Foods to avoid
Right at the top are vitamin preparations. Some people think that the additional intake of vitamins is good for themselves and supports their body in the fight against cancer, but the opposite is the case. Frequently, high-dose vitamin preparations are more beneficial for cancer because they strengthen not only the body cells but also the cancer cells.This can even lead to the vitamins weakening the chemotherapeutic agents used, since they can inhibit the mechanism of the cytostatic agent to destroy the cell.
Vitamins should be supplied in their natural form via healthy foods such as fruit and vegetables. If a vitamin deficiency develops during the treatment of cancer, the treating oncologist can compensate for this deficiency with suitable preparations. Grapefruits (grapefruit) are rich in vitamins but are not recommended during cancer therapy.
They contain an enzyme which accelerates the liver metabolism and can therefore lead to a faster breakdown of some cytostatic drugs (drugs which inhibit the growth of cells). The effect in the body therefore diminishes more quickly and the therapy is less effective. The same applies to St. John’s wort preparations and some medications, so be sure to pay attention when prescribing them.
Similar caution must be exercised with orange juice. Although it has no effect on the liver, in larger quantities it can aggravate the side effects of radiotherapy on the skin. A major issue is additives in food.
During cancer, the body’s metabolism is heavily burdened by cell waste and medication. Foods that contain many additives, such as flavor enhancers, preservatives, stabilizers, etc., represent an additional burden for the body. Ready meals, fast food and similar should therefore be better replaced by freshly cooked and balanced meals.
Alcohol in excess should also be avoided for the same reasons. It weakens the immune system, strains the liver and with its degradation substances also the whole body. There is a nutritional theory according to which cancer cells consume mainly sugar and carbohydrates (the so-called Warburg effect).
According to this theory, it is recommended not to consume carbohydrates and sugary food in order to virtually “starve out” the cancer. However, studies have shown that this diet is associated with significant weight loss, which has a negative effect on survival time. Such starvation diets are therefore strongly discouraged during a cancer illness! As already mentioned, a significant weight loss is to be expected during cancer. This pathological loss of enormous body weight can be found in the clinical picture of “cachexia“.
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