Food Tips in Recovery

Captain Australia
Captain Australia Member Posts: 21
in Head and Neck Cancer #1

Hi There

So last week I had my clearance PET scan, but it was inconclusive.  Apparently my inner mouth & throat have suffered such a profound insult that they still haven't healed up (still, after 3 months, thick with mucus).  The scan couldn't differentiate between damage, inflammation and cancer, so I have to re-scan in 2 months.  (Thankfully the doc said if he had to bet, he would guess it's inflammation only, and if it is cancer, it's gone from massive to tiny, so we've at least unlocked a surgical option).

Anyway, still having a hard time eating "normal" foods.  One of the first solid foods I could eat was poached eggs (which also happened to be the last food I could manage before I became PEG dependant).

So my question is pretty simple:

If you've had a similar experience (where poached eggs were a go-to food), can you suggest any similar foods to trial while my body is still healing up and getting rid of this mucus ?  (I think it's a combination of the mucus & dry mouth that's making the eating difficult - I have maybe 60% or more of my taste back, and no more rancid dysgeusia).

So yeah - any tips and tricks with food I could try ?

(Not so much interested in trialling which foods I can taste - it's purely about finding foods that have a similar consistency and eatability to poached eggs - ie, they go down easy)

Comments

  • Grandmax4
    Grandmax4 Member Posts: 723
    #2
    yum yums

    I ate these foods and thought they were delicious while healing, butternut squash soup with crushed ritz crackers,pancakes with enough butter and syrup they were almost liquid,plain yogurt yoplait vanilla, fried egg yolks only, I know there was more, but, can't remember. I drank scandishakes (amazon) made with crushed ice and a little milk.

    best wishes to you 

  • AnotherSurvivor
    AnotherSurvivor Member Posts: 384 Member
    edited March 2017 #3
    I took my swallow problem up

    I took my swallow problem up with my Emergency Med doctor son and one of his buddies and was surprised to learn that at least in theory it is harder to swallow thin stuff than thicker stuff.  I think you need slimey, not thin.  Also, mild taste;  I did mild tikka masala last week and it was a reach.   Push protein.  Even when I was finally getting things down I went back and did high protein nutrition shakes for a couple of weeks, made sure I was getting 200 - 300% of daily recommended.  I was surprised to learn when I could finally experiment that I was not getting coated mucus from milk, but from the sticky corn syrup in the nutrition drinks.  Milk actually went down easy, and can be a fluid that transports lots of things, plus whole milk is 150 calories per 8oz ccup.  

  • Chicklette
    Chicklette Member Posts: 225
    edited March 2017 #4
    Canned fruit

    I'm New here and this is not from experience, but I am a pretty good cook so know textures.  I suggest maybe canned peaches, pears or maybe thin mashed potatoes.  Maybe you could try Mac and Cheese with lots of extra milk to make it soupy. I'm going to have to put my cooking skills to work when my husband is at your stage.  He currently hasn't started treatment but I'm thinking ahead.  Good luck finding a variety of foods to eat.

  • CivilMatt
    CivilMatt Member Posts: 4,724 Member
    edited March 2017 #5
    2 poached eggs please.

    CA,

    You are worth more than poached eggs.  While trying all things poached eggs easy, you should (you might) want to break on through to the other millions of foods just waiting for the curious H&N member.  Many of us have found a buffet a good way to try your food wings and there will probably be some things as good as poached eggs.

    I was mainly on smoothies for 7 months, but tried everything and often.  The awful feel and taste were the guards at my food gate, but there were successes like tomatoes, cucumbers and olive oil (go figure).

    A poached egg sounds pretty good.

    Matt

  • Constant_Pain96
    Constant_Pain96 Member Posts: 7
    edited April 2017 #6
    Beany cheesy mash

    I was losing weight during treatment, because the Ensure made me sick. I wasn't being fussy, it made me nauseous then I vomited.

    When I left hospital, I built myself up with baked beans+butter+grated cheese+mashed/creamed potatoes. 

    It's still my comfort food, 21 years on (& 10kg overweight) Cool

  • Britneyb
    Britneyb Member Posts: 2
    #7
    Can't eat due to no taste buds

    I am currently doing radiation with 9 days left. I haven't been able to taste food since week 2. All I can eat is jello and drink water, chew sugar free gum. My mouth constantly stays dry I feel so miserable I have stomach pains from lack of food. Is there anything I can do?? Please help.

  • soonermom
    soonermom Member Posts: 155
    #8
    VHC Boost

    You order it on Amazon.  540 cal in 8 oz.  It is keeping my husband alive right now.

