Melatonin and useless nutritionist

There's quite a bit of controversy over supplements and chemo

When I was on FOLFOX plus Avastin my oncologist told me to stay away  from quite a few things, including green tea, turmeric and  several other  herbal supplements because she  thought   quite a few of the studies on  supplements during chemo  were inconclusive and  she would rather be safe than sorry. I think, too, as is pointed out in the linked article below,  most of the studies that have been done on melatonin and chemotherapy have been conducted outside the US, and in most European  countries,  melatonin is a prescription drug.  In the US there is less regulation of  supplements:  "Many of the studies included in the above meta-analysis were conducted in Europe, where melatonin is a prescribed medication rather than a supplement. It is unclear from the studies which melatonin product was used and whether it was analyzed for purity prior to its use in the studies. In the United States, melatonin is sold as an over-the-counter supplement and made synthetically.

Labdoor, a company that tests supplements for label accuracy, product purity, nutritional value, ingredient safety, and projected efficacy, tested 30 melatonin supplements.¹⁵ Labdoor found that nine out of the 30 melatonin products deviated off label claims by at least 20%.¹⁵ One product tested contained < 1% of the label claim for melatonin and another product tested contained 47.4% more than the product’s label claimed.¹⁵ Fifteen of the 30 melatonin products were within 10% of their label claims. Two of the products’ arsenic levels were higher than California Proposition 65 levels of 0.1 mcg/day of inorganic arsenic levels."

 https://www.ahcmedia.com/articles/139656-melatonin-and-chemotherapy-a-review

Maybe you could ask the nutritionist  and/or oncologist the reason for the  2 days  before and 2 days after chemo restriction.

Grace/lizard44

 

Ruthmomto4 said:

I could and I will

I will have my husband ask the dr at the next infusion appointment. I am too tense right now and I would ever want to aim my emotion at someone for no reason. I am laying low I know it's not me going through this but I am a wreck with worry. He is doing Folfiri and avastin. 

I beg to disagree

 I know it's not me going through this but I am a wreck with worry.

You are going through it. You are almost as much a part of this Cancer journey as your husband is.  It becomes a couple or a family diagnosis.  Don't dismiss your part or your emotions, which are just as important to take care of.

I am glad you are here. We are here to support you.

Tru 

Supplements

My oncologist told me to not take anything that was a supplement.  OTC drugs can interfere with the chemo and lessen the results.  Never started my supplements until after treatment ended.  Every doctor is different though.  Hope you can sort this out as it's gotten different reviews.

Kim

One supplement warning

My oncologist warned me about only one supplement, St.John's Wort. This was because I am getting irinotecan. Studies have shown that St. John's Wort can reduce the efficacy of irinotecan by as much as 47%. 

No supplements...

Like Kim said, the doctors think supplements could interact or cancel the effects of the chemo. My oncologist told me not to take antioxidants or probiotics because it could interfere with the effects of the chemo. Instead, I kept doing the antioxidants, enzymes, and probiotics, and ended the chemo. Still here after ten years!