at room temperature and soften when warm. They are very stable. When exposed to high heat they aren’t as easily damaged as all the unsaturated fats are. 

The most abundant saturated fatty acid is palmitic acid (also called palmitate). It contains 16 carbon atoms, all of which are fully saturated. High levels of palmitic acid activate an inflammation pathway that when activated in those cells of the pancreas which secrete insulin (the beta cells) results in beta cell death. Beta cell death significantly contributes to reduced insulin production and secretion that can lead to insulin resistance.

Foods to avoid due to high levels of palmitic acid are: palm oil; shortening; butter (unsalted is the worst); and lard.