Boost and more Boost

Dennis, 

I am sorry that you have issues with your Feeding tube and it will be removed. Not knowing your weight and the calorie amount per bottle of Boost I will give you a simple example to go by for calorie intake per day. 

The rule is this, whatever weight you are at currently, multiply that by 12 and that is the calorie intake you need to stay at that weight. Sample, 200lbs X 12= 2400 calories this was my actual weight I was trying to maintain during my treatments. 

If you need to gain weight, take in an additional 500 calories per day. to lose weight, subtract 500 calories per day. Doing this for 1 week should change your weight by 1 pound per week. After you take in any calories, try to take a walk around the block or just move around for awhile to get your heart rate moving a bit. 

My Best to You and Everyone Here

over several months....there's over 500 calories per carton (that was 13 swallows in my cancer venacular)....There are other things that can be added to your diet....to try and get more rounded nutrition.  Baby steps....

p 

I'm 7.5 months post, didn't do tube, mostly back to normal on diet, tho some things, particularly dry, I don't even try.  I have been on and off protein shakes several times, finally decided to do them for at least all of the rest of this year.  I dilute mine with cold fat-free milk, at least one every day.  The extra protein does help.

Dennis, my husband just had his PEG tube removed.  With a lot of diligence you can maintain your wieght but you have to pay attention to the calorie calculation people are describing.  We just weaned off the VHC Boost, which pretty much kept my husband alive.  Right now he is able to eat some things like avacado, eggs, tomato and other fresh veggies if he has dip for them.  He is pretty much a vegetarian right now.  He eats lots and lots of soups.  The thing that is keeping him going right now is the Vitamix.  He could not tolerate food mixed in a standard home blender.  I do a smoothie for him for breakfast every morning.  I pack in every calorie I can.  At night I am often making him a soup in the Vitamix.  For lunch he keeps some of the higher calorie Boost drinks and uses those if there is nothing else on site.  Good luck.  It is doable but you do have to count the calories.  I got a scale to go with the Vitamix that has recipes I can make with it.  The scale actually counts the calories for me as I put the food in.  You can see it demonstrated on You Tube. It is all pricey but we just had to do something to get him back to the taste and nutritional benefits of real food.  Vitamix has a great website and as others mentioned you can find tons of recipes online as well.  The  Oral Cancer Foundation has a link to use if you buy a Vitamix that benefits their efforts to support patients.  Also, if you cannot afford a Vitamix you can contact OCF and they will get you one.  That's one of the things the proceeds of those that use the link to purchase supports.  I wish you the best of luck.  My husband was so happy to get the tube out but now monitoring his intake has become more of trick.  You can do it  

Sorry about your situation, but its a good thing alot of us have been thru it and may be able to help you. Its not much but if you are able to swallow anything at all try to eat as much ice cream as possible it will put the wieght an fast...good luck to you!

El23fields said:

weight loss

I'm almost 3 weeks post RADS and am in a lot of pain which was expected.  I never had a feeding tube, but am drinking the Boost / Ensure a lot because it's the only thing that doesn't hurt terribly when I drink it.  I'm also trying to get in extra protein since it aides in healing.  I've probably lost about 15-20 pounds since the begining of all this.  Honestly I'm getting super depressed about not being able to eat and taste things like I used to.  I know that it will never be like it was, but I'm feeling like it will NEVER get better.  I'm really just being a big baby and need to vent, but wondering how to stay positive and keep my weight up and stay healthy so I can heal properly.  I can't do anything too cold or hot and even the blandest stuff stings like crazy when I try to eat and swallow it.  Some days I feel like I'm going to lose my mind and I know I still have months or even years to continue to deal with this.  Just having a tough day.

My husband had days like you are describing.  He lived on VHC Boost, then Boost/Ensure then Carnation Instant Breakfast.  A huge positive change was geting a Vitamix and blending real food for him.  He has kind of become a vegetarian but he is learning to enjoy some unblended foods again too.  It was a very, very, very slow process.  I know that is not what you want to hear but focus on the fact he is working, talking and traveling.  He is so happy and feels he is doing better even if it is at the speed of a glacier.  I keep telling him you have to focus on changes from month to month not day to day.  Every month he is doing better for sure.  There were certainly days that we did not see improvement.  I think the recovery is incremental just like I felt the effects of treatment snowballed, I feel like his recovery has as well.  It took time to build up momentum during recovery but I feel like he is certainly moving in the right direction.  

soonermom said:

Long process

My husband had days like you are describing.  He lived on VHC Boost, then Boost/Ensure then Carnation Instant Breakfast.  A huge positive change was geting a Vitamix and blending real food for him.  He has kind of become a vegetarian but he is learning to enjoy some unblended foods again too.  It was a very, very, very slow process.  I know that is not what you want to hear but focus on the fact he is working, talking and traveling.  He is so happy and feels he is doing better even if it is at the speed of a glacier.  I keep telling him you have to focus on changes from month to month not day to day.  Every month he is doing better for sure.  There were certainly days that we did not see improvement.  I think the recovery is incremental just like I felt the effects of treatment snowballed, I feel like his recovery has as well.  It took time to build up momentum during recovery but I feel like he is certainly moving in the right direction.  

I had cancer treatments almost 18 months ago. I had a G-tube at three weeks in. I had lost over 50 lbs by the end of my treatments. I could not even swallow water.  I lived on VHC Boost.  I am sorry to hear of your cancer and glad you have made it without having a feeding tube.  I too felt as if things would never get better.  The fatigue that comes from treatment and wieght loss can be horrible.  I didn;t start to feel better until I got my G-tube out.  I felt sick every time I ate.  And it was all I could do to maintain a steady weight.  I had the tube for a year.  I have to have my throat stretched every so often to keep it open so I can eat.  Which consists of very soft and moist foods.  My taste is pretty bland and it is strange to me but a lot of foods taste spicy even when they are not. I did start to feel better when I got the tube out.  I don't know if it has to do with time passed since treatments or the eating a little more because I don't feel nauseated. I still can't eat or drink anything hot. Whenever I feel down about things I look at my family and I'm grateful to be here with them.  Hang in there and be encouraged.  It will get better.  It takes TIME.  I can't say how long.  Everyone is diferent.  I pray it will be soon for you. Get as many calories as you can.  I hope this helps.