  • Chicklette
    Chicklette Member Posts: 225
    edited July 2017 #9
    Britneyb said:

    Can't eat due to no taste buds

    I am currently doing radiation with 9 days left. I haven't been able to taste food since week 2. All I can eat is jello and drink water, chew sugar free gum. My mouth constantly stays dry I feel so miserable I have stomach pains from lack of food. Is there anything I can do?? Please help.

    You can also get high calorie ensure

    it only has 360 calories, but you can get it by the case at BJ's Wholesale stores.

  • rsp
    rsp Member Posts: 103 Member
    #10
    High Calorie Boost

    Britney- Like soonermom said, get on Amazon and otder the High Calorie Boost.  It has 540 calories and really makes a difference.  You should also look into ordering Benecalorie from Amazon.  It is a small cup of thick liquid that can be added to almost anything, and it gives you an additional 330 calories.  So, if you add the Benecalorie to the High calorie Boost, (along with a few scoops of ice cream) you are talking about a milkshake well over 1,000 calories.

    My husband lost 90 pounds, so these items were essential in his not starving to death.  In fact, he is 6 months post radiation and he STILL has a Boost for breakfast and a milkshake at night.

    The stuff is not cheap, but when you need it, you find a way.

    Also, for your dry mouth, there is something you can order on line called Stoppers 4. He keeps it in his pocket and on the end table for when he is sleeping.  When we go out, he ALWAYS has a water bottle with him. 

    Best of luck to you!

  • lewcap
    lewcap Member Posts: 23
    #11
    Chicklette said:

    Canned fruit

    I'm New here and this is not from experience, but I am a pretty good cook so know textures.  I suggest maybe canned peaches, pears or maybe thin mashed potatoes.  Maybe you could try Mac and Cheese with lots of extra milk to make it soupy. I'm going to have to put my cooking skills to work when my husband is at your stage.  He currently hasn't started treatment but I'm thinking ahead.  Good luck finding a variety of foods to eat.

    Mac and Cheese

    I've had great luck with pureed mac an cheese with milk added until I could do THAT consistency on THAT day. Mind you, I'm still in threatment and imagine things will get worse for me...

  • tbret
    tbret Member Posts: 76 Member
    #12
    A few things to try

    I had success with potato soup my wife made.  Heavy cream and things in it.  It went down well.

    Thinned-down Cream of Wheat (not oatmeal, different experience, and grits didn't work for me, either).

    Seafood bisque -  not a lot of calories, but filling.

    Chicken noodle soup with the noodles either blended out of existence or cooked until they are falling apart.

    I lived on Ensure "Enlive" for months, but found that I started feeling much better when I started forcing myself to eat real food.  I found pork loin (not over-cooked) to be something I could chew and swallow.  It wasn't always easy, but it was always better than not-eating.

     

     

  • AnotherSurvivor
    AnotherSurvivor Member Posts: 384 Member
    #13
    I do a morning potato hash

    I do a morning potato hash with my fried eggs.  I dice the potatoes in to small chunks, put them in a bowl, and microwave them on high for 10 minutes.  Then I brown them in the frying pan when I am finished cooking my eggs.  The microwave step basically turns them into baked potatoes (e.g. soft) and the stir-fry in butter step makes them nicely slick.  Problem is potatoes don't have a lot of calories unless they're french fries.  As I've gotten better (both in health and cooking) I've started experimenting, adding diced sweet onion, bell peppers.  I also sort of gave up on trying to eat lots and just suppliment with the nutrition drinks.  They really are annoyingly sweet, but it ramps up the cals and especially the protein since I go with the extra protein form.  

  • AnotherSurvivor
    AnotherSurvivor Member Posts: 384 Member
    #14
    I would also look at salads.

    I would also look at salads.  I have found there is an amazing amount of moisture in salad greens, olives, peppers, etc.  I now eat a huge daily salad for lunch, pretty much with no assist from side amounts of water.  I amp up the calories with kalmata olives, artichokes, green olives.  Depending on source, five Greek olives is 100 calories.  I end up with no possiblity of constipation, no problem with dry mouth while eating, and it seems to be fixing some of the digestive track problems from my chemo.  It does cause problems with my blood thinner since vitamin K reverses the effects of Warfarin, but there are alterative drugs which I'll probably switch to.

  • SuzJ
    SuzJ Member Posts: 446 Member
    edited July 2017 #15
    I'd kill for a salad, beets,

    I'd kill for a salad, beets, tomatoes, peppers, cheese, bacon ...olives,  - Oh to have lower teeth to chew with..

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