Food After Treatment Ends

For me its been a lot of trial and error. I started with very small portions of some of my favorite pre-treatment foods, adding variety and larger portions a little at a time.

I have a colostomy, so deal with slightly different digestive issues than those without, but....still what goes in has to come out. I also love spicey hot foods, but do have to practice moderation. Its been almost 2yrs for me and I am able to tolerate more than before but will probably always take it easy to avoid problems.

Just try small amounts of something you've really been missing.......wishing you luck!

I'm two months out and doing pretty well with food.  If I eat something that doesn't agree, it just means a few extra trips to the bathroom.  Kale and spinach even cooked seems to go right thru me undigested.  And greasy food is not really my friend anymore which is probably a good thing.  I eat smaller portions as indegestion is a new problem for me if I overstuff myself.  All in all things are improving on a daily basis.  I hope you can look foward to some normalcy again here soon.  

pamela_preib said:

I'm two months out and doing

I'm two months out and doing pretty well with food.  If I eat something that doesn't agree, it just means a few extra trips to the bathroom.  Kale and spinach even cooked seems to go right thru me undigested.  And greasy food is not really my friend anymore which is probably a good thing.  I eat smaller portions as indegestion is a new problem for me if I overstuff myself.  All in all things are improving on a daily basis.  I hope you can look foward to some normalcy again here soon.  

BBdogs--Thanks for reminding me that you are still in treatment.  I think you'll find that once you are done and your bowels settle down, you will be able to eat some of those foods you love, perhaps in small amounts in the beginning.  Don't worry about that now--just get through treatment.  You can do it!

Pam--If you look at a food list of do's and don't's for a low fiber, low residue diet, spinach and kale are definitely on the don't list!  I avoid both of those now.  Way too much fiber!  At some point you may be able to eat those without problems, but it might be just a tad early yet.

LaCh said:

to all

Just to show how different we all are, practically ALL I eat are fruits and vegetables and have been since the 2nd week post treatment. Kale, spinach, broccoli, collard greens, all of that, I throw it all into a pot with carrots, potatoes, garlic, onions, leeks and whatever else I have and when it's done I puree the whole thing. It's the consistancy of soup, thick or thin depending on how much water I've used.  I also puree together frozen strawberries, rasberries and occasionally blueberries and drink that. I also have digestion problems which seem related to portion size but as for frequency, I'd be happy to have increased frequency as my digestive process seems to have slowed way, way down, not from the intestines but from stomach emptying. Why? Who knows.  As for a plant based diet being cancer-protective, this is why I said in another posting that it sure can't hurt, but that one ought not to feel too confident in knowing the whys of cancer-cause. I've eaten the "Mediterranean Diet" for the last 40 years, in addition to about 23 of those during which the only animal protein I ate was fish.  And yet here I am, a person who had cancer. (I'm also a non smoker, non drinker and have never had HPV). So who knows. You can do what you can do and then you just have to let it go.  Sometimes things just happen. The whys aren't important, how you respond, I think, is.  Anyway, I digress.  I'm 8 weeks post treatment and eat fish very occasionally now--it's very expensive--but 95% of my diet is plant based. (I also drink plain goat-milk kefir and occasionally, eat goat-milk yogurt.  And eggs).  I miss the days when I went to the bathroon 4 times in a day. Now I'm lucky to go once, twice is a gift and three times, rare as it is, is like hitting the lotto.  Anyway, the bottom line is experimentation. Every body responds differently and there isn't a one-diet-fits-all. 

Wow it is amazing how different we all respond to treatment and recovery.  Just reading your list of foods and what you do with them I got a little jealous, although I have made a little progress in expanding my food list.  I find now that I can eat a little sauteed chard (and not pulverize it) with rice or pasta as a base.  It felt like a small triumph that I can eat my beloved greens.  I haven't tried berries yet - I have a feeling that would be a big mistake right now.

mp327 said:

Gas & Bloating Remedy

I just found the following recipe in Prevention Magazine for a smoothie which contains digestive aids to help with excessive gas and bloating, which can be a problem for some of us post-treatment.  I thought I'd just pass it along FYI.

1/2 c. chamomile or dandelion root tea, cooled

1 c. strawberries

1 c. pineapple chunks

1/2 c. vanilla yogurt with live and active cultures

1 tsp. honey or maple syrup

1/2 c. ice cubes

Place all ingredients in a blender and process on high to the desired consistency.

bloating and feeling way way too full are problems for me too but true to form, I once again fall outside the bell curve if the anti bloat combo works for others. I make an almost identical drink (minus the ice and honey/syrup). It inflates me like the goodyear blimp, just like most foods these days. 

eihtak said:

Bloating....

I have found that just a couple cups of chamomile tea alone does wonders for me.......I can tell you that picking for 3 days out of grandchildrens Easter baskets does NO good at all!!!

well, i can give it a try but i'm not optimistic.

Lorikat said:

Gkids Easter baskets!  OMG, I

Gkids Easter baskets!  OMG, I bet I'm up 3 pounds and my gut is KILLING me!

 

That's the rub for me; I eat a plant based diet, no red meat, fish now and then, no sugar, no added salt, no packaged, canned or processed foods, no junk, no nothing... and it doesn't seem to matter, I still have digestion probs. It makes me think that if I'm going to have these issues, regardless of what I eat, I might as WELL eat all the crap that I want.

Marynb said:

Food
About a month ago, my PCP suggested I be tested for food allergies to rule out other causes for the issues I was having with food. My diet is plant based, no processed foods, no junk, low fat. As it turned out, I had a pretty severe allergy to wheat and eggs. After treatment I was eating eggs pretty frequently to add protein to my diet. Also, I was eating more wheat than I ever had, because I was eating peanut butter on whole wheat for breakfast some mornings. I have eliminated those foods and my digestion issues have really improved. It is pretty well accepted now that inflammation in the body can cause cancers. Food allergies cause inflammation. I really advise that anyone with digestion issues be tested for food allergies. It is well worth it! An ounce of prevention......

not a bad idea. I have no food allergies, never have had any food allergies but I'm beginning to wonder now if this might be the problem. Eating is becoming a sure guarantee to inflating like a balloon and it's getting a little 'old.'

That said, my issues seem related to food volume, not food type. I can eat small amounts of anything without problems (including eggs and wheat) but large amounts of anything and I'm as inflated as the Hindenburg. Nevertheless, I'm going to discuss my digestion issues with my gastroenterologist later today after she gives her best shot at convincing me to have a PET scan, fails to do so and we then move on to other things (I actually love her and don't mind that she's going to lobby for a PET scan--which won't change my mind, but that's ok). 

I'm so glad you posted this. I have horrible acid reflux issues now and I didn't before cancer treatment. I'm on a plant based diet, but I still can't eat broccoli or cauliflower unless it's pureed. I'm on acid reflux medicine too. I am 3 months post treatment. One fruit that helps me is bananas and I eat a lot of them. Sometimes I get really frustrated because I felt better before treatment. They had to poison and burn me in order to make me better. It's better than the alternative. You would think they could find a better way to treat anal cancer